“Accessory structure or use” means a structure or use incidental, related and clearly subordinate to the principal structure or use of a lot or main building. An accessory structure or use is only located on the same lot as a permitted principal structure or use.

“Act” means the Washington State Shoreline Management Act (SMA) (Chapter 90.58 RCW and addressed in Chapter 173-27 WAC).

“Agricultural activities” means agricultural uses and practices including, but not limited to: producing, breeding or increasing agricultural products; rotating and changing agricultural crops; allowing land used for agricultural activities to lie fallow in which it is plowed and tilled but left unseeded; allowing land used for agricultural activities to lie dormant as a result of adverse agricultural market conditions; allowing land used for agricultural activities to lie dormant because the land is enrolled in a local, state or federal conservation program or the land is subject to a conservation easement; conducting agricultural operations; maintaining, repairing and replacing agricultural equipment; maintaining, repairing, and replacing agricultural facilities; provided, that the replacement facility is no closer to the shoreline than the original facility; and maintaining agricultural lands under production or cultivation.

“Agricultural equipment and facilities” includes, but is not limited to, the following:

“Agricultural land” means those specific land areas on which agricultural activities are conducted as of the date of adoption of a local master program and pursuant to these guidelines as evidenced by aerial photography or other documentation. After the effective date of the master program, land converted to agricultural use is subject to compliance with the requirements of the master program.

“Agricultural products” includes, but is not limited to, horticultural, viticultural, floricultural, vegetable, fruit, berry, grain, hops, hay, straw, turf, sod, seed and apiary products; feed or forage for livestock; Christmas trees; hybrid cottonwood and similar hardwood trees grown as crops and harvested within twenty (20) years of planting; and livestock including both the animals themselves and animal products including, but not limited to: meat, upland finfish, poultry and poultry products and dairy products.

“Agriculture” means the use of land for agricultural purposes, including farming, dairying, pasturage, horticulture, floriculture, viticulture, apiaries and animal and poultry husbandry and the necessary accessory uses for storing produce; provided, however, that the operation of any such accessory use shall be incidental to that of normal agricultural activities. In all cases, the use of agriculture related terms should be consistent with the specific meanings provided in RCW 90.58.065.

“Applicant” means any person or entity designated or named in writing by the property or easement owner to be the applicant, in an application for a shoreline development proposal, permit or approval.

“Appurtenance” means a building, structure or development necessarily connected to the use and enjoyment of a single-family residence that is located landward of the OHWM and of the perimeter of any wetland. On a statewide basis, normal appurtenances include a garage, deck, driveway, utilities, fences, installation of a septic tank and drain field and grading which does not exceed two hundred fifty (250) cubic yards (except to construct a conventional drain field) and which does not involve placement of fill in any wetland or waterward of the OHWM. Refer to WAC 173-27-040(2)(g).

“Aquaculture” means the culture or farming of fish, shellfish or other aquatic plants and animals. Aquaculture does not include the harvest of wild geoduck associated with the state managed wildstock geoduck fishery.

“Associated wetlands” means those wetlands that are in proximity to and either influence or are influenced by tidal waters or a lake or stream in shoreline jurisdiction. Refer to WAC 173-22-030(1).

“Average grade level” means the average of the natural or existing topography of the portion of the lot, parcel or tract of real property, which will be directly under the proposed building or structure. In the case of structures to be built over water, average grade level shall be the elevation of the OHWM. Calculation of the average grade level shall be made by averaging the ground elevations at the midpoint of all exterior walls of the proposed building or structure.

“Berm” means a linear mound or series of mounds of sand or gravel generally that parallels the water at or landward of the line of ordinary high tide or the OHWM. In addition, a linear mound used to screen an adjacent use, such as a parking lot, from transmitting excess noise and glare.

“Best available science (BAS)” means information from research, inventory, monitoring, surveys, modeling, synthesis, expert opinion and assessment that is used to designate, protect or restore critical areas and that is derived from a valid scientific process as defined by WAC 365-195-900 through 365-195-925. BAS is derived from a process that includes peer-reviewed literature, standard methods, logical conclusions and reasonable inferences, quantitative analysis and documented references to produce reliable information.

