Landowners
FRIENDS and its partners provide technical assistance on shoreline habitat, species and management to private shoreline property owners. This targeted site-specific education program enables landowners to move quickly toward achieving on-the-ground improvements, protecting property and maintaining important ecological services such as water quality and fish and wildlife habitat
Land Use Professionals
FRIENDS develops workshops and training sessions for land use professionals including realtors, excavators and contractors with the goal of increasing their knowledge of local resources and the regulations in place to protect them so that they can transfer this conservation and stewardship information to their clients.
Technical Assistance for County Departments
FRIENDS also assists many San Juan County departments including San Juan County Parks, Public Works, Land Bank, and Planning with shoreline species and their documented habitat, protection and restoration opportunities, and best management practices.
Applying Science to Planning, Permitting and Policy
FRIENDS staff are members of the following San Juan County committees: Marine Resources, Water Resources, Stormwater Management, Septic Management, Roche Harbor Watershed Advisory and Washington State University Beach Watcher Program Advisory.
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FRIENDS also participates in major planning processes to ensure that the best available information on priority habitats and species is applied to decision making, including: Public Works Department Road Planning, Marine Resources Committee Marine Stewardship Area Plan, San Juan County Critical Areas Ordinance, Shoreline Master Program, San Juan County Land Bank and San Juan County Preservation Trust Habitat Assessment, and the San Juan Initiative's Science Advisory and Policy Groups.
FRIENDS staff also reviews permit applications for land use and shoreline development in San Juan County. When necessary FRIENDS comments and testifies against proposed permits that have the potential to harm San Juan Countys agricultural lands, water resources, or shorelines. In addition, FRIENDS monitors land use violations and pursues effective enforcement of local, state and federal regulations.
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