Chapter 22.12
DEFINITIONS

Sections:

22.12.010    Definitions.

22.12.010 Definitions.

As used in this title, the following terms have the meanings given in this chapter:

1.    “Accessory dwelling” means a separate living quarters detached from the primary residence. No mobile home or recreational vehicle shall be an accessory dwelling unit. Such dwelling shall be subject to the requirements and conditions provided in the Zoning Ordinance.

2.    “Accessory use” means any use incidental, subordinate, and adjacent to a primary use.

3.    “Agricultural practices” means activities related to vegetation and soil management, such as tilling of soil, control of weeds, control of plant diseases and insect pests, soil maintenance and fertilization as well as animal husbandry.

4.    “Anchorage of large vessels” means securing a vessel sixty-five feet or longer in overall length by means of a mooring buoy or anchor.

5.    “Aquaculture practices” means the harvest, culture or farming of cultivated food fish, shellfish, or other aquatic plants and animals and includes fisheries enhancement, the mechanical harvesting of shellfish and hatchery culture, excluding traditional noncommercial shellfish harvesting.

6.    “Archaeological” means having to do with scientific study of material remains of past human life and activities.

7.    “Associated wetlands” means those wetlands which are in proximity to and either influence or are influenced by tidal waters or a lake or stream subject to the Shoreline Management Act.

8.    “Bar” means a naturally occurring deposit of sediment, particularly sand and gravel, shaped by wind, water, currents and littoral drift.

9.    “Beach enhancement” means the process of restoring a beach to a state more closely resembling a natural beach, using beach feeding, vegetation, drift sills and other non structural methods of shoreline protection.

10.    “Benthic” means relating to or occurring at the bottom of a body of water.

11.    “Berm” means an area created as a result of littoral drift, wind or natural occurring action or man-made areas created to prevent erosion.

12.    “Bio-engineering” means the combination of biological, mechanical and ecological concepts to control erosion and stabilize soil through the sole use of vegetation or the use of vegetation in conjunction with construction materials. Bio-engineering includes:

a.    Bio-technical stabilization through the use of live vegetation in conjunction with structures and other mechanical elements to stabilize slopes.

b.    Soil bio-engineering, the use of plants to bind soils and reduce erosion and shallow lighting.

13.    “Boardwalk” means a walkway constructed over water or wetlands.

14.    “Breakwater” means a protective structure usually built off-shore to protect beaches, bluffs, or harbor areas from wave action.

15.    “Bridge” means a structure spanning a river, chasm, road, railroad or the like and affording passage, by foot or vehicle.

16.    “Bulkheads” means structures erected parallel to and near the ordinary high water mark for the purpose of protecting adjacent uplands from the action of waves or currents.

17.    “CFR” means the Code of Federal Regulations.

18.    “Commercial development” means a use which involves wholesale or retail trade, or the provision of services for compensation.

19.    “Community use” means a use intended for the common use of the residents of a particular subdivision or community. It is not intended to serve as a public use.

20.    “Conditional use” means a use, development, or substantial development which is classified as a conditional use or is not classified within the master program (WAC 173-14-030[4]).

21.    “Conditional use permit” means a special permit required for certain uses, which, by their nature, require that more stringent conditions be imposed to assure compliance with the act.

22.    Conservancy Environment Designation. A conservancy environment is an area intended to protect, conserve, and maintain its existing character. Nonconsumptive uses which can utilize resources on a sustained-yield basis while minimally reducing opportunities for future uses are preferred. Refer to Chapter 22.16.

23.    Conservancy-Public Lands Environment Designation. A conservancy-public lands environment is an area which is publicly owned and is dedicated for public use and enjoyment as a park, recreational site, or open space. The state, county, and local parklands within unincorporated areas of Kitsap County are to be designated conservancy-public lands environment. The sub-environment is intended to allow further development and improvement of publicly owned lands for the benefit of the public. This designation is intended to protect recreational areas and to allow development, when appropriate, of other recreational areas or facilities at existing sites. Refer to Chapter 22.16.