Best Management Practices (BMPs). BMPs are the utilization of methods, techniques or products which have been demonstrated to be the most effective and reliable in minimizing environmental impacts. BMPs encompass a variety of behavioral, procedural and structural measures that reduce the amount of contaminants in stormwater run-off and in receiving waters.

“Breakwater” means an offshore structure that is generally built parallel to shore that may or may not be connected to land and may be floating or stationary. Their primary purpose is to protect harbors, moorages and navigation activity from wave and wind action by creating stillwater areas along shore. A secondary purpose is to protect shorelines from wave caused erosion.

“Bulkhead” means a vertical or nearly vertical erosion protection structure placed parallel to the shoreline consisting of concrete, timber, steel, rock, or other permanent material not readily subject to erosion.

“Channel migration zone (CMZ)” means the area along a river or stream within which the channel can reasonably be expected to migrate over time because of normally occurring processes. It encompasses that area of lateral stream channel movement that can be identified by credible scientific information that is subject to erosion, bank destabilization, rapid stream incision and/or channel shifting, as well as adjacent areas that are susceptible to channel erosion. The area within which a river channel is likely to move over an interval of time is referred to as the CMZ or the meander belt.

“Chapter 90.58 RCW” means the Shoreline Management Act of 1971, as amended.

“City” means the city of Aberdeen.

“Clean Water Act” means the primary federal law providing water pollution prevention and control; previously known as the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. See 33 U.S.C. §  1251 et seq.

“Clearing” means the removal of vegetation or plant cover by manual, chemical or mechanical means. Clearing includes, but is not limited to, actions such as cutting, felling, thinning, flooding, killing, poisoning, girdling, uprooting or burning.

“Comprehensive Plan” means the document, including maps adopted by the city in accordance with applicable state law, that guides land use development within the city.

“Conditional use” means a use, development or substantial development that is classified as a conditional use or is not classified within the applicable SMP. Refer to WAC 173-27-030(4).

“County” means Grays Harbor County.

“Critical areas,” as defined under Chapter 36.70A RCW, includes the following areas and ecosystems:

“Critical saltwater habitats” includes all kelp beds, eelgrass beds, spawning and holding areas for forage fish, such as herring, smelt and sandlance; subsistence, commercial and recreational shellfish beds; mudflats, intertidal habitats with vascular plants and areas with which priority species have a primary association.

“Cumulative impact” means the impact on the environment which results from the incremental impact of the action when added to other past, present and reasonably foreseeable future actions regardless of what agency or person undertakes such other actions. Cumulative impacts can result from individually minor but collectively significant actions taking place over an interval of time.

Date of Filing. For a substantial development permit, the “date of filing” is the date of receipt by Ecology. For shoreline conditional use and variance permits, and substantial development permits simultaneously transmitted with a shoreline conditional use or variance permit, the “date of filing” is the date Ecology’s decision is transmitted to the city.

“Development” means the construction or exterior alteration of buildings or structures; dredging; drilling; dumping; filling; removal of sand, gravel or minerals; bulkheading; driving of piling; placing of obstructions; or a project of a permanent or temporary nature which interferes with the normal public use of the surface of the waters overlying lands subject to Chapter 90.58 RCW at any state of water level (RCW 90.58.030(3)(a)).

“Dredging” means excavating or displacing of the bottom or shoreline of a water body. Dredging can be accomplished with mechanical or hydraulic machines. Most dredging is done to maintain channel depths or berths for navigational purposes; other dredging is for cleanup of polluted sediments.

“Ecological functions” means the work performed or the role played by the physical, chemical and biological processes that contribute to the maintenance of the aquatic and terrestrial environments that constitute the shoreline’s natural ecosystem.

“Ecology” means the Washington State Department of Ecology.

“Ecosystem-wide processes” means the suite of naturally occurring physical and geologic processes of erosion, transport and deposition; and specific chemical processes that shape landforms within a specific shoreline ecosystem and determine both the types of habitat and the associated ecological functions.

