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<br /> <br />Kittitas County Shoreline Master Program <br />Chapter 6 121 <br />March 7, 2016 <br />Kittitas County Board of County Commissioners Shoreline Master Program Adopting Ordinance <br />Kittitas County Shoreline Master Program Exhibit A | March 2016 | Page 121 of 339 <br />impacts to property and dwellings, businesses, or structures caused by natural <br />processes, such as current, flood, wind, or wave action. These actions include <br />nonstructural and structural methods. <br />Nonstructural methods include building setbacks, relocation of the structure to be <br />protected, groundwater management, planning and regulatory measures to avoid the <br />need for structural stabilization. <br />Structural stabilization measures include: <br /> • Vegetation enhancement; <br /> • Anchor trees; <br /> • Gravel placement; <br /> • Rock revetments; <br /> • Gabions; <br /> • Concrete groins; <br /> • Retaining walls and bluff walls; and <br /> • Bulkheads. <br />Structural stabilization measures can be “hard” or “soft.” “Hard” structural stabilization <br />refers to those with solid, hard surfaces, such as concrete bulkheads, while "soft" <br />structural measures rely on less rigid materials, such as biotechnical vegetation <br />measures. <br />Generally, the harder the construction measure, the greater the impact on shoreline <br />processes, including sediment transport, geomorphology, and biological functions. <br />Additionally, hard structures, especially vertical walls, often create conditions that lead <br />to failure of the structure. Failed bulkheads and walls adversely impact beach <br />aesthetics, may be a safety or navigational hazard, and may adversely impact shoreline <br />ecological functions. <br />A. Policies <br />1. Nonstructural alternatives of stabilization should be encouraged over structural <br />methods, whenever possible. Such alternatives may include no action, increased <br />building setbacks, building relocation, drainage controls, and bioengineering, including <br />vegetative stabilization. <br />2. New structures should be located and designed to avoid the need for future shoreline <br />stabilization where feasible. New lots created through short plat or subdivision should <br />be designed to assure that future use or development on the created lots will not <br />require structural shoreline stabilization for reasonable use or development to occur. <br />3. New or expanded structural shoreline stabilization should be permitted only where <br />demonstrated to be necessary to protect an existing primary structure that is in