24.    “Critical areas” means wetlands; areas with a critical recharging effect on aquifers used for potable water; fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas; geologically hazardous areas; and frequently flooded areas.

25.    “Development” means a use consisting of the construction or exterior alteration of structures; dredging; drilling; dumping; filling; removal of any sand, gravel or minerals; bulkheading; driving of pilings; placing of obstructions; or any project of a permanent or temporary nature which interferes with the normal public use of the surface of the waters overlying lands subject to the act and master program at any state of water level.

26.    “Dredging” means the removal of earth, gravel or other substances from the bottom of a stream, river, lake, bay, or other water body including wetlands.

27.    “Drift sector” (or “littoral drift”) means the longshore transport cell pattern of sediment moving from a source to a place of deposition.

28.    “Estuary” means that area in which fresh water and sea water mingles and within which the sea water is measurably diluted with fresh water.

29.    Floating Dock. A floating dock (hereinafter referred to as a “dock”) is a structure floating upon the water and attached to the shore used as a landing place for marine transport or for recreational purposes.

30.    “Floating home” means a structure designed and operated substantially as a permanently based water residence. Floating homes are not vessels and lack adequate self-propulsion and steering equipment to operate as a vessel. They are typically served by permanent utilities and semipermanent anchorage/moorage facilities (See “Houseboat”).

31.    Forest Practices. Forest management practices are those methods used for the protection, production and harvesting of timber. Trees along a body of water provide shade which insulate the waters from detrimental temperature change and dissolved oxygen release. A stable water temperature and dissolved oxygen level provide a healthy environment for fish and other more delicate forms of aquatic life. Poor logging practices on shorelines alter this balance as well as result in slash and debris accumulation and may increase the suspended sediment load and the turbidity of the water.

32.    “Geohydraulics” means the study of the movement of groundwater.

33.    “Groins” or “sills” mean barrier-type structures extending from the back shore waterward across the beach to interrupt and trap sand movement.

34.    “Habitat” means the area or environment in which a particular type of plant or animal lives. An organism’s habitat provides essential basic requirements for life. These requirements may be for a particular life stage or function.

35.    “Houseboat” means a vessel, principally used as an over-water structure. Houseboats are licensed and designed for use as a mobile structure with detachable utilities or facilities, anchoring and the presence of adequate self-propulsion and steering equipment to operate as a vessel. “Principle use as an over-water residence” means occupancy in a single location, for a period exceeding sixty days in any calendar year. This definition includes live-aboard boats.

36.    “Hydric soils” means soils which are wet long enough to periodically produce anaerobic conditions, thereby influencing the growth of plants.

37.    “Hydrophytes” means those plants capable of growing in water or on a substrate that is at least periodically deficient in oxygen as a result of excessive water content (WAC 173-22-030).

38.    “Industrial development” means facilities for processing, manufacturing, and storage of finished or partially finished goods.

39.    “In-stream structures” means facilities introduced for the impoundment, diversion, or use of water for hydroelectric generation and transmission (including both public and private facilities), flood control, irrigation, water supply (both domestic and industrial), recreational or fisheries enhancement.

40.    “Jetties” means barrier-type structures designed to modify or control sand movement and usually placed at inlets to improve a navigable channel.

41.    “Lake” means a body of standing water twenty acres or greater in total area in a depression of land or expanded part of a river, including reservoirs.

42.    “Landfill” means soil, sand, rock, gravel, sediment or other material (excluding solid waste) used along the shoreline below the ordinary high water mark to create new land, tideland, or bottom land or, on upland areas to raise the elevation.

43.    “Launching ramps” means a sloping ramp, traditionally made of concrete, which may extend into the tidelands, used for the purpose of placing a boat in or taking one out of the water.

44.    Live-Aboard Vessel. (See “Houseboat.”)

45.    “Longshore drift zone” means an area created as a result of littoral drift.

46.    “Marine railway” means a pair of sloping tracks which extends into the tidelands, used for the purpose of placing a watercraft in or taking one out of the water.

47.    “Marinas” means public or private facilities which provide dry or wet boat moorage. Such facilities may also provide boat launching, boat storage, sale of supplies, or service for pleasure or commercial craft.