“Emergency” means an unanticipated and imminent threat to public health, safety or the environment, requiring immediate action within a time too short to allow full compliance with the SMP. Emergency construction is construed narrowly as that which is necessary to protect property from the elements (RCW 90.58.030(3)(e)(iii) and WAC 173-27-040(2)(d)). Emergency construction does not include development of new permanent protective structures where none previously existed. Where new protective structures are deemed by the administrator to be the appropriate means to address the emergency situation, upon abatement of the emergency situation the new structure shall be removed or any permit which would have been required, absent an emergency, obtained. All emergency construction shall be consistent with the policies of Chapter 90.58 RCW and this chapter. As a general matter, flooding or other seasonal events that can be anticipated and may occur but that are not imminent are not an emergency.

“Endangered Species Act (ESA)” means the federal law intended to protect any fish or wildlife species that are threatened with extinction throughout all or a significant portion of their range.

“Environmental impacts” means the effects or consequences of actions on the natural and built environments. Environmental impacts include effects upon the elements of the environment listed in the SEPA. Refer to WAC 197-11-600 and 197-11-444.

“Environments (shoreline environment)” means designations given to specific shoreline areas based on the existing development pattern, the biophysical character and limitations and the goals and aspirations of local citizenry, as part of an SMP.

“Exemption” means certain specific developments are exempt from the definition of substantial developments and are therefore exempt from the shoreline substantial development permit process of the SMA. A use or activity that is exempt from the substantial development provisions of the SMA must still be carried out in compliance with policies and standards of the SMA and this chapter. Shoreline conditional use permits and variances may also still be required even though the use or activity does not need a shoreline substantial development permit (WAC 173-27-040).

“Fair market value” means the open market bid price for conducting the work, using the equipment and facilities and purchase of the goods, services and materials necessary to accomplish the development. This would normally equate to the cost of hiring a contractor to undertake the development from start to finish, including the cost of labor, materials, equipment and facility usage, transportation and contractor overhead and profit. The fair market value of the development shall include the fair market value of donated, contributed or found labor, equipment or materials (WAC 173-27-030(8)).

“Feasible” means an action, such as a development project, mitigation, or preservation requirement, that meets all of the following conditions:

In cases where the SMP guidelines require certain actions unless they are infeasible, the burden of proving infeasibility is on the applicant.

In determining an action’s infeasibility, the city may weigh the action’s relative public costs and public benefits, considered in the short- and long-term time frames.

“Feasible alternatives” means alternatives to the proposed project that will accomplish essentially the same objective as the original project while avoiding or having less adverse impacts.

“Fill” means raising the elevation or creating dry land by adding soil, sand, rock, gravel, sediment, earth-retaining structure or other material to an area waterward of the OHWM, in wetland or on shorelands.

“Floodplain” is synonymous with one hundred (100) year floodplain. The land area that is susceptible to being inundated with a one (1) percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in a given year. The limits of this area are based on flood regulation ordinance maps or a reasonable method that meets the objectives of the SMA (WAC 173-22-030(2)).

“Floodway” means the area that has either: (1) has been established in FEMA flood insurance rate maps (FIRMs) or floodway maps; or (2) consists of those portions of the area of a river valley lying streamward from the outer limits of a watercourse upon which floodwaters are carried during periods of flooding that occur with reasonable regularity, although not necessarily annually, said floodway being identified, under normal condition, by changes in surface soil conditions or changes in types or quality of vegetative ground cover condition, topography or other indicators of flooding that occurs with reasonable regularity, although not necessarily annually. Regardless of the method used to identify the floodway, the floodway shall not include those lands that can reasonably be expected to be protected from floodwaters by flood control devices maintained by or maintained under license from the federal government, the state or a political subdivision of the state.

“Geotechnical report” or “geotechnical analysis” means a scientific study or evaluation conducted by a qualified expert that includes a description of the ground and surface hydrology and geology, the affected land form and its susceptibility to mass wasting, erosion and other geologic hazards or processes, conclusions and recommendations regarding the effect of the proposed development on geologic conditions, the adequacy of the site to be developed, the impacts of the proposed development, alternative approaches to the proposed development and measures to mitigate potential site-specific and cumulative geological and hydrological impacts of the proposed development, including the potential adverse impacts to adjacent and down-current properties. Geotechnical reports shall conform to accepted technical standards and must be prepared by qualified professional engineers or geologists who have professional expertise about the regional and local shoreline geology and processes.

