Preparing shoreline characterizations for shoreline management plans using a decision support system

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Preparing shoreline characterizations for
shoreline management plans using a decision
support system

• Anthony Gabriel
• Cinde Donoghue
• David Cordner
• Geo-Ecology Research Group, Center for Spatial
  Information
• Central Washington University

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Decision Support System Features

• Interactive CD using web browser
• Describes the use and limitations of currently
  available and relevant data, information and
  marine shoreline assessment methods
• Provides hyperlinks to necessary data and
  technical reports
• Explains how to interpret and use existing
  information effectively
• Offers illustrated case examples of marine
  shoreline assessments

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Shoreline Characterization Requirements

• Integrate findings in an accessible manner
• Indicate opportunities for
• protecting ecological functions
• restoring degraded habitat
• improving public access
• supporting water-dependent use
• Establish a baseline for adaptive management and
  cumulative impact assessment
• Comply with SMA requirement to make use of all
  available scientific and technical information

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SMP inventory and analysis
Environment designations
Policies, Regulations, Mitigation standards
Cumulative impact assessment
Restoration plan
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Shoreline Rule requires an SMP analysis
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Decision Support System Structure

• Inventory
• Analysis
• Provide overall regional context
• Characterize ecosystem-wide processes
• Characterize shoreline ecological functions
• Identify opportunities for restoration and
  protection, develop draft shoreline environmental
  designations

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• Gather information from
• Reports
• Catalogs and multi-feature data sets
• Internet map sites
• Modeling and monitoring studies

Synthesize information from reports, prepare map
overlays to address planning issues. Prepare
final report and map portfolio.
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Reports
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Data Sources
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• Gather information from
• Reports
• Catalogs and multi-feature data sets
• Internet map sites
• Modeling and monitoring studies

Synthesize information from reports, prepare map
overlays to address planning issues. Prepare
final report and map portfolio.
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Decision Support System Structure

• Inventory
• Analysis
• Provide overall regional context
• Characterize ecosystem-wide processes
• Characterize shoreline ecological functions
• Identify opportunities for restoration and
  protection, develop draft shoreline environmental
  designations

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Set context

• 1) Vicinity map
• 2) Accompanying narrative summarizing
• Regional setting
• Climate
• Topography
• Land uses
• Extent of shorelines under SMA jurisdiction

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Bellingham vicinity map example
with accompanying narrative... Regional setting
and topography Bellingham Bay is located along
the southeastern end of the Strait of Georgia
about fifteen miles south of the Canadian border
in Washington State . It is located across from
the San Juan Islands and is protected by Lummi
Island , Portage Island , and the Lummi Peninsula
. It lies west of Mount Baker and Lake Whatcom ,
and north of the Chuckanut Mountains and Skagit
Valley . The area has been carved out by periodic
glaciation in the past, most recently in the
Pleistocene era about fifteen thousand years ago.
The Nooksack and Whatcom rivers empty into the
bay. The Nooksack River is fed by glaciers in the
North Cascade Mountains and the Whatcom River
flows from Lake Whatcom and several smaller
streams. The bay is rich in estuaries. Climate
The climate at Bellingham Bay is influenced by
moist air masses from the Pacific Ocean , hence
the weather is usually mild with wet winters and
drier summers. It is located on the edge of the
rain shadow created by the Olympic Mountains to
the west. Mean temperatures vary from a high of
73 degrees Fahrenheit in July to a low of 31
degrees Fahrenheit. Average annual precipitation
is 35 incheswith 80 of the precipitation
occuring from October through March and less than
6 falling during June, July, and August. Land
uses The City of Bellingham 's downtown area and
the Port of Bellingham are located on the eastern
edge of Bellingham Bay at the mouth of the
Whatcom River. The western portion of the bay is
primarily timberland, farmland, and waterfront
housing. The Bay is primarily used for
recreational purposes, such as boating, fishing,
jet skiing, and swimming, and as a harbor and
port. References City of Bellingham , Park,
Recreation, Open Space Plan (2005)
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Decision Support System Structure

