Habitat Management Division Permitting

The environmental permits issued by the Habitat Management Division are of three types; subaqueous or bottomlands, tidal wetlands, and coastal primary sand dunes. The division's authority and responsibilities emanate from Subtitle III of Title 28.2 of the Code of Virginia and specifically regulates physical encroachment into these valuable resource areas.

The permit process relies on a single Virginia joint local/state/federal permit application. The review process, for which this application was originally designed, takes into account various local state and federal statutes governing the disturbance or alteration of environmental resources. The Marine Resources Commission plays a central role as an information clearinghouse for all three levels of review. Applications receive independent yet concurrent review by local wetland boards, the Marine Resources Commission, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Joint Permit Applications are available in many local government planning offices and at the Commission's main office in downtown Newport News. The permit fee is $25 ($100 for projects over $10,000); see Section 28.2 - 1206 of the Code of Virginia for a full description of permit fees and royalties. To receive an application by mail, please contact us directly at (757) 247-2252. Application forms may be downloaded from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Corps JPA link.

For assistance with the permit process in a specific area of the State, click on the following link to see a map of the territory assignments of Marine Resource Commission Environmental Engineers with their phone numbers and email addresses (email addresses can be accessed by clicking on the individual's name).

Governor Tim Kaine issued Executive Order 101 (2009) on November 11, 2009 that declared a state of emergency to exist for the Commonwealth of Virginia based on severe weather from prolonged periods of wet and windy weather from the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida and a coastal Nor’easter causing widespread power outages, flooding and transportation difficulties throughout the State. Pursuant to Governor Kaine's Executive Order 106 (2009), VMRC has established a Joint Permit Application for emergency authorization to reconstruct previously permitted structures destroyed by this storm. You may retrieve this form by accessing the following link: Emergency JPA 2010

Click on link for more information on the Commission's Habitat Management Division.
Regulations and Guidelines related to the Habitat Management Division can be found in the Regulation Index
Click on link to go to a page maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers that has links to local wetlands boards. (leave VMRC web site)

Shellfish Aquaculture