SEA Program Home >
Shoreline Management Home >
SMA
Jurisdiction > Shorelines of
statewide significance
Shorelines of statewide significance
The Shoreline Management Act (SMA) (RCW 90.58.030(2)(e)) defines a special category of shorelines where specific
priority uses are preferred. These shorelines of statewide
significance include:
Marine areas
There are three different delineation schemes for marine
areas of statewide significance (Map):
- The Pacific Ocean coastline (from Cape Disapointment
to Cape Flattery), including harbors, bays, estuaries,
and inlets, seaward from the ordinary high water mark and all shorelands associated with these waters;
- Specific estuarine areas (Nisqually Delta,
Birch Bay, Hood Canal, Skagit Bay, and Padilla Bay) between the
ordinary high water mark and line of extreme low tide and all associated shorelands; and
- All other areas of Puget Sound and the Strait of
Juan de Fuca and adjacent salt water areas lying
waterward of the line of extreme low tide line (but not
including the adjacent tidelands or shorelands).
Streams and Rivers
Streams and Rivers, or segments thereof, and their
associated uplands which meet one of the following criteria are
shorelines of statewide significance:
- West of the Cascades crest: rivers with a mean annual flow of
1,000 cubic feet per second or greater,
- East of the crest of the Cascades crest: rivers that have either:
- a mean annual flow of 200 cubic feet per second or more, or;
- the portion downstream from the first 300 square miles of drainage areas
Specific river segments that meet this criteria are indicated with an
asterisk (*) in the county-by-county
descriptions in
WAC
173-18.
Lakes
Lakes over 1,000 acres in area and all
associated shorelands are shorelines of statewide significance. Lakes of statewide significance are listed by county in
WAC 173-20.
For more information
Law:
RCW
90.58.030 (Definitions)