• Inventory
• Analysis
• Provide overall regional context
• Characterize ecosystem-wide processes
• Characterize shoreline ecological functions
• Identify opportunities for restoration and
  protection, develop draft shoreline environmental
  designations

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Characterize Ecosystem-Wide Processes

• Define the study area to determine which reports
  and data are relevant
• Describe management issues that affect these
  shorelines

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Characterize Ecosystem-Wide Processes
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Scoping Questions Examples

• Are you a county or city jurisdiction?
• Do you share the marine shoreline jurisdiction
  with a city?
• Is entire marine shoreline within the current
  Urban Growth Area?
• What is the length of marine shoreline under city
  jurisdiction?
• Do any streams/rivers drain into the marine
  system?
• Are any of the streams/rivers listed as SMA
  streams?
• What are the drainage basins associated with the
  streams/rivers draining in the marine system?
• What is the extent of the drainage basin
  potentially contributing overland surface flow to
  the marine system?

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1. Define Study Area a) Identify shorelines
that are within SMA jurisdiction.
The map indicates approximately 15 miles of
marine shoreline is contained within the Urban
Growth Boundary. 
Example Bellingham, WA
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1. Define Study Area b) Identify and map areas
that influence SMA shorelines
The marine shoreline of Bellingham is located on
Bellingham Bay along the southeastern end of the
Strait of Georgia. The bay is situated east of
the San Juan Islands and is protected by Lummi
Island , Portage Island , and the Lummi Peninsula
. Two rivers empty into the bay. The Nooksack
River is fed by glaciers in the North Cascade
Mountains and the Whatcom River flows from Lake
Whatcom and several smaller streams.
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Characterize Ecosystem-Wide Processes
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Describe Management Issues
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2. Describe Management Issues a) Identify
management issues of concern

• Are there significant altered hydrologic regimes
  e.g. dams and fills resulting in low flows,
  flooding or high erosion areas?
• Are there high levels of impervious surfaces
  resulting in increased stormwater runoff or
  contributing to water quality problems?
• Is there a notable loss of shoreline connectivity
  as evidenced by shoreline modifications like
  roads, railroads, and houses?
• Are there potential hazards (erosion, flooding)?
• Are there wetlands and riparian areas providing
  habitat for listed and priority species?
• Are there water quality problems as evidenced by
  303(d) listings, IBI or ambient stream
  monitoring?
• Are there upland land uses (clearcutting,
  agricultural activities, mining) that contribute
  significant sediment or pollutant loading
• Are there outflows or point sources draining to
  the shoreline that have contaminated sediments?

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Summary of Management Issues in Bellingham, WA

• Water quality and sediment
• Oil spills are the greatest risk to the marine
  environment in Bellingham Bay . Although there
  have been no major spills within Puget Sound, oil
  tankers regularly pass by along the Rosario
  Strait. Other water quality concerns include
  toxic contamination from urban stormwater runoff
  and industrial discharge, especially from the
  Port of Bellingham , and bacterial contamination
  from septic systems. Increased sedimentation is
  also a concern because eelgrass and shellfish
  beds can be smothered. Urban development and
  forest cutting practices along the shoreline are
  two primary sediment sources. Construction of
  bulkheads, docks, and other waterfront structures
  also negatively impacts natural beach deposition
  processes.

• Habitat Restoration
• Bellingham Bay 's shorelines and estuaries
  provide rich habitat for over forty types of
  marine organisms, over fifty species of fish,
  including smelt, herring, perch, salmon, and
  steelhead, which are listed as priority species
  by the Washington Department of Fish Wildlife.
  More than a hundred species of birds inhabit the
  area, including the priority species bald eagle,
  heron, and osprey, and the estuaries provide
  important resting and feeding habitat for
  migrating birds. Invasion by exotic species,
  particularly the cordgrass Spartina alterniflora
  , presents a risk to this environment.