48.    “Mining” means the removal of naturally occurring materials from the earth for economic use.

49.    “Mooring buoys/anchors” means any anchoring device, with or without a float, used to secure a vessel.

50.    “Multifamily dwelling” or “multifamily residence” means a building containing two or more dwelling units, each intended for occupancy by one family.

51.    “Native vegetation” means vegetation indigenous to the Puget Sound coastal lowlands.

52.    Natural Environment Designation. A natural environment is an area having a unique asset or feature considered valuable for its natural or original condition which is relatively intolerant of intensive human use. Refer to Chapter 22.16.

53.    “Natural systems” means physical features or phenomena of a nature sensitive, in varying degrees, to man’s disruptive activity.

54.    “Nonconforming use” means a shoreline use or structure which was lawfully constructed or established prior to the effective date of the applicable act or master program provision, and which no longer conforms to the applicable shoreline provisions.

55.    Non-Water-Oriented Use. “Non-water-oriented” serves to describe those uses which have little or no relationship to the shoreline and are not considered priority uses under the act. Examples include professional offices, automobile sales or repair shops, mini-storage facilities, multi-family residential development, department stores, and gas stations.

56.    “Ordinary high water mark” means that mark that will be found by examining the bed and banks and ascertaining where the presence and action of waters are so common and usual, and so long continued in all ordinary years, as to mark upon the soil a character distinct from that of the abutting upland, in respect to vegetation as that condition exists on June 1, 1971, as it may naturally change thereafter, or as it may change thereafter in accordance with permits issued by a local government or the department: provided, that in any area where the ordinary high water mark cannot be found, the ordinary high water mark adjoining salt water shall be the line of mean higher high tide and the ordinary high water mark adjoining fresh water shall be the line of mean high water.

57.    “Overburden” means material overlying a deposit of soil, rock, or bedrock.

58.    “Permit” means any substantial development, variance, conditional use permit, or revision authorized under Chapter 90.58 RCW.

59.    Piers. A pier is a rigid structure built over the water attached to the shore used as a landing place for marine transport or for recreational purposes.

60.    “Performance-based development” means a property development characterized by comprehensive planning of the total project, though it may contain a variety of individual lots and/or uses. Typically a project may include clustering of structures and preservation of open space with a number of flexible and customized design features specific to the natural features of the property and the uses sought to be implemented. Specific lot area and setback requirements may be reduced or deleted in order to allow flexibility and innovation in building design or placement and to allow a maximum of open space, sensitive areas and other components of the project.

61.    “Ports” means centers for water-borne traffic and transportation of goods and services.

62.    “Port-related industries” means facilities which rely on the port for transportation of manufactured or processed goods.

63.    “Processing” means harvesting, including mechanical harvesting of shellfish, handling, and treatment of aquaculture species. Such species include, but are not limited to, oysters, clams, and farm-raised fin fish. Processing includes, but is not limited to, opening, bleeding, gutting, cleaning and packaging.

64.    Public Access. Shoreline public access is the legal physical ability of the general public to reach and touch the water’s edge and/or the ability to have an unobstructed view of the water and the shoreline from upland locations.

65.    “Railroad” means a passageway with tracks or rails.

66.    “Recreational float” means an anchored floating platform for water-dependent recreational activities such as swimming, diving, etc.

67.    “Recreation” means the refreshment of body and mind through forms of play, amusement, or relaxation.

68.    “Residential development” means the construction or exterior alteration of one or more buildings, structures or portions thereof which are designed for or used to provide a place of abode for human beings. Residential development includes one- and two-family detached structures, multi-family structures, condominiums, townhouses, mobile home parks, and other similar group housing, together with accessory uses and structures common to residential uses. Residential development does not include hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, or any other type of overnight or transient housing or camping facilities.

69.    “Road” means a passageway, usually for motor vehicles.

70.    Rural Environment Designation. A rural environment is an area having low residential densities, limited access to utilities such as sewer and water, open space, and areas modified from their natural vegetative cover and surface drainage patterns but generally supporting low intensity development, and areas possessing valuable mineral deposits. Refer to Chapter 22.16.

