Presentation Abstract

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the City of Burien completed construction and restoration of Seahurst Beach Park in 2014 with the objective to restore shoreline habitat and function. The project involved removal of approximately 1,200 linear feet of bulkhead, lawn terraces, and restoring a more natural pebbly beach habitat, reconnecting Puget Sound to the adjacent feeder bluffs. The project also restored mature riparian and wetland vegetation through plantings along the marine shoreline above mean higher high water. The $7.3 M construction project started in September 2013 and was completed in September 2014. The shoreline restoration project was expected to restore suitable high intertidal habitats for forage fish spawning, improve aquatic and terrestrial origin prey productivity for juvenile salmon and other aquatic and terrestrial animals, and improve rearing conditions for juvenile salmon through increased accessibility of shallow water habitats and reduced wave energy along the shoreline. Additionally, the creation of back shore habitats designed to match natural conditions in Puget Sound would enhance the long term sustainability of the restored beach areas. During construction a previously known archeological site was determined to be larger than anticipated, which required redesigning a portion of the project to protect it. As a result of the redesign, the planned freshwater wetland area was lessened in size, a rock retaining wall with a willow lift was constructed, and the upland planting beds were enlarged. A plant survival survey was conducted in July 2016 (two years post construction) by the City of Burien Parks Department and Corps personnel. Future monitoring will be carried out in 2018 and 2020. Aside from the plant success monitoring, the construction site was also monitored for effects to seagrass – pre- and post-construction, and for forage fish egg spawning (during construction). This presentation will address the wetland and upland planting.

Session Title

Habitat Restoration

Keywords

Habitat restoration, Beach restoration, Puget Sound, Nearshore restoration

Conference Track

SSE1: Habitat Restoration and Protection

Conference Name

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2018 : Seattle, Wash.)

Document Type

Event

SSEC Identifier

SSE1-13

Start Date

5-4-2018 10:45 AM

End Date

5-4-2018 11:00 AM

Type of Presentation

Oral

Genre/Form

presentations (communicative events)

Contributing Repository

Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.

Subjects – Topical (LCSH)

Shorelines--Monitoring--Washington (State)--Burien; Restoration ecology--Washington (State)--Burien; Park facilities--Washington (State)--Burien; Wildlife habitat improvement--Washington (State)--Burien

Subjects – Names (LCNAF)

Seahurst Park (Burien, Wash.)

Geographic Coverage

Burien (Wash.); Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)

Rights

This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.

Type

Text

Language

English

Format

application/pdf

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Apr 5th, 10:45 AM Apr 5th, 11:00 AM

Seahurst Park beach restoration: Phase II

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the City of Burien completed construction and restoration of Seahurst Beach Park in 2014 with the objective to restore shoreline habitat and function. The project involved removal of approximately 1,200 linear feet of bulkhead, lawn terraces, and restoring a more natural pebbly beach habitat, reconnecting Puget Sound to the adjacent feeder bluffs. The project also restored mature riparian and wetland vegetation through plantings along the marine shoreline above mean higher high water. The $7.3 M construction project started in September 2013 and was completed in September 2014. The shoreline restoration project was expected to restore suitable high intertidal habitats for forage fish spawning, improve aquatic and terrestrial origin prey productivity for juvenile salmon and other aquatic and terrestrial animals, and improve rearing conditions for juvenile salmon through increased accessibility of shallow water habitats and reduced wave energy along the shoreline. Additionally, the creation of back shore habitats designed to match natural conditions in Puget Sound would enhance the long term sustainability of the restored beach areas. During construction a previously known archeological site was determined to be larger than anticipated, which required redesigning a portion of the project to protect it. As a result of the redesign, the planned freshwater wetland area was lessened in size, a rock retaining wall with a willow lift was constructed, and the upland planting beds were enlarged. A plant survival survey was conducted in July 2016 (two years post construction) by the City of Burien Parks Department and Corps personnel. Future monitoring will be carried out in 2018 and 2020. Aside from the plant success monitoring, the construction site was also monitored for effects to seagrass – pre- and post-construction, and for forage fish egg spawning (during construction). This presentation will address the wetland and upland planting.