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2. Describe Management Issues c) Identify
potential measures to protect/restore
Measures to protect ecosystem-wide
processes Water quality and sediment. Work with
the Washington State Department of Ecology to
pre-position oil spill response equipment
(including an oil spill containment boom) that
can be rapidly mobilized and deployed to protect
the bay in the event of an oil spill. Work with
the Department of Ecology's Water Quality
Financial Assistance Program to acquire a loan to
help residents and small businesses pay for
needed repairs and upgrades of faulty on-site
septic systems. Permits for new development and
setback legislation can be used to mitigate
stormwater flows. New developments should be
required to use Stormwater Best Management
Practices. Identify neighboring jurisdictions for
coordination of water quality management
plans. Habitat Restoration. New development can
be regulated to ensure protection of the
shoreline. Use zoning and shoreline regulations
to prevent encroachment of development onto
shorelines, especially on highly erodible soils.
Prevent protection of shoreline with hard
structures.
Restoration actions Water quality and sediment.
Revegetation of the shoreline would help prevent
erosion and would help filter water entering the
bay. Effects from upland developments can be
addressed through integration with GMA planning.
Direct storm runoff away from shorelines or
install containment ponds. Highlight locations
for most effective stormwater retrofitting.
Reduce fertilizer use on agricultural and
residential land near the shoreline. Habitat
Restoration. Implement a program to protect
shoreline terrestrial and emergent vegetation
retrofit shore protection structures with
bioengineered approaches restore shoreline
vegetation and function. Maintain vegetative
buffer along shoreline zones to help limit
nonpoint source pollution. Stewardship strategies
should be implemented for the long term
management of shorelines. Maintain the natural
value of vegetated shorelines to control and
filter storm water runoff.
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Decision Support System Structure

• Inventory
• Analysis
• Provide overall regional context
• Characterize ecosystem-wide processes
• Characterize shoreline ecological functions
• Identify opportunities for restoration and
  protection
• Identify opportunities for restoration and
  protection, develop draft shoreline environmental
  designations

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Map SMA Jurisdiction Boundaries Link to
Department of Ecology Website
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Bellingham SMP jurisdiction
Shoreline jurisdiction boundary is 200 from OHWM
and includes associated wetlands.
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Determination of Shoreline Type

• Classify shorelines into different types based on
  inherent physical characteristics. These
  classifications are useful indicators of
• Relationship between ecosystem wide processes and
  shoreline ecological function.
• Which changes the shoreline is most sensitive to.
• What modifications have, or may impair shoreline
  ecological functions.
• Restoration actions that might improve identified
  impairments.

