Continuous Improvement/Claims: Difference between revisions

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This is a list of complaints of waste (where resources are being spent without creating value).  They may or may not be accurate or precise.  Each complaint came from a member of a local ecosystem recovery team, either through a personal communication or an on-line form.  Complaints have been rewritten in neutral and consistent language by the complaint team, while trying to retain or add nuance or detail.  No complaint has been discarded unless the complaint can be confirmed as inaccurate.  Some complaints are nested within other complaints.
'''Published 9/9/19'''


Complaints are useful to us because they show us where we might be able to improve the efficiency or effectiveness of our workBy shining daylight on complaints from the field we get insight into our state and federal support systems.  We have sorted complaints into three systems:
This is a list of claims about how we could improve ecosystem management.  These claims may not all be accurate or precise.  Each claim came from a member of a local ecosystem recovery team, either through a personal communication or an on-line formClaims have been rewritten by the Continuous Improvement Team, in an attempt to offer neutral and consistent language while retaining clarifying detail.  No claim has been discarded.
 
Claims like these are useful because they offer a entry point for system improvement.  We have sorted claims into three systems:
#'''Plan and Fund System''' - by which we allocate resources to pay people to do protection and restoration.  Most of this is through appropriation and capital programs.
#'''Plan and Fund System''' - by which we allocate resources to pay people to do protection and restoration.  Most of this is through appropriation and capital programs.
#'''Regulate and Mitigate System''' - where we exercise state and federal authority to constrain the actions of citizens.  These authorities create mitigation markets.
#'''Regulate and Mitigate System''' - where we exercise state and federal authority to constrain the actions of citizens.  These authorities create mitigation markets.
#'''Coordinate System''' - for all the various mechanisms by which we attempt to align action among various otherwise independent actors.
#'''Coordinate System''' - for all the various mechanisms by which we attempt to align action among various otherwise independent actors.


{|
Some claims are broad while others are specific.  Some could be addressed by process improvement, while others require innovation.  Some may point to deeply seated social conflicts, only addressed through social-political evolution.
|style="width:50%;vertical-align:top;"|'''''Complaint'''''||'''''Description'''''
 
===Coordination System Claims===
{|class="wikitable" style="padding:5px;"
!'''''Claim'''''!!'''''Description'''''!!'''''Status/Links'''''
|-
|-
|'''Meeting Travel Vortex'''||Remote and web-cast meetings need to be standard and efficient to reduce wasted effort in coordination.
|'''Meeting Travel Vortex'''||Remote and web-cast meetings need to be standard and efficient to reduce wasted effort in coordination.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Continuous Improvement/Kaizen'''||State and federal agencies lack the ability to analyze, remember and act on complaints about interagency function that come from the ecosystem management field.
|'''Continuous Improvement/Kaizen'''||State and federal agencies lack the ability to analyze, remember and act on complaints about interagency function that come from the ecosystem management field.||[[Continuous Improvement]]
|-
|-
|'''Local Notification'''||State-federal programs have an efficient mechanism for providing information about  program activities to local teams, reducing beneficial impacts.
|'''Local Notification'''||State-federal programs have no efficient mechanism for providing information about  program activities to local teams, reducing beneficial impacts.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Commerce at ECB'''||Commerce implementation of Growth Management Act is central to ecosystem recovery, and absent from the Ecosystem Coordination Board deliberations.
|'''Commerce at ECB'''||Commerce implementation of Growth Management Act is central to ecosystem recovery, and absent from the Ecosystem Coordination Board deliberations.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Action Agenda System Performance'''||The processes that lead primarily to the distribution NEP funds as implemented under the Action Agenda framework has resulted in a large redundancy of effort.
|'''Action Agenda System Performance'''||The processes that lead primarily to the distribution NEP funds as implemented under the Action Agenda framework has resulted in a large redundancy of effort.||Submitted
|}
 