“Grading” means the movement or redistribution of the soil, sand, rock, gravel, sediment or other material on a site in a manner that alters the natural contour of the land.

“Groin” means a barrier-type structure extending from and usually perpendicular to the backshore into a water body. Its purpose is to protect a shoreline and adjacent upland by influencing the movement of water or deposition of materials. This is accomplished by building or preserving an accretion beach on its updrift side by trapping littoral drift. A groin is relatively narrow in width but varies greatly in length. A groin is sometimes built in a series as a system and may be permeable or impermeable, high or low and fixed or adjustable.

“Growth Management Act (GMA)” means Chapters 36.70A and 36.70B RCW, as amended.

Guidelines. See Shoreline Master Program (SMP) Guidelines (Chapter 173-26 WAC).

“Hazard tree” means any tree that is susceptible to immediate fall due to its condition (damaged, diseased or dead) or other factors and which, because of its location, is at risk of damaging permanent physical improvements to property or causing personal injury.

“Hearing examiner” conducts public hearings and proceedings required by Chapter 16.20 , Shoreline Master Program, for appeals of the hearing examiner’s decision, Chapter 17.96 for enforcement and penalties. See RCW 90.58.170 and 90.58.180.

“Height” is measured from average grade level to the highest point of a structure; provided, that television antennas, chimneys and similar appurtenances shall not be used in calculating height, except where such appurtenances obstruct the view of the shoreline of a substantial number of residences on areas adjoining such shorelines or the applicable SMP specifically requires that such appurtenances be included; provided further, that temporary construction equipment is excluded in this calculation.

“Historic resources” means those historic or cultural properties or items that fall under the jurisdiction of the DAHP.

“Impermeable surface” means the area of a lot that is covered by impermeable surfaces, measured by percentage. A nonvertical surface artificially covered or hardened to prevent or impede the percolation of water into the soil mantle including, but not limited to, rooftops, swimming pools, paved or graveled roads and walkways or parking areas, but excluding landscaping and surface water retention/detention facilities.

“In-water structure” means a structure placed by humans within a stream or river waterward of the OHWM that either causes or has the potential to cause water impoundment or the diversion, obstruction or modification of water flow. In-water structures may include those for hydroelectric generation, irrigation, water supply, flood control, transportation, utility service transmission, fish habitat enhancement or other purpose.

“Interested party,” synonymous with party of record, means all persons, agencies or organizations who have submitted written comments in response to a notice of application; made oral comments in a formal public hearing conducted on the application; or notified the city of their desire to receive a copy of the final decision on a permit and who have provided an address for delivery of such notice by mail (WAC 173-27-030(12)).

“Jetty” means a structure generally perpendicular to the shore, extending through or past the intertidal zone. Jetties are built singly or in pairs at a harbor entrance or river mouth mainly to prevent accretion from littoral drift in an entrance channel. Jetties also serve to protect channels from storm waves or cross currents and to stabilize inlets through barrier beaches. Most jetties are of riprapped mound construction.

“Landscaping” means vegetation ground cover including shrubs, trees, flower beds, grass, ivy and other similar plants and including tree bark and other materials which aid vegetative growth and maintenance.

“Low impact development (LID)” is a stormwater and land use management strategy that strives to mimic pre-disturbance hydrologic processes of infiltration, filtration, storage, evaporation and transpiration by emphasizing conservation, use of on-site natural features, site planning and distributed stormwater management practices that are integrated into a project design.

“Marine” means pertaining to tidally influenced waters, including oceans, sounds, straits, marine channels and estuaries, including the Pacific Ocean, Puget Sound, Straits of Georgia and Juan de Fuca and the bays, estuaries and inlets associated therewith.

“Marine terminal” includes industrial and commercial wharfs, piers, berths, docks, roads, rail lines and similar structures used for shipping, marine cargo handling, freight mobility, transportation, navigation services and vessel berthing, moorage, construction, repair and resupply. See “mooring structure.”