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Marine shoreline types
Depositional
Erosional
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Example of Shoreline Classification Decision Tree
Classification Scoping Questions
Fluvial Outlet
See Fluvial Outlet
The beach has not changed in last two years
STABLE
Substrate is bedrock
No Fluvial Outlet
See Stable Beach
Beach
Substrate is sand and/or gravel and/or cobble
and/or boulder
Fluvial Outlet
See Fluvial Outlet
Flats are present
See Flats
No Fluvial Outlet
See Stable Beach
Beach
There is a Platform
Beach Types Stable
Substrate is bedrock
It is a Rocky Shore
Rocky Shore
STABLE BEACH
There is no beach only bluffs
There is a Barrier Bar
PLATFORM
See Barrier Beach
See Bluff
Platform is submerged at high tide
High Tide Platform
Substrate is sand and/or gravel and/or cobble
and/or boulder
Beach is surrounded by Rocky Headlands
Platform is submerged at low tide
Low Tide Platform
STABLE BEACH
Platform is a sloped towards shore
Ramp Platform
POCKET BEACH
Sand and/or Gravel and/or Cobble and/or Boulder
Beach
Sand and/or Gravel and/or Cobble and/or Boulder
Beach
BARRIER BAR
Above
Is it above water or below?
Not attached to shore
Barrier Beach
Below
Bar and Trough Beach
Attached to shore
SPIT, BARRIER
Sand and/or Gravel and/or Cobble and/or Boulder
Beach
Sand and/or Gravel and/or Cobble and/or Boulder
Beach
Bar attaches an island to the mainland
TOMBOLO
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BARRIER BEACHES Barriers are elongated offshore
ridges of sand (and gravel) that are separated
from the mainland for most or all of their
length. Spits are attached at one end to the
mainland and usually develop where the coast
changes direction. Barriers may elongate across
the mouth of bays or lagoons and are then often
referred to as bars. Tombolos connect an offshore
island with the adjacent mainland and are formed
in the wave shadow of islands where the shore is
protected from large waves. 
Relative importance of processes for maintaining
landform Longshore flow Most barriers are
maintained by sediment moved alongshore from an
erosional source. If sediment movement is reduced
or obstructed, erosion of the barrier may
occur. Cross-shore flow Barriers may be
overwashed or breached as a result of changes in
sedment supply, large storms, and other factors.
Overwashing is common mechanism of barrier
migration. Fluvial flow Not a primary driving
process for barriers
Relative sensitivity/responsiveness to changes in
inputs Sediment Longhore transport provides
sediment so it should not be blocked by shoreline
armoring such as bulkheads. Barrier might migrate
so should plan for natural migrations. Woody
debris Large logs, tree limbs and root wads that
wash ashore on barriers can stabilize the
landform by trapping sediment and deflecting
cross-shore wave and wind flows.  A reduction in
inputs may therefore accelerate erosion and
increase movement of the landform.  Non-point
pollution Because these landforms are partially
or entirely detached from the mainland, they are
less likely than estuaries, river mouths and
deltas to trap pollutants from run-off and
overland flows.
Protection Opportunities These dynamic systems
are not suitable for development or armoring. To
protect these systems, research of sediment
movements at all spatial scales will help
formulate the most appropriate management
strategies. Restoration Opportunities Removal
of hard structures that interrupt sediment
transport to these landforms can help to restore
landforms that have eroded as a result of
sediment starvation. In situations where removal
of such structures is not possible, artificial
placement of sand and/or gravel on to the beach -
sometimes referred to as "beach nourishment" can
restore the barrier. If the natural sediment
sources are permanently blocked, beach
nourishment will have to occur with some
regularity, depending upon the rate of erosion,
to maintain the landform.
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Reach Classifiers

• Landforms/geology
• Substrate composition
• Upland slope and elevation changes
• Changes in shoreline configuration/orientation
• Upland vegetation
• Aquatic vegetation
• Land use

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Overlay critical areas and biological features
Overlay the following to a) further verify reach
breaks, and b) begin assessing shoreline
ecological functions
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• Within context of shoreline type, consider
• Is there an intact riparian vegetation corridor
  that provides critical habitat for aquatic and
  terrestrial species?
• Are eroding shorelines or unstable slopes?
• Are there sustainable sources of woody debris
  that provide habitat complexity?
• In urban areas, is there sufficient riparian and
  aquatic vegetation to provide habitat, sediment
  trapping, wind/wave breaks, and bank
  stabilization functions?
• Is habitat provided by connected wetlands?

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Physical Characteristics
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Biological Characteristics
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Map shoreline structures and modifications
including
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Shoreline modifications
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Decision Support System Structure

• Inventory
• Analysis
• Provide overall regional context
• Characterize ecosystem-wide processes
• Characterize shoreline ecological functions
• Identify opportunities for restoration and
  protection, develop draft shoreline environmental
  designations

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Link to Rule Example
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Regulatory Juridictions
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Protection and Restoration Opportunities
1) Public education regarding the benefits of
eelgrass beds and reducing impact during
recreation. 2) Retrofitting storm sewer outfalls
to limit pollution loading to the bay. 3)
Removing the derelict pilings and structures on
the water front that may contain creosote. 4)
Reducing impervious surface within the shoreline
jurisdiction.
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Determine environment designations based on

• Existing use
• Biological and physical character of shoreline
• Goals and aspirations of community (e.g.
  comprehensive plans)
• Ecology criteria for six environment types (e.g.
  natural, rural conservancy, urban conservancy,
  high intensity, shoreline residential, aquatic)

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Environmental Designations
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Rationale for Designations
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Acknowledgements

• Office of Graduate Studies Research, Central
  Washington University
• Washington Department of Ecology
• National Consortium for Geospatial Innovations in
  America (RGIS) program
• USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and
  Extension Service.

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Questions?