===Planning and Funding System Claims===
{|class="wikitable" style="padding:5px;"
!'''''Claim'''''!!'''''Description'''''!!'''''Status/Links'''''
|-
|-
|'''Grant Reporting Redundancy'''||Each grant and planning system assigns unique reporting and data management tasks diverting limited local capacity from ecosystem management, and undermining collective reporting.
|'''Grant Reporting Redundancy'''||Each grant and planning system assigns unique reporting and data management tasks diverting limited local capacity from ecosystem management, and undermining collective reporting.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Grant Budget Coordination'''||Project managers waste resources managing a unique budget for each grant to meet application requirements.
|'''Grant Budget Coordination'''||Project managers waste resources managing a unique budget for each grant to meet application requirements.||[[Large Project Budget Standards]]
|-
|-
|'''Master Application'''||Each funding program uses different language to describe projects, requiring each applicant to redefine the project for that programs application.
|'''Master Application'''||Each funding program requires similar but slightly different applications to describe projects, causing local teams to expend labor re-describing a project and potentially stimulating waste in administration and reporting.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Grant Matching'''||Administration of grant match consumes critical resources limiting the rate of ecosystem recovery with unclear benefits.
|'''Grant Matching'''||Administration of grant match consumes critical resources limiting the rate of ecosystem recovery with unclear benefits.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Single Funding List'''||There is no centralized location for funders to view and anticipate funding opportunities among federal, state and private programs.
|'''Single Funding List'''||There is no centralized location for funders to view and anticipate funding opportunities among federal, state and private programs.||[[Washington Water and Salmon Fund Finder]]
|-
|-
|'''Performance Measure Standards'''||The use of different preformance measures among programs undermines regional performance reporting.
|'''Performance Measure Standards'''||The use of different performance measures among programs undermines regional performance reporting.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Coordinated Geographic Acquisition Priorities'''||Different programs offer different acquisition, lease, and incentive tools and have different priorities, preventing field teams from operating with a full toolkit in any one geography.
|'''Coordinated Geographic Acquisition Priorities'''||Different programs offer different acquisition, lease, and incentive tools and have different priorities, preventing field teams from operating with a full toolkit in any one geography.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Funding Schedules'''||Grant program individually set the timing of RFPs and contract periods in a way that creates a range of unintended consquences.
|'''Funding Schedules'''||Grant program individually set the timing of RFPs and contract periods in a way that creates a range of unintended consequences.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Improving Stewardship of Acquisitions'''||Once acquired, conservation lands have weak mechanisms for long-term stewardship, unsupported by state-federal resources.
|'''Improving Stewardship of Acquisitions'''||Once acquired, conservation lands have weak mechanisms for long-term stewardship, unsupported by state-federal resources.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Flood Hazard/Ecosystem Integration'''||Floodplain management occurs under multiple authorities, operating in the same environment, with potentially conflicting goals and methods.
|'''Flood Hazard/Ecosystem Integration'''||Floodplain management occurs under multiple authorities, operating in the same environment, with potentially conflicting goals and methods.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''CREP Expansion'''||CREP re-enrollment at the end of the lease is constrained, which creates a risk of losing protections.
|'''CREP Expansion'''||CREP re-enrollment at the end of the lease is constrained, which creates a risk of losing protections.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Habitat Work Schedule ROI'''||The Habitat Work Schedule is a redundant and expensive tool, the use of which is driven by complex issues, with a potentially low return on investment.
|'''Habitat Work Schedule ROI'''||The Habitat Work Schedule is a redundant and expensive tool, the use of which is driven by complex issues, with a potentially low return on investment.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''County Use of Contracting Schedule'''||Local governments using pre-approved road contracting rosters for restoraiton work may in more expensive project costs.
|'''County Use of Contracting Schedule'''||Local governments using pre-approved road contracting rosters for restoration work may in more expensive project costs.||Submitted
|}
 