“May” means an action that is acceptable, provided it conforms to the provisions of the SMP.

“Mitigation” or “mitigation sequencing” means avoiding, reducing or compensating for a proposal’s environmental impact(s). See WAC 173-26-020(30) and 197-11-768. “Mitigation” or “mitigation sequencing” means the following sequence of steps listed in order of priority, with subsection (1) of this definition being top priority:

“Mooring structure” is used in conjunction with a marine terminal including all manner of over-water and in-water fixed structures which include single pilings or multiple pilings connected together to form or support an anchoring structure for the mooring of vessels and protection of terminals from moored vessels. Examples include, but are not limited to, mooring piles and various forms of dolphins and fender piles.

“Must” is a mandate; the action is required.

“Native vegetation” means vegetation comprised of plant species that are indigenous to an area.

“Natural or existing topography” means the topography of the lot, parcel or tract of real property immediately prior to site preparation or grading, including exaction or filling.

“Non-water-oriented uses” means those uses that are not water-dependent, water-related or water-enjoyment, which have little or no relationship to the shoreline and are not considered priority uses under the SMA. Examples include professional offices, automobile sales or repair shops, mini-storage facilities, residential development, department stores and gas stations.

“Nonconforming use or development” means a shoreline use, building or structure which was lawfully constructed or established prior to the effective date of the applicable SMA/SMP provision and which no longer conforms to the applicable shoreline provisions (WAC 173-27-080).

“Normal maintenance” means those usual acts to prevent a decline, lapse or cessation from a lawfully established condition (WAC 173-27-040(2)(b)). See also “normal repair.”

“Normal repair” means to restore a development to a state comparable to its original condition, including but not limited to its size, shape, configuration, location and external appearance, within a reasonable period after decay or partial destruction except where repair involves total replacement which is not common practice or causes substantial adverse effects to the shoreline resource or environment (WAC 173-27-040(2)(b)). See also “normal maintenance.”

“Ordinary high water mark (OHWM)” means that mark that will be found by examining the bed and banks and ascertaining where the presence and action of waters are so common and usual and so long continued in all ordinary years, as to mark upon the soil a character distinct from that of the abutting upland, in respect to vegetation as that condition exists on June 1, 1971, as it may naturally change thereafter or as it may change thereafter in accordance with permits issued by the city or Ecology; provided, that in an area where the OHWM cannot be found, the OHWM adjoining fresh water shall be the line of mean high water. See RCW 90.58.030(2)(b) and WAC 173-22-030(5).

“Over-water structure” means a device or structure projecting over the OHWM, including, but not limited to: bridges for motorized or nonmotorized uses, piers, docks, floats and moorage.

“Permit” (or “shoreline permit”) means a shoreline substantial development permit, conditional use permit, variance or any combination thereof, authorized by the SMA. Refer to WAC 173-27-030(13).

“Primary structure” means the structure associated with the principal use of the property. It may also include single-family residential appurtenant structures, such as garages, attached decks, driveways, utilities, septic tanks and drain fields, which cannot feasibly be relocated. It does not include structures such as tool sheds, gazebos, greenhouses or other ancillary residential improvements that can feasibly be moved landward to prevent the erosion threat.

“Priority habitat” means a habitat type with unique or significant value to one (1) or more species. An area classified and mapped as priority habitat must have one (1) or more of the following attributes:

A priority habitat may be described by a unique vegetation type or by a dominant plant species that is of primary importance to fish and wildlife (such as oak woodlands or eelgrass meadows). A priority habitat may also be described by a successional stage (such as old growth and mature forests). Alternatively, a priority habitat may consist of a specific habitat element (such as a consolidated marine/estuarine shoreline, talus slopes, caves, snags) of key value to fish and wildlife. A priority habitat may contain priority and/or nonpriority fish and wildlife.

“Priority species” means species requiring protective measures and/or management guidelines to ensure their persistence at genetically viable population levels. Priority species are those that meet any of the four (4) criteria listed below:

“Proposed, threatened and endangered species” means those native species that are proposed to be listed or are listed in rule by the WDFW as threatened or endangered or that are proposed to be listed as threatened or endangered or that are listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA.

