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Training, Assistance & Outreach Materials

Developing or updating a Shoreline Master Program (SMP) takes an array of skills and expertise. This page lists opportunities for local SMP planners to build their skills and network with other planners, and links to public outreach materials designed to support the SMP process.

Training | Planners Coordination Meetings | Technical Assistance | Outreach Materials
 

Training

The Coastal Training Program at Padilla Bay provides courses pertinent to local shoreline master programs. Courses cover diverse topics such as managing public meetings, designing restoration projects, and understanding watershed processes.

In Spring 2010, Ecology held trainings on "Conducting a Comprehensive Shoreline Master Program Update" for local government planners and their consultants.  An agenda and materials are available. MORE

For more information, contact Peter Skowlund, (360) 407-6522.

Planners Coordination Meetings

Ecology sponsors regular coordination meetings for towns, cities and counties conducting comprehensive SMP updates. These meetings occur quarterly in Tumwater for Western Washington and semi-annually in Moses Lake for Central and Eastern Washington. The meetings provide a forum to share information and experiences and to hear the latest news and state guidance.

• Planners Coordination Meetings

In addition, the Shoreline and Coastal Planners Group hosts quarterly meetings throughout Puget Sound and other coastal parts of Washington. To receive meeting notices:

Katrina Hoffman, University of Washington, Sea Grant
(360) 416-7048 (Padilla Bay)
(206) 616-3368 (Seattle WSG Office)

Technical Assistance

Local planners should work closely with the Ecology regional shoreline planner assigned to their town, city or county. Below are additional contacts for technical assistance.

• Department of Fish and Wildlife GMA/SMA Technical Assistance
• Agencies and Tribal Governments

Outreach Materials

The following materials are for your use in public meetings and presentations with elected officials, citizens, and other stakeholders. Also provided are links to professional resources you may find useful in creating and managing the public participation plan, and honing your public participation skills.

Some materials are provided in Microsoft Word format so you may modify them to meet your needs. Others are only offered in Adobe PDF format to ensure the information is presented unchanged and in its entirety.

Do you have a good idea or example to share? Want to talk over techniques to use?  Please contact Cedar Bouta, (360) 407-6406.  

Public Participation

• Open House/Hearing materials: checklist, agenda, comment form, Code of Civility poster, legal ad
• Professional resources
  • Peter M. Sandman, Risk Communication - an international expert on outrage management who provides high quality free resources
  • ATSDR, A Primer on Health Risk Communication: Principles and Practices - how to communicate effectively with the public on issues of great concern
  • NOAA Coastal Training Program, Public Issues and Conflict Management class, Padilla Bay
  • GMA Citizen Participation and Community Visioning Guide, Washington State Department of Commerce
  • Other:
    • California: Institute for Local Government - public participation plan examples
    • Georgia: Department of Community Affairs - planning techniques comparison table
    • Oregon: Oregon State University Extension Service - effective meetings management
    • United Kingdom: People and Participation Net - review of various techniques with universal usefulness
    • Wisconsin: Center for Land Use Education - crafting an effective public participation plan

Focus and Fact Sheets

• Focus on Shorelines: Making Sense of Tough Issues, August 2010 (Revised April 2011)
  (Publication #10-06-012)
• Focus on Shoreline Armoring: Healthy Shorelines Equal a Healthy Puget Sound, revised February 2010 (Publication #10-06-004)
• Focus on Application of the 2003 Shoreline Master Program Guidelines to Limited Master Program Amendments, revised September 2006 (Publication #04-06-018)

Frequently Asked Questions

• Shoreline Master Programs, revised April 2010 (Publication #09-06-029)
• Marine Shoreline Armoring and Puget Sound, revised February 2010 (Publication #10-06-003)

PowerPoint Presentations

• Defining our future together - presentation to Hood Canal EcoNet, May 2010 (PPT)
• Introduction to Shoreline master Programs - presentation to Kitsap County, April 15, 2010 (PPT) (Video)
• Overview of Washington’s Shoreline Management Act - City of Yelm Planning Commission Meeting, November 16, 2009 (PDF)
• Shoreline Management Act Update – Clallam County, Port Angeles, Forks and Sequim, October 12, 2009 (PDF)

Other

• Ecology's shoreline management and shoreline master program publication lists
• Blog: Be the wave in your local shoreline master program

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