22.03.010 Shoreline jurisdiction.
A. The provisions of this program shall apply to all shorelines of the state, all shorelines of statewide significance and shorelands (all referred to as shorelines) as defined in RCW 90.58.030. The shoreline maps within BMC 22.11.010, Shoreline designation maps, and 22.11.020, Shorelines of statewide significance map, show the bodies of water that have been identified as shorelines, generally, and are an integral part of this program.
B. The extent of shoreline jurisdiction on an individual lot, parcel or tract is to be determined by field investigations and a survey or engineered drawings and the resultant materials are the sole responsibility of the project applicant/owner. Said investigation/survey/engineered drawings shall be included in shoreline permit application submittals in order for the city to determine the extent of shoreline jurisdiction.1
1Natural or restored shoreline ecosystems and processes that occur over time, such as channel migration or sea level rise, have the potential to alter the point of beginning (ordinary high water mark, outer extent of a floodway, floodplain or channel migration zone) from which the extent of shoreline jurisdiction is measured. In these instances, determination of said point of beginning is subject to subsection (B) of this section.
C. Shorelines of the state may also be fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas, as designated in BMC 16.55.470. Critical areas that may occur within the city of Bellingham’s shoreline jurisdiction per Chapter 16.55 BMC include: wetlands, frequently flooded areas, geologically hazardous areas, and fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas. All such critical areas that are within the shoreline jurisdiction shall be managed and regulated per this program.
1. When a critical area overlaps into the jurisdiction of a shoreline or is partly within and partly outside of shoreline jurisdiction, the buffer and/or setback from the portion of the critical area that is outside of the shoreline jurisdiction is subject to the critical areas ordinance; Chapter 16.55 BMC.
D. In the city of Bellingham, shorelines of the state are:
1. Bellingham Bay (also a shoreline of statewide significance seaward of extreme low tide per Chapter 22.04 BMC and as shown in BMC 22.11.020, Shorelines of statewide significance map);
2. Lake Whatcom (also a shoreline of statewide significance per Chapter 22.04 BMC and as shown in BMC 22.11.020, Shorelines of statewide significance map);
3. Lake Padden;
4. Whatcom Creek;
5. Squalicum Creek;
6. Chuckanut Creek;
7. Tidally influenced portion of Padden Creek (upstream to McKenzie Avenue);
8. Padden Lagoon;
9. Chuckanut Bay; and
10. Tidally influenced lagoons or pocket estuaries as identified on the shoreline maps, BMC 22.11.010, Shoreline designation maps.
E. Shorelines of statewide significance in the city of Bellingham are identified and defined in Chapter 22.04 BMC and shown in BMC 22.11.020, Shorelines of statewide significance map.
F. Adjacent lands to shorelands shall also be considered in shoreline permit proposals as specified in RCW 90.58.340. [Ord. 2013-02-005 § 2 (Exh. 1)].