“Provisions” means policies, regulations, standards, guideline criteria or shoreline environment designations.

“Public access” is the ability of the public to reach, touch and enjoy the water’s edge, to travel on the waters of the state and to view the water and the shoreline from adjacent locations. Refer to WAC 173-26-221(4).

“Public interest” means the interest shared by the citizens of the state or community at large in the affairs of government or some interest by which their rights or liabilities are affected such as an effect on public property or on health, safety or general welfare resulting from a use or development (WAC 173-27-030(14)).

“Public use” means to be made available daily to the public on a first-come, first-served basis and may not be leased to private parties on more than a day use basis. Refer to WAC 332-30-106.

“RCW” means the Revised Code of Washington.

“Recreational facilities” means facilities such as parks, trails and pathways, whether public, private or commercial, that provide a means for relaxation, play or amusement. For the purposes of the SMP, recreational facilities are divided into two (2) categories:

“Residential development” means development which is primarily devoted to or designed for use as a dwelling(s). Residential development includes single-family development, multifamily development and the creation of new residential lots through land division.

“Restore,” “restoration,” or “ecological restoration” means the reestablishment or upgrading of impaired ecological shoreline processes or functions. This may be accomplished through measures including, but not limited to, revegetation, removal of intrusive shoreline structures and removal or treatment of toxic materials. Restoration does not imply a requirement for returning the shoreline area to aboriginal or pre-European settlement conditions.

“Riparian” means of, on or pertaining to the banks of a river, stream or lake.

“Riprap” means a layer, facing or protective mound of stones placed to prevent erosion, scour or sloughing of a structure or embankment; also, the stone so used.

“Run-off” means water that is not absorbed into the soil but rather flows along the ground surface following the topography.

“Shall” is a mandate; the action must be done.

“Shorelands” or “shoreland areas” means those lands extending landward for two hundred (200) feet in all directions as measured on a horizontal plane from the OHWM; adopted FEMA floodways and contiguous floodplain areas landward two hundred (200) feet from such adopted FEMA floodways; and all wetlands and river deltas associated with the streams, lakes and tidal waters, which are subject to the provisions of the SMA.

Shoreline Administrator. The community development director is the city’s shoreline administrator and is charged with the responsibility of administering the SMP.

“Shoreline buffer” means a required vegetated open space measured horizontally upland from and perpendicular to the OHWM. Shoreline buffers are naturally vegetated areas that protect the ecological functions of the shoreline and help to reduce the impacts of land uses on the water body.

“Shoreline building setback” means a required building setback, specified in the SMP, measured horizontally upland from a shoreline buffer and perpendicular to the OHWM, if used with a shoreline buffer, as specified in Article 4, General Policies and Regulations. It establishes a definite point beyond which the foundation for a building shall not extend. A shoreline building setback protects the shoreline buffer from the impacts related to use of a structure.

“Shoreline environment designations” means the categories of shorelines established by the SMP in order to provide a uniform basis for applying policies and use regulations within distinctively different shoreline areas. See WAC 173-26-211.

“Shoreline jurisdiction” is the term describing all of the geographic areas covered by the SMA, related rules, the applicable SMP and such areas within the city that are under the SMA. See definitions of “shorelines,” “shorelines of the state,” “shorelines of statewide significance,” “shorelands” and “wetlands.”

“Shoreline Management Act (SMA)” means Chapter 90.58 RCW, as amended. Washington’s SMA was passed by the Legislature in 1971 and adopted by the public in a 1972 referendum. The goal of the SMA is to prevent the inherent harm in an uncoordinated and piecemeal development of the state’s shorelines.

“Shoreline master program (SMP)” means the comprehensive use plan and related use regulations, together with maps, diagrams, charts or other descriptive material and text, which are used by the city to administer and enforce the permit system for shoreline management. The SMP must be developed in accordance with the policies of the SMA, be approved and adopted by the state, and be consistent with the rules (WACs) adopted by Ecology.

“Shoreline master program (SMP) guidelines” means the state standards that the city must follow in drafting its SMP. The guidelines translate the broad policies of the SMA into standards for regulation of shoreline uses.

