Chapter 18.06
PURPOSE
Sections:
18.06.040 Title and short title.
18.06.010 Authority.
Authority for development, enactment and administration of this program is the Shoreline Management Act of 1971, chapter 90.58 RCW. (Ord. 1786 § 1, 2013).
18.06.020 Findings.
A. The city council concurs with the State Legislature in finding that the shorelines of the state are among the most valuable and fragile of our natural resources and that there is great concern throughout the state relating to their utilization, protection, restoration and preservation. In addition, ever increasing pressures of additional uses are being placed on the shorelines, necessitating increased coordination in their management and development. Furthermore, much of the shorelines and uplands adjacent thereto are in private ownership; that unrestricted construction on the privately owned or publicly owned shorelines is not in the best public interest; and, therefore, coordinated planning is necessary in order to protect the public interest associated with shorelines while, at the same time, recognizing and protecting private property rights consistent with the public interest. There is, therefore, a clear and urgent demand for a planned, rational and concerted effort, jointly performed by local, state, and federal governments, to prevent the inherent harm in uncoordinated and piecemeal development of shorelines.
B. The city council finds that there are two areas of shorelines within the city of Burlington and its urban growth area, consisting of the Skagit River floodway and contiguous floodplain areas landward 200 feet from such floodways; and the Gages Slough wetland associated with the Skagit River.
C. The city council finds that the Gages Slough wetland has been substantially altered and degraded as a result of the influence of urbanization, lack of best management practices in both urban and agricultural areas and that a restoration, monitoring and maintenance plan shall be included as part of this master program.
D. The city council deems the goals, shoreline area designations, policies, regulations, and procedures set forth in this shoreline management master program to be essential to the protection of the public health, safety and general welfare of the people of the city of Burlington and its urban growth area.
E. Adaptive management shall be applied to the shoreline conditions by means of on-going monitoring of water quality, water levels, review of restoration activities relative to the wetland functional assessment, analysis of data relative to total maximum daily load (TMDL) standards for the wastewater treatment plant, review of the practices of Dike District No. 12 relative to vegetation management, and review and analysis of watershed planning activities occurring in water resource inventory areas 3 and 4.
F. The city council finds that many of the environmental protection issues facing the city can only be addressed on a regional level and the city shall participate actively in those regional efforts. (Ord. 1786 § 1, 2013).
18.06.030 Purpose.
A. To promote the public health, safety and general welfare by providing long-range, comprehensive policies and effective, reasonable regulations for development and use of the city of Burlington shorelines; and
B. To implement this program in a positive, effective and equitable manner; and
C. To further assume and carry out the responsibilities established by the Act for the city of Burlington, and to foster by adoption the policy contained in RCW 90.58.020 for shorelines of the state;
D. In implementing the policy of the Shoreline Management Act, this master program pursues the following objectives:
1. Plan for and foster reasonable and appropriate uses.
2. Promote and enhance the public interest.
3. Protect against adverse effects to public health, the land and its vegetation and wildlife, and the waters of the state and their aquatic life.
4. Protect the rights of navigation and public access.
5. Enhance the public’s opportunity to enjoy the physical and aesthetic qualities of the natural shorelines of the state.
6. Protect and enhance shoreline resources, particularly those that cross jurisdictional boundaries within the state, those that are used by residents throughout the state and those that affect shoreline conditions outside a local jurisdiction’s boundaries. Ensure that the cumulative effects of individual actions do not irreparably damage or diminish shoreline resources.
7. Protect the rights of ownership, including those of the state and other public entities, consistent with the public interest.
8. Achieve planning and regulatory consistency between jurisdictions in the implementation of shoreline management objectives.
9. Provide for equal and fair treatment of all parties with respect to shoreline resources.
10. Ensure that the long-term interests of the state’s current and future citizens are favored over short-term interests. Maintain shoreline management options and resources for future generations.
11. Ensure consistency with other state laws and regulations and that the state is able to meet other laws and responsibilities, including the Federal Endangered Species Act;
E. The Legislature declares that the interest of all of the people shall be paramount in the management of shorelines of statewide significance (the Skagit River shoreline in the city of Burlington). The Department of Ecology, in adopting guidelines for shorelines of statewide significance, and local government, in developing master programs for shorelines of statewide significance, shall give preference to uses in the following order of preference which:
1. Recognize and protect the statewide interest over local interest;
2. Preserve the natural character of the shoreline;
3. Result in long-term over short-term benefit;
4. Protect the resources and ecology of the shoreline;
5. Increase public access to publicly owned areas of the shorelines;
6. Increase recreational opportunities for the public in the shoreline;
7. Provide for any other element as defined in RCW 90.58.100 deemed appropriate or necessary.
In the implementation of this policy the public’s opportunity to enjoy the physical and aesthetic qualities of natural shorelines of the state shall be preserved to the greatest extent feasible consistent with the overall best interest of the state and the people generally. To this end, uses shall be preferred which are consistent with control of pollution and prevention of damage to the natural environment or are unique to or dependent upon use of the state’s shoreline. Alterations of the natural condition of the shorelines of the state, in those limited instances when authorized, shall be given priority for single-family residences, ports, shoreline recreational uses including but not limited to parks, marinas, piers, and other improvements facilitating public access to shorelines of the state, industrial and commercial developments which are particularly dependent on their location or on use of the shorelines of the state and other development that will provide an opportunity to substantial numbers of the people to enjoy the shorelines of the state.
Permitted uses in the shorelines of the state shall be designed and conducted in a manner to minimize, insofar as practical, any resultant damage to the ecology and environment of the shoreline area and any interference with the public’s use of the water. (Ord. 1786 § 1, 2013).
18.06.040 Title and short title.
This document shall be known and may be cited as the master program for the Skagit River shorelines and Gages Slough in the city of Burlington. This document may refer to itself internally as “this master program” or “program.” (Ord. 1786 § 1, 2013).