===Regulation and Mitigation System Claims===
{|class="wikitable" style="padding:5px;"
!'''''Claim'''''!!'''''Description'''''!!'''''Status/Links'''''
|-
|-
|'''Culvert Replacement Regulation'''||Regulatory review of culvert modification is unpredictable and expensive, which shouldn't be the case a project type where there is agreement over urgency.
|'''Culvert Replacement Regulation'''||Regulatory review of culvert modification is unpredictable and expensive, which shouldn't be the case a project type where there is agreement over urgency.||[[Snohomish Culvert Replacement Regulatory Coordination]]
|-
|-
|'''Regulatory Spatial Standards'''||Different definition and mapping of critical areas across all jurisdictions creates uncertainty and cost for project development and regulatory implementation.
|'''Regulatory Spatial Standards'''||Different definition and mapping of critical areas across all jurisdictions creates uncertainty and cost for project development and regulatory implementation.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Soft Armoring Regulation'''||Innovation in shoreline armoring is disincetivized through increased costs and uncertainty during regulatory review.
|'''Soft Armoring Regulation'''||Innovation in shoreline armoring is disincentive through increased costs and uncertainty during regulatory review.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Mitigation Efficiency'''||The large investment necessary to create an in-lieu fee or banking system undermines the creation of real costs for ecosystem degradation.
|'''Mitigation Efficiency'''||The large investment necessary to create an in-lieu fee or banking system undermines the creation of real costs for ecosystem degradation.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Ecosystem Service Payment Inventory'''||We have no mechanism for efficiently sharing  lessons from pilot effots in ecosystem markets to improve the next effort.
|'''Ecosystem Service Payment Inventory'''||We have no mechanism for efficiently sharing  lessons from pilot efforts in ecosystem markets to improve the next effort.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Riparian Zone Management Flexibility'''||Reforestation reduces landowner control of their riparian zone, creating an unintended disincentive to participate in recovery.
|'''Riparian Zone Management Flexibility'''||Reforestation reduces landowner control of their riparian zone, creating an unintended disincentive to participate in recovery.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Federal Levee Modification (s.408)'''||USACE lacks the capacity to respond early in the design process to modify federal flood infrastructure, increasing risk in pursuing expensive feasibility work without understanding federal constraints.
|'''Federal Levee Modification (s.408)'''||USACE lacks the capacity to respond early in the design process to modify federal flood infrastructure, increasing risk in pursuing expensive feasibility work without understanding federal constraints.||[[Section 408]]
|-
|-
|'''Agricultural Drainage Maintenance'''||Agricultural drainage system regulation dramatically increases costs of operation, and when combined with lack of enforcement discourages participation in recovery.
|'''Agricultural Drainage Maintenance'''||Agricultural drainage system regulation dramatically increases costs of operation, and when combined with lack of enforcement discourages participation in recovery.||[[French Slough Drainage Management]] (Aborted)
|-
|-
|'''Landowner Stewardship'''||Regulatory agencies are not organized or equipped to attract landoweners to become partners in recovery, resulting in lost opportunity and capacity.
|'''Landowner Stewardship'''||Regulatory agencies are not organized or equipped to attract land owners to become partners in recovery, resulting in lost opportunity and capacity.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Watershed Authority'''||Regulation would benefit from a watershed-based authority with broad representation that can rapidly and efficiently approve small and mid-scale projects, to enable recovery.
|'''Watershed Authority'''||Regulation would benefit from a watershed-based authority with broad representation that can rapidly and efficiently approve small and mid-scale projects, to enable recovery.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Shoreline Armoring Jurisdiction'''||USACE has declined to claim jurisdiction over shoreline construction above MHHW, allowing shoreline modificaiton to avoid federal review.
|'''Shoreline Armoring Jurisdiction'''||USACE has declined to claim jurisdiction over shoreline construction above MHHW, allowing shoreline modification to avoid federal review.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''USACE Permits Delays'''||Currently it takes too long to obtain US Army Corps of Engineer Regulatory Permits or amendments to existing permits.
|'''USACE Permits Delays'''||Currently it takes too long to obtain US Army Corps of Engineer Regulatory Permits or amendments to existing permits.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Wetland Change During Restoration'''||Floodplain wetland change during restoration, even if beneficial, increases regulatory complexity, resulting in unpredictable delays or costs.
|'''Wetland Change During Restoration'''||Floodplain wetland change during restoration, even if beneficial, increases regulatory complexity, resulting in unpredictable delays or costs.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Buffering in Agricultural Wetlands'''||Wide buffer requirements reduce the number of landowners becoming involved in stewardship of agricultural wetlands.
|'''Buffering in Agricultural Wetlands'''||Wide buffer requirements reduce the number of landowners becoming involved in stewardship of agricultural wetlands.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Barriers to Infill'''||Local jurisdictions have difficulty increasing density in order to meet the intent of the growth management act.
|'''Barriers to Infill'''||Local jurisdictions have difficulty increasing density in order to meet the intent of the growth management act.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Regulatory Failure'''||Regulation does not prevent ongoing ecosystem degradation.
|'''Regulatory Failure'''||Regulation does not prevent ongoing ecosystem degradation.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Sediment Release During Restoration'''||Applying construction turbidity control requirements to in-stream restoration is unrealistic and drives up restoration project cost.
|'''Sediment Release During Restoration'''||Applying construction turbidity control requirements to in-stream restoration is unrealistic and drives up restoration project cost.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Reduced Fish Enhancement Exemption'''||Fish Enhancement exemption use has reduced over time increasing project costs and time.
|'''Reduced Fish Enhancement Exemption'''||Fish Enhancement exemption use has reduced over time increasing project costs and time.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Restoration Triggers Re-Mapping Study'''||Each restoration project in a floodplain may require a re-mapping study under FEMA requirements, greatly increasing cost or delaying restoration.
|'''Restoration Triggers Re-Mapping Study'''||Each restoration project in a floodplain may require a re-mapping study under FEMA requirements, greatly increasing cost or delaying restoration.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Permit Data Management'''||The simplification of water quality permit data undermines its potential use to adjust program actvities as this data is aggregated.
|'''Permit Data Management'''||The simplification of water quality permit data undermines its potential use to adjust program activities as this data is aggregated.||Submitted
|-
|-
|'''Reduced Use of NW27'''||Fewer of our current restoration actions are being reviewed under the USACE Nationwide Permit #27.
|'''Reduced Use of NW27'''||Fewer of our current restoration actions are being reviewed under the USACE Nationwide Permit #27.||Submitted
|-
|-

