07/15/2026
Washington Soft Shore Mapper Update - New Data Request
Have you completed a Soft Shore Project in Washington, or do you know someone who has? Visit the "Soft Shore Data Form" in the WICD linktree and help the Washington Department of Ecology put it on the map!
In efforts to advance coastal process-based design in Washington, Ecology is updating the Soft Shore Mapper, which hasn’t been updated since 2022. The database currently only hosts projects located within the Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan De Fuca. This update will add recently constructed projects and expand the geographic scope to include other marine shorelines in Washington, including the Pacific Ocean coast, Grays Harbor, Willapa Bay, and the Columbia River Estuary. After compiling projects into the database, the updated mapper will be released later this year (2026).
What kind of projects should be added? Projects added to the mapper will:
-Be geographically located within Washington’s marine shorelines.
-Demonstrate alternatives to hard armor, where armor was avoided, reduced, or removed (e.g., removing armor, using beach nourishment or logs, structure relocation, regrade, revegetation, drainage management, or other soft shore measures). using natural or nature-based features and process-based dynamic approaches).
-Be on public land or be a private site that is documented in publicly accessible literature (e.g., through an agency publication, or a partner website promoting the project) or have landowner consent to publicize.
-Have publicly available before and after photos.
How will this information be used?
Information shared will be made publicly available on the updated Soft Shore Mapper tool, which will be released by Ecology later this year. Project information can be used by coastal practitioners to help inform future project planning, design, monitoring, and research.
Please complete the Soft Shore Data Form and email it along with any questions to Rachel Acker at [email protected] by July 31s to be included in the first round of updates. Projects received after July 31st will be uploaded as part of subsequent updates.
