Washington State Department of Ecology

Department of Ecology News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Dec. 21, 1999

99-269

Contact: Gordon White, Ecology’s Shorelands Program, 360-407-6977
Sheryl Hutchison, Communication Director, 360-407-7004

Ecology issues new draft of proposed shoreline guidelines

OLYMPIA - Local officials, legislators and other interested citizens are being invited to review a revised draft of proposed changes to the state’s shoreline-management guidelines.

The new "working draft," developed by the state Department of Ecology (Ecology), responds to many of the 2,500 comments received earlier this year on a previous proposal.

The new draft was mailed to many people around the state last Friday so they could begin reviewing the proposed changes. Officials with the agency also will discuss the draft with legislators during the 2000 legislative session to get their reaction.

Gordon White, who manages Ecology’s shorelands program, said the working draft differs in many ways from a formal proposal that was circulated for public comment last spring and summer.

"People thought we were too vague in some areas and too specific in others," White said. "We tried to rewrite the draft in a way that provides the necessary environmental protection, but gives local governments more leeway in how they accomplish it."

As part of the added leeway, the new draft deletes language that called for local governments to establish "vegetation management corridors" along all shorelines, equal to the maximum height that a tree potentially could grow at a particular site. Instead, the new draft calls for local officials to identify the "ecological functions" performed by their shorelines and protect them based on what the local environment needs. The rule would allow local governments to comply with this requirement through a variety of means.

Another key change should make farmers more comfortable with the draft guidelines, said White. Farmers wanted language in the guidelines expressly stating that the guidelines will not apply to existing and ongoing agricultural activities.

"The new draft makes it clear that new shoreline regulations do not apply retroactively to existing agricultural uses," White said. "Changing from wheat to grapes won’t trigger additional regulations -- a crop is a crop is a crop."

Like the earlier proposal, the new draft would make it harder to install new bulkheads than under current regulations, requiring applicants to demonstrate that a bulkhead is truly needed. It also requires that all new and replacement bulkheads be designed to reduce harm to shorelines.

"There are many environmentally friendly ways to stabilize shorelines without using bulkheads. Hardened walls reflect the energy from the waves instead of absorbing it, and that often increases erosion somewhere else," White said. "Natural solutions are kinder to your neighbors as well as to fish and wildlife."

In comments on the earlier proposal, many property owners feared it would prevent them from repairing and maintaining existing bulkheads. White said the working draft clarifies that such repair and maintenance is allowed.

Responding to concerns from shoreline residents, Ecology’s latest proposal does not require owners of single-family residences to demonstrate that a nearby dock is unavailable before getting permission to build a new pier or dock. The rule requires that all piers and docks be restricted to the minimum size needed for the proposed use. The rule also addresses the proliferation of individual piers and docks by encouraging joint use or community docks for new developments.

Under a state law adopted in 1995, Ecology has until July 23, 2000, to adopt the new shoreline management guidelines. The existing guidelines have not been updated in more than 27 years.

"We have learned a lot since the 1970s about how the natural environment functions and how to protect and restore it," White said. "We need to all get on the same page so we’re being consistent about protecting people’s lives and property from erosion and floods, as well as protecting salmon and other environmental resources that are central to our quality of life."

He noted that Ecology is actively engaged in discussion with the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to determine what needs to be in the state’s shoreline guidelines in order to win "safe harbor" from penalties under the Endangered Species Act.

"We’d like to be able to tell local governments that if they adopt shoreline programs that are consistent with the new state guidelines, they won’t be held liable for any listed salmon that are inadvertently harmed by shoreline development in their jurisdictions," White said. "Being able to deliver that promise would make it worth all our hard work to put these new guidelines in place."

The Ecology Department will continue incorporating changes into the working draft over the next two months, based on feedback from legislators and interested citizens. In April 2000, the working draft will be turned into a formal proposal, and a formal public-comment period will be held beginning in May.

The working draft is posted at http://www.wa.gov/ecology/sea/SMA/guidelin/newguid.htm. (Note: Link removed Oct. 4, 2001.) Ecology is accepting comments on the draft until March 1, 2000.