ABSTRACT

This chapter describes the Green Shores program, which is one of many initiatives in the Salish Sea region with the broad objective of increasing our capacity to address impacts of shoreline development and climate change on coastal ecology and human well-being. Human settlement–associated coastal development has altered the physical character of Salish Sea shorelines and affected important nearshore habitat functions. The Green Shores program provides tools for industry professionals in the planning, design, and construction fields, as well as shoreline property owners interested in minimizing the environmental impacts of their projects in a cost-effective manner. The Green Shores prerequisites address the most critical issues of sustainable shoreline development, including siting of building structures, conservation of critical and sensitive habitats, coastal riparian values, and shoreline physical processes. In order to develop a meaningful Green Shores rating system, credit development required the expertise of marine biologists, coastal geomorphologists, landscape architects, coastal engineers, shoreline planners, and ecologists.