Shoreline Erosion Control With Bulkheads on Seattle Waterfront

The King County Department of Development and Environmental Services (DDES) provides guidelines for the use of waterfront bulkheads to control shoreline erosion on waterfront properties. The Bulletin on shoreline erosion control is a good starting point for waterfront home owners on Lake Washington and Puget Sound to find out if there is a need for a bulkhead on your shoreline and whether or not one can be permitted.

 

The most important thing to remember is that waterfront bulkheads sometimes require multiple permits. A geotechnical engineer or consultant will be required to assess the current beach and bluff conditions on your property, as well as the drainage and ground water levels. There are a number of other factors involved, but if it's determined that your beach/bluff erosion cannot be contained with a natural fix like vegetation or drainage control, a permit for bulkhead construction may be permitted.

The goal of the DDES is to preserve as much natural habitat for aquatic life as possible, and sandy beaches are preferable to bulkheads in terms of fish habitat. At the same time, erosion of valuable waterfront real estate is a real concern for land owners. Some jurisdictions are actually giving incentives to waterfront developers to remove old bulkheads and restore the natural shoreline. In Sammamish, homes have been permitted to be built closer to the water line on Lake Sammamish than normally allowed, in return for the removal of bulkheads and planting of native vegetation.

If you were thinking about building a bulkhead without a permit, even on a remote part of Puget Sound...Big Brother is watching. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers periodically conducts aerial photographic surveys and spots unpermitted development. Penalties can be severe, financially and legally. It's not a good idea.

Read the full text of the Bulletin below for more information.

Full Text of DDES Customer Information Bulletin #16:
King County Bulletins in PDF format

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Sam DeBord is a Realtor and real estate broker with SeattleHome.com, a division of Washington State Realty, LLC. He is a member of the Seattle-King County Association of Realtors and a Green-Certified Pro. Sam can be contacted at (206) 658-3225 or Sam(at)SeattleHome.com.