“Shoreline modification” means those actions that modify the physical configuration or qualities of the shoreline area, usually through the construction of a physical element such as a dike, breakwater, pier, weir, dredged basin, fill, bulkhead or other shoreline structure. They can include other actions, such as clearing, grading, application of chemicals or significant vegetation removal.

“Shoreline permit” means a shoreline substantial development permit, conditional use permit, variance, revision or any combination thereof (WAC 173-27-030(13)).

“Shoreline stabilization” means actions taken to address erosion impacts to property and dwellings, businesses, buildings or structures caused by natural processes, such as current, flood, tides, wind or wave action. These actions include structural measures such as bulkheads and nonstructural methods such as building setbacks. New stabilization measures include enlargement of existing structures.

“Shorelines” means all of the water areas of the state, including reservoirs and their associated uplands, together with the lands underlying them, except those areas excluded under RCW 90.58.030(2)(d).

“Shorelines of statewide significance” means a select category of shorelines of the state, defined in RCW 90.58.030(2)(e), where use preferences apply and where greater planning authority is granted by the SMA. Permit review must acknowledge the use priorities for these areas established by the SMA. See RCW 90.58.020.

“Shorelines of the state” means the total of shorelines and shorelines of statewide significance.

“Should” means a particular action is required unless there is a demonstrated, compelling reason, based on policy of the SMA and the SMP, against taking the action.

“Sign” means a device, structure, fixture, or placard that uses words, letters, numbers, symbols, graphic designs, logos or trademarks for the purpose of: (1) providing information or directions or (2) identifying or advertising a place, establishment, product, good or service.

“Significant vegetation removal” means the removal or alteration of trees, shrubs and/or ground cover by clearing, grading, cutting, burning, chemical means or other activity that causes significant ecological impacts to functions provided by such vegetation. The removal of invasive or noxious weeds does not constitute significant vegetation removal. Tree pruning, not including tree topping, where it does not affect ecological functions, does not constitute significant vegetation removal.

“Significantly degrade” means to cause significant ecological impact.

“Single-family residence” means a detached dwelling designed for and occupied by one (1) family including those buildings, structures and developments within a contiguous ownership which are a normal appurtenance (WAC 173-27-040(2)(g)).

“Solid waste” means all garbage, rubbish, trash, refuse, debris, scrap, waste materials and discarded materials of all types whatsoever, whether the sources be residential or commercial, exclusive of hazardous wastes and including all source-separated recyclable materials and yard waste.

“Stream” means a naturally occurring body of periodic or continuously flowing water where: (1) the mean annual flow is greater than twenty (20) cubic feet per second and (2) the water is contained within a channel. A channel is an open conduit either naturally or artificially created. This definition does not include artificially created irrigation, return flow or stock watering channels (WAC 173-22-030(8)).

“Strict construction” means the close or narrow reading and interpretation of a statute or written document.

Structural Shoreline Stabilization. “Hard structural stabilization measures” refer to those with solid, hard surfaces, such as concrete groins, retaining walls and bulkheads, while “soft structural stabilization measures” rely on less rigid materials, such as biotechnical vegetation measures or beach enhancement. There is a range of measures varying from soft to hard that include vegetation enhancement, upland drainage control, biotechnical measures, beach enhancement, anchor trees, gravel placement, rock revetments, gabions, concrete groins, retaining and bluff walls and bulkheads. Generally, the harder the construction measure, the greater the impact on shoreline processes, including sediment transport, geomorphology and biological functions.

“Structure” means a permanent or temporary edifice or building or a piece of work artificially built or composed of parts joined together in some definite manner, whether installed on, above or below the surface of the ground or water, except for vessels (WAC 173-27-030(15)).

