New investments to promote a healthy, resilient Puget Sound
Puget Sound will soon benefit from nearly $1.75 million in new investments to advance habitat recovery distributed by the Habitat Strategic Initiative Lead (HSIL), a partnership between the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
Spread across five projects, this latest round of funding focuses on two key priorities to promote healthy shorelines:
1) Evaluating the effectiveness of soft-shore design techniques to maintain nearshore habitat process, structure, and function, as alternatives to hard shoreline armoring like rock or concrete bulkheads to support beach stabilization, and
2) Planning for the effects of sea level rise and climate-related hazards to nearshore habitat.
These projects were selected from grant applications submitted earlier this summer, and awarded to a wide variety of recipients including tribal consortia, local governments, state agencies, and nonprofit organizations.
The projects include:
Evaluating effectiveness of soft-shore alternatives to hard armor
Northwest Straits Foundation: Informing soft-shore best practices in Puget Sound
This long-term study will evaluate effectiveness of existing soft-shore techniques with a focus on projects associated with the Shore Friendly program. The study, led by a coalition of non-profit, county, and academic institutions, will evaluate features like beach nourishment, placement of logs, revegetation and drainage improvements to establish a baseline of data to better understand effectiveness of soft-shore alternatives and inform future efforts.
Washington State Department of Ecology: Strategically advancing soft-shore alternatives
This proposal outlines the first phase of a plan to advance the understanding, implementation, and adoption of soft-shore alternatives throughout Puget Sound. By compiling and analyzing existing information, the project aims to lay the groundwork for future research, monitoring, demonstration projects, and engineering guidance. The project includes plans for mapping, monitoring, and recommendations for soft-shore armoring to address existing challenges and knowledge gaps.
Planning for sea-level rise and climate-related hazards to nearshore habitat
Skagit River System Cooperative: Evaluating agricultural challenges and restoration opportunities
This project will use modeling to predict how flooding and saltwater intrusion related to sea-level rise in the Skagit River delta might impact agricultural properties, as well as provide potential opportunities for habitat restoration to benefit Chinook salmon. By evaluating where sea-level rise might have the greatest impacts, this project could help agricultural landowners with long-term planning and inform future engagement with agricultural landowners. The models may also inform discussions around continuing to implement the existing Skagit Chinook Recovery Plan.
Clallam County: Data mapping of the Strait of Juan de Fuca
With climate-related hazards already impacting nearshore areas along the North Olympic Peninsula, this project will develop accurate, high-resolution mapping for the entire 209-mile coastline of the North Olympic Peninsula from Cape Flattery to Point Wilson at Admiralty Inlet. The project will use topobathymetric data, which combines topographic data (land elevation) and bathymetric data (water depth) into a single coastal elevation model. This information will be shared with partners and the public to improve the understanding of current nearshore conditions and allow for mapping and modeling of potential future hazards like coastal flooding.
DNR: Incorporating sea-level rise into aquatic leasing
This project will pilot an innovative case-study approach to develop strategies that maximize climate resilience and minimize habitat loss by incorporating nature-based solutions as part of DNR’s aquatic lands management and regulatory decision-making. One of the case studies will examine the Nisqually Reach Aquatic Reserve, where the relative lack of infrastructure and minimal constraints will allow consideration of the full suite of potential nature-based solutions.
Habitat forum digs deeper into sea-level rise
HSIL continues to distribute and manage these funds through a cooperative agreement with the EPA, while also fostering partnerships and collaboration among the many entities already engaged in restoring Puget Sound.
To that end, HSIL hosted a forum earlier this fall that brought together restoration experts and advocates to discuss sea-level rise and other hazards related to climate change — one of the priorities for the latest round of funding — and how they might impact Puget Sound shoreline habitat and communities in the years ahead.
The two-day forum, held at the Lynnwood Event Center in late October, featured a series of seminars and panels examining the current and future state of sea-level rise and climate-related impacts in the region, as well as discussing ways to address these challenges while protecting and restoring nearshore habitat and species. Sessions included conversations about bridging the gap between data collection and decision-making to support coastal resilience, tools and resources available to practitioners and the public, how cities and counties are planning and responding to threats, funding challenges and opportunities, as well as a special session on how climate is impacting kelp and eelgrass habitats.
“Puget Sound shorelines are an integral part of life in the region, and the HSIL Fall Forum featured some open conversations about the threat of sea level rise to nearshore habitat and biodiversity, such as loss of beaches and estuaries due to coastal squeeze,” said Dr. Matt Lurie, environmental planner with WDFW and HSIL. “Despite the urgency and the complexity of the challenge, we saw hope in discussing potential solutions and identifying barriers to adopting coastal resiliency measures. The amount of expertise in the room demonstrated how many people are already invested in restoring and protecting Puget Sound and nearshore habitats for future generations and that there is already a lot of work underway. HSIL remains committed to building and amplifying strategic approaches and networks across the region to support habitat protection and restoration.”
HSIL is also developing a comprehensive report summarizing key takeaways and highlighting actionable recommendations stemming from the discussion and workshops at the forum. That report will be available at the HSIL website when complete.
Created in 2016, HSIL implements the Puget Sound Action Agenda through stewarding and investing in the Habitat Implementation Strategies, which include floodplains and estuaries, shoreline armoring, land development and cover, and marine vegetation. HSIL is one of three Puget Sound Strategic Initiatives, which also include the Stormwater and Shellfish Strategic Initiatives.
For more information about HSIL, visit the HSIL website.