Revision as of 18:25, 8 October 2019


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Published 9/9/19

This is a list of claims about how we could improve ecosystem management. These claims may not all be accurate or precise. Each claim came from a member of a local ecosystem recovery team, either through a personal communication or an on-line form. Claims have been rewritten by the Continuous Improvement Team, in an attempt to offer neutral and consistent language while retaining clarifying detail. No claim has been discarded.

Claims like these are useful because they offer a entry point for system improvement. We have sorted claims into three systems:

  1. Plan and Fund System - by which we allocate resources to pay people to do protection and restoration. Most of this is through appropriation and capital programs.
  2. Regulate and Mitigate System - where we exercise state and federal authority to constrain the actions of citizens. These authorities create mitigation markets.
  3. Coordinate System - for all the various mechanisms by which we attempt to align action among various otherwise independent actors.

Some claims are broad while others are specific. Some could be addressed by process improvement, while others require innovation. Some may point to deeply seated social conflicts, only addressed through social-political evolution.

Coordination System Claims[edit]

Claim Description Status/Links
Meeting Travel Vortex Remote and web-cast meetings need to be standard and efficient to reduce wasted effort in coordination. Submitted
Continuous Improvement/Kaizen State and federal agencies lack the ability to analyze, remember and act on complaints about interagency function that come from the ecosystem management field. Continuous Improvement
Local Notification State-federal programs have no efficient mechanism for providing information about program activities to local teams, reducing beneficial impacts. Submitted
Commerce at ECB Commerce implementation of Growth Management Act is central to ecosystem recovery, and absent from the Ecosystem Coordination Board deliberations. Submitted
Action Agenda System Performance The processes that lead primarily to the distribution NEP funds as implemented under the Action Agenda framework has resulted in a large redundancy of effort. Submitted

Planning and Funding System Claims[edit]