“Substantial development” means a development of which the total cost or fair market value exceeds six thousand four hundred sixteen dollars ($6,416.00), or any development, which materially interferes with the normal public use of the water or shorelines of the state. The dollar threshold established in this definition must be adjusted for inflation by the Office of Financial Management every five (5) years, beginning July 1, 2007, based upon changes in the consumer price index during that time period. “Consumer price index” means, for a calendar year, that year’s annual average consumer price index, Seattle, Washington area, for urban wage earners and clerical workers, all items, compiled by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, United States Department of Labor. The Office of Financial Management must calculate the new dollar threshold and transmit it to the office of the code reviser for publication in the Washington State Register at least one (1) month before the new dollar threshold is to take effect (RCW 90.58.030(3)(e)). A list of developments, uses and activities that shall not be considered substantial development is provided in Article 7, Shoreline Administration (WAC 173-27-040(2)(a)).

“Upland” is generally described as the dry land area above and landward of the OHWM.

“Utilities” means services and facilities that produce, transmit, store, process or dispose of electric power, gas, water, stormwater, sewage and communications.

“Utilities, accessory” means utilities comprised of small-scale distribution and collection facilities connected directly to development within the shoreline area. Examples include local power, telephone, cable, gas, water, sewer and stormwater service lines.

“Utilities, primary” means utilities comprised of trunk lines or mains that serve neighborhoods, areas and the city. Examples include solid waste handling and disposal sites, water transmission lines, sewage treatment facilities and mains, power generating or transmission facilities, gas storage and transmission facilities and stormwater mains and regional facilities.

“Variance” is a means to grant relief from the specific bulk, dimensional or performance standards specified in the SMP, but not a means to vary a shoreline use. Shoreline variances must be specifically approved, approved with conditions, or denied by Ecology (see WAC 173-27-170).

“Water-dependent use” means a use or a portion of a use, which cannot exist in any other location and is dependent on the water due to the intrinsic nature of its operations. Examples of “water-dependent uses” may include moorage structures (including those associated with residential properties), ship cargo terminal loading areas, ferry and passenger terminals, barge loading facilities, ship building and dry docking, marinas, aquaculture, float plane facilities and sewer outfalls.

“Water-enjoyment use” means a recreational use or other use that facilitates public access to the shoreline as a primary characteristic of the use; or a use that provides for recreational use or aesthetic enjoyment of the shoreline for a substantial number of people as a general characteristic of the use and which through location, design and operation ensures the public’s ability to enjoy the physical and aesthetic qualities of the shoreline. In order to qualify as a water-enjoyment use, the use must be open to the public and the shoreline-oriented space within the project must be devoted to the specific aspects of the use that foster shoreline enjoyment.

“Water-oriented use” means any combination of water-dependent, water-related, or water-enjoyment uses that serves as an all-encompassing definition for priority uses under the SMA.

“Water quality” means the physical characteristics of water within shoreline jurisdiction, including water quantity, hydrological, physical, chemical, aesthetic, recreation-related and biological characteristics. Where used in the SMP, the term “water quantity” refers only to development and uses regulated under the SMP and affecting water quantity, such as impermeable surfaces and stormwater handling practices. “Water quantity,” for purposes of the SMP, does not mean the withdrawal of ground water or diversion of surface water in accordance with RCW 90.03.250 through 90.03.340.

“Water-related use” means a use or a portion of a use, which is not intrinsically dependent on a waterfront location but whose economic viability is dependent upon a waterfront location because:

“Watershed restoration plan” means a plan developed or sponsored by the WDFW, Ecology or WSDOT acting within or in accordance with its authority, a city, a county or a conservation district that provides a general program and implementation measures or actions for the preservation, restoration, recreation or enhancement of the natural resources, character and ecology of a stream, stream segment, drainage area or watershed for which agency and public review has been conducted in accordance with SEPA.

“Weir” means a low dam built across a stream to raise its level, divert its flow or measure its flow. Weirs have been used to address erosion and scouring of stream channels, but can also have negative impacts depending on how they are constructed, such as detrimental effects on fish habitat conditions.

“Wetland” or “wetland areas” means areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas. Wetlands do not include those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland sites, including, but not limited to: irrigation and drainage ditches, grass-lined swales, canals, detention facilities, wastewater treatment facilities, farm ponds and landscape amenities or those wetlands created after July 1, 1990, that were unintentionally created as a result of the construction of a road, street or highway. Wetlands may include those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland areas to mitigate the conversion of wetlands.