Perspectives on Permitting and Environmental Review of Nature-Based Solutions

As floods and other natural hazards increase in frequency and severity, threats to natural and critical infrastructure (e.g., evacuation routes, military installations) intensify. Natural and nature-based features (NNBF) are progressively considered valuable solutions for disaster risk mitigation, and proper designs provide dynamic adaptive capacity to extreme events and multi-functional benefits beyond projects’ targeted objectives. However, uncertainties on the performance, behavior, and longevity of NNBF pose challenges to implementation, as regulated protocols and long-term documented outcomes are needed to make NNBF projects more competitive with proven gray infrastructure. Permitting and environmental review processes are complicated by these challenges and vary across national, regional, and local jurisdictions, disrupting NNBF adoption and implementation. This research addresses gaps in existing permitting guidelines and practices by providing a federal planning level review to inform and promote NNBF implementation efforts. By coupling interviews with US Army Corps of Engineers project managers, regulators, and planners with existing permitting literature review, we report examples of successful NNBF project permitting and implementation. Recommendations include deliberate cross-agency coordination throughout NNBF project conceptualization and design phases, iterative learning as implementation increases, use of pilot-scale initiatives for novel method development, and leverage of multiple objectives (e.g., habitat improvement and flood risk reduction) to increase buy-in across diverse stakeholder groups. Through communicating NNBF permitting options, examples, and recommendations, more focused guidance and regulatory frameworks can be established to decrease barriers in the future.