How to Get Started with Green Shores® for Homes
The Stewardship Centre for BC has an established Green Shores® program that provides guidance to homeowners, proponents and practitioners to use nature-based approaches for shoreline protection, restoration and risk mitigation.
With a changing climate and increased use and development of shorelines, Green Shores nature-based shoreline designs are increasingly effective and thus valuable to shoreline homeowners and coastal communities for mitigating risks such as erosion and flooding from more intense storms with higher wave energy and precipitation. Nature-based solutions help restore habitat, protect coastal ecology, and support natural sediment transport processes.
Homeowners enjoying their Green Shores property.
In contrast to a Green Shores nature-based approach, a conventional practice for shoreline protection is to install hard armour (for example a sea wall or rip-rap).
Hard armour use for shoreline protection tends to be more costly to install and maintain and degrade shoreline conditions because wave energy is intensified against them. Rigid hard armour can increase wave action and can be accompanied by erosion, threatening shoreline infrastructure. Photo credit: District of West Vancouver.
Applying nature-based Green Shores solutions is a better alternative for shoreline homeowners. In addition to shoreline protection, Green Shores projects provide economic, environmental, and social benefits for coastal communities.
Green Shores® is a science-based program that encourages the use of nature-based shoreline solutions to support healthy shoreline environments and provide shoreline protection for waterfront properties. Green Shores offers a framework of best practices, training, certification and technical support in applying nature-based solutions on shoreline properties.
Green Shore’s best practices are based on four guiding principles:
- Preserve or restore physical processes such as the natural actions of water and sediment movement that maintain healthy shorelines.
- Maintain or enhance habitat function and diversity along the shoreline.
- Prevent or reduce pollutants entering the aquatic environment.
- Avoid or reduce cumulative impacts. Small individual effects add up to large impacts on shoreline environments.
Green Shores nature-based solutions work with natural features of healthy shoreline ecosystems such as
- Intact riparian buffer with native vegetation
- Retention of overhanging vegetation such as large trees
- Large woody debris
- Shoreline materials (sand, cobble, gravel and rocks)
- Natural processes (sediment transport, wave action, shoreline ecology)
- And more!
Green Shores does not rely on the use of artificial structures, cement, or other foreign materials for shoreline stabilization. Instead, Green Shores uses natural materials and designs to reduce wave action and mitigate various shoreline risks worsened by climate change that are faced by waterfront homeowners, such as
- Sea-level rise
- Storm surge
- Erosion
- Flooding
Green Shores can be used by
- Homeowners, developers or managers on marine or lake shores
- Practitioners such as planners, coastal engineers, biologists, contractors
- Community planners, regulators and elected officials involved in planning, policy, and management of marine coastal and lakeshore areas
BEFORE GSH
AFTER GSH
Green Shores Green Shores for Homes Gold Certified Project: Piper’s Lagoon Nanaimo, BC.
Left is before Green Shores restoration; right is after.
Green Shores for Homes
Green Shores for Homes (GSH) is applicable to residential developments on shorelines. For example, GSH helps waterfront homeowners restore natural shorelines and enjoy the many recreational, scenic, environmental, and shoreline protection benefits they bring.
GSH projects are verified according to the GSH credits and ratings system. Depending on the number of points awarded, a GSH project can receive a Silver or Gold rating.
How Do I Get Started with a Green Shores for Homes Project?
For a Green Shores for Homes project, as a homeowner, you have the opportunity to enroll your site and work with qualified professionals (biologists, coastal engineers, and environmental specialists) to develop and apply a nature-based shoreline design on your property.
- Become familiar with the program! Visit our Green Shores website, learn about the program and find inspiration on the Green Shores Case Studies page featuring certified Green Shores for Homes and Green Shores for Shoreline Development projects in British Columbia
- Enroll in the GSH program to receive technical support and site verification at no cost to homeowners.
- If you choose to have your property enrolled in the GSH program, visit the Green Shores Enrollment page to fill out the project enrollment form and get access to additional information, project assistance and a third-party verification that provides credibility to your project outcomes.
- Once your application is received, the Green Shores Project Coordinator will arrange a site visit and work with you to assemble a team of qualified shoreline professionals, including Green Shores Approved Professionals. As a team you will discuss options for Green Shores on your property and find out what training options are available to you.
- Next, your Green Shores team of shoreline professionals will help you design and implement the Green Shores nature-based project. This will involve collecting background information and completing the project pre-requisites listed in the Green Shores for Homes Credits and Ratings Guide.
- For Green Shores projects located within the Ministry of Forests West Coast Region of Vancouver Island can potentially use the Expedited Permit Checklist for nature-based projects. This step can save time and costs to a homeowner. Note that project design and construction costs are the responsibility of the homeowner.
- When the work is complete, the Green Shores Projects Coordinator will assign a Green Shores verifier who will review your documentation and the completed shoreline design to assign points to your project. Points are awarded under different credits, outlined in the Green Shores for Homes Credits and Ratings Guide. Depending on the number of points achieved, your project can receive Silver (GSH Level 1) or Gold (GSH Level 2) certification!
Green Shores certified site. Vancouver Island, BC.
Interested in getting started?
Check our Green Shores resources or contact us at info@stewardshipcentrebc.ca. Find out about completed Green Shores for Homes projects on our Case Studies page.
Green Shores for Homes Guide 2015