Claim Description Status/Links
Grant Reporting Redundancy Each grant and planning system assigns unique reporting and data management tasks diverting limited local capacity from ecosystem management, and undermining collective reporting. Submitted
Grant Budget Coordination Project managers waste resources managing a unique budget for each grant to meet application requirements. Large Project Budget Standards
Master Application Each funding program requires similar but slightly different applications to describe projects, causing local teams to expend labor re-describing a project and potentially stimulating waste in administration and reporting. Submitted
Grant Matching Administration of grant match consumes critical resources limiting the rate of ecosystem recovery with unclear benefits. Submitted
Single Funding List There is no centralized location for funders to view and anticipate funding opportunities among federal, state and private programs. Washington Water and Salmon Fund Finder
Performance Measure Standards The use of different performance measures among programs undermines regional performance reporting. Submitted
Coordinated Geographic Acquisition Priorities Different programs offer different acquisition, lease, and incentive tools and have different priorities, preventing field teams from operating with a full toolkit in any one geography. Submitted
Funding Schedules Grant program individually set the timing of RFPs and contract periods in a way that creates a range of unintended consequences. Submitted
Improving Stewardship of Acquisitions Once acquired, conservation lands have weak mechanisms for long-term stewardship, unsupported by state-federal resources. Submitted
Flood Hazard/Ecosystem Integration Floodplain management occurs under multiple authorities, operating in the same environment, with potentially conflicting goals and methods. Submitted
CREP Expansion CREP re-enrollment at the end of the lease is constrained, which creates a risk of losing protections. Submitted
Habitat Work Schedule ROI The Habitat Work Schedule is a redundant and expensive tool, the use of which is driven by complex issues, with a potentially low return on investment. Submitted
County Use of Contracting Schedule Local governments using pre-approved road contracting rosters for restoration work may in more expensive project costs. Submitted

Regulation and Mitigation System Claims[edit]

Claim Description Status/Links
Culvert Replacement Regulation Regulatory review of culvert modification is unpredictable and expensive, which shouldn't be the case a project type where there is agreement over urgency. Snohomish Culvert Replacement Regulatory Coordination
Regulatory Spatial Standards Different definition and mapping of critical areas across all jurisdictions creates uncertainty and cost for project development and regulatory implementation. Submitted
Soft Armoring Regulation Innovation in shoreline armoring is disincentive through increased costs and uncertainty during regulatory review. Submitted
Mitigation Efficiency The large investment necessary to create an in-lieu fee or banking system undermines the creation of real costs for ecosystem degradation. Submitted
Ecosystem Service Payment Inventory We have no mechanism for efficiently sharing lessons from pilot efforts in ecosystem markets to improve the next effort. Submitted
Riparian Zone Management Flexibility Reforestation reduces landowner control of their riparian zone, creating an unintended disincentive to participate in recovery. Submitted
Federal Levee Modification (s.408) USACE lacks the capacity to respond early in the design process to modify federal flood infrastructure, increasing risk in pursuing expensive feasibility work without understanding federal constraints. Section 408
Agricultural Drainage Maintenance Agricultural drainage system regulation dramatically increases costs of operation, and when combined with lack of enforcement discourages participation in recovery. French Slough Drainage Management (Aborted)
Landowner Stewardship Regulatory agencies are not organized or equipped to attract land owners to become partners in recovery, resulting in lost opportunity and capacity. Submitted
Watershed Authority Regulation would benefit from a watershed-based authority with broad representation that can rapidly and efficiently approve small and mid-scale projects, to enable recovery. Submitted
Shoreline Armoring Jurisdiction USACE has declined to claim jurisdiction over shoreline construction above MHHW, allowing shoreline modification to avoid federal review. Submitted
USACE Permits Delays Currently it takes too long to obtain US Army Corps of Engineer Regulatory Permits or amendments to existing permits. Submitted
Wetland Change During Restoration Floodplain wetland change during restoration, even if beneficial, increases regulatory complexity, resulting in unpredictable delays or costs. Submitted
Buffering in Agricultural Wetlands Wide buffer requirements reduce the number of landowners becoming involved in stewardship of agricultural wetlands. Submitted
Barriers to Infill Local jurisdictions have difficulty increasing density in order to meet the intent of the growth management act. Submitted
Regulatory Failure Regulation does not prevent ongoing ecosystem degradation. Submitted
Sediment Release During Restoration Applying construction turbidity control requirements to in-stream restoration is unrealistic and drives up restoration project cost. Submitted
Reduced Fish Enhancement Exemption Fish Enhancement exemption use has reduced over time increasing project costs and time. Submitted
Restoration Triggers Re-Mapping Study Each restoration project in a floodplain may require a re-mapping study under FEMA requirements, greatly increasing cost or delaying restoration. Submitted
Permit Data Management The simplification of water quality permit data undermines its potential use to adjust program activities as this data is aggregated. Submitted
Reduced Use of NW27 Fewer of our current restoration actions are being reviewed under the USACE Nationwide Permit #27. Submitted