San Francisco Bay Restoration Regulatory Integration Team (BRRIT)

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, National Marine Fisheries Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, and San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control
BRRIT Team
Grant Amount:

$650,000 to be allocated annually for up to five years, adjusted annually by the CPI.  An additional $600,000 from others will be accepted annually by the Restoration Authority and disbursed to the BRRIT. 

Location:

Regionwide

Measure AA Program Category:

Safe, Clean Water and Pollution Prevention Program; Vital Fish, Bird and Wildlife Habitat Program; Integrated Flood Protection Program; and Shoreline Public Access Program.

Partners:
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps)
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)
  • NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries)
  • San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board)
  • California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW)
  • San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC)
  • The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
  • Silicon Valley Leadership Group
  • Bay Area Council
  • Resources Legacy Fund
  • Ducks Unlimited
  • Audubon California
  • San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex
  • State Coastal Conservancy
  • Santa Clara Valley Water District
  • East Bay Regional Park District.
Links:

BRRIT webpage

Summary:

2023 UPDATE: The BRRIT has fully permitted 8 projects with the 3 new projects being: Coyote Hills Regional Park - Restoration and Public Access Project, Reef Design Innovations for Living Shorelines, and Assessing Ocean Acidification in SF Bay Oysters and Eelgrass. Sixteen other projects are in the pre-application and 4 other projects are in the application phase.

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2022 UPDATE: The BRRIT has now fully permitted 5 projects: 900 Innes, Invasive Spartina Project High Tide Refuge Islands, Lower Walnut Creek, Heron's Head Park Shoreline Resilience Project, and Terminal 4 Warehouse and Pilings Removal Project. Sixteen other projects are in the pre-application phase and two other projects are in the permit application phase. 

The Bay Restoration Regulatory Integration Team (BRRIT) was formed to improve the permitting process for multi-benefit habitat restoration projects and associated flood management and public access infrastructure in the San Francisco Bay and along the shoreline of the nine Bay Area counties (excluding the Delta Primary Zone). 

The BRRIT consists of staff dedicated to this purpose from six of the state and federal regulatory agencies that may have jurisdiction  over habitat restoration projects in San Francisco Bay, including:

  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps)
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)
  • NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries)
  • San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board)
  • California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW)
  • San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC)

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) provides policy guidance at the management level on the Policy Management Committee (PMC) and participates on an ad hoc basis.

The PMC, made up of agency managers, was formed to coordinate with the BRRIT. The PMC has developed a Permit and Policy Improvement List identifying issues limiting the flexibility of design and/or permitting of multi-benefit restoration projects and are working to resolve these issues. The PMC will also review substantive issues raised by the BRRIT or others in project-specific cases and propose resolutions at a management or policy level where appropriate.

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