Abstract or Summary
This guidance is intended for use by living shoreline practitioners and interested landowners considering the suitability of a site for a living shoreline project. The question of site suitability is a question of success or failure of a living shoreline; success or failure is rooted in how one defines the project goals. Set specific goals for the project early in the site evaluation process. If a goal is to create a wetland buffer to mitigate sediment runoff into a bay, the site evaluation described herein should be performed through a different lens than if the goal is to create a vegetated berm capable of protecting infrastructure from extreme storm events.
The following guidance is intended to help guide the user through a site evaluation to assessthe viability of a particular site for living shoreline construction using the included worksheetin Appendix A – Site Evaluation Worksheet. The numbering on the worksheet corresponds with section numbering in the guidance to facilitate the use of this document as a reference. Thewritten guidance should help identify design constraints and possible techniques. A list of living shoreline techniques can be found in Appendix B – Living Shoreline Techniques. Site evaluation is one step in a continuous process that also spans concept design, engineering, construction, and monitoring. While performing a site evaluation using this guidance users may find that as certain living shoreline techniques are eliminated from the list of available options at a project site, a conceptual design may be easier to formulate.Most of this document focuses on resources where users can find the data and information that are important in site evaluation and concept design. Look for “Site Evaluation Tips” boxes for additional insight on how parameters affect site suitability, including several important parameters that have the potential to disqualify particular living shoreline techniques.