71.    “Scarification” means to break up and loosen the surface of the earth.

72.    Semi-Rural Environment Designation. The semi-rural environment is an area where the predominant feature is the modification of the environment by the action of man but which still possesses some rural character. The semi-rural environment is distinguished from the urban environment by having primarily moderate residential uses at densities consistent with the rural and resource lands element of the Comprehensive Plan. Refer to Chapter 22.16.

73.    “Sewage treatment plant” means facilities which discharge wastewater effluent into surface waters.

74.    “Shore process” means the biological, geological, and hydraulic actions and interchanges critical to the integrity of the shoreline.

75.    “Shore protection structures” means shore protection structures including both structural and nonstructural construction for the purpose of minimizing erosion to adjacent uplands from the action of waves or currents. These structures are commonly placed at or near the line of ordinary high water.

76.    “Shorelands” or “shoreland areas” means those lands extending landward for two hundred feet in all directions as measured on a horizontal plane from the ordinary high water mark; floodways and contiguous floodplain areas landward two hundred feet from such floodways; and all wetlands and river deltas associated with the streams, lakes, and tidal waters which are subject to the provisions of this chapter; the same to be designated as to location by the department of ecology. Any county or city may determine that portion of a one-hundred-year-floodplain to be included in its master program as long as such portion includes, as a minimum, the floodway and the adjacent land extending landward two hundred feet therefrom.

77.    “Shoreline administrator” means the director of the Kitsap County department of community development or his or her appointed designee.

78.    Shoreline Environment Designation. The master program establishes five shoreline environment designations, known as the natural, conservancy, rural, semi-rural, and urban environments and one sub-environment, conservancy-public lands. The shoreline environment designations are not a substitute for existing land use regulations, but rather must be considered in addition to those regulations.

79.    “Shorelines” means all of the water areas of the state, including reservoirs, and their associated wetlands, together with the lands underlying them; except (I) shorelines of statewide significance; (ii) shorelines on segments of streams upstream of a point where the mean annual flow is twenty cubic feet per second or less and the wetlands associated with such upstream segments; and (iii) shorelines on lakes less than twenty acres in size and wetlands associated with such small lakes.

80.    Shorelines of Statewide Significance. Marine shorelines in Kitsap County designated as shorelines of statewide significance are:

a.    Hood Canal – from Foulweather Bluff to the southwestern corner of the boundary of Kitsap County, near Chinum Point (includes tidelands and associated wetlands).

b.    Puget Sound – line waterward from line of extreme low tide.

81.    “Single-family residence” means a building containing one dwelling unit intended for occupancy by one family.

82.    “Solid waste disposal” means the discharge, deposit, injection, dumping, spilling, leaking, or placing of any solid or hazardous waste on any land area on or in the water.

83.    “Spit” means a natural and dynamic extension of land into the water, composed of sand and gravel, and shaped by wind, water currents and littoral drifting, generally formed from a headland beach with the far end free in open water.

84.    “Stream” means a naturally occurring body of periodically or continuously flowing water where: (a) the mean annual flow is greater than twenty cubic feet per second; and (b) the water is contained within a channel.

85.    “Stream modification” means an activity occurring along shoreline and wetland areas which is designed to reduce over-bank flow of high waters and stabilize eroding stream banks.

86.    “Subdivision” means the division or redivision of land, including short subdivisions.

87.    “Substantial development” means any development of which the total cost or fair market value exceeds two thousand five hundred dollars, or any development which materially interferes with the normal public use of the water or shorelines of the state; except that the following shall not be considered substantial developments for the purpose of this chapter:

(1)    Exceptions:

(a)    Exemptions shall be construed narrowly. Only those developments that meet the precise terms of one or more of the listed exemptions may be granted exemption from the substantial development permit process.

(b)    An exemption from the substantial development permit process is not an exemption from compliance with the act or the local master program, nor from any other regulatory requirements. To be authorized, all uses and developments must be consistent with the policies and provisions of the applicable master program and the Shoreline Management Act. A development or use that is listed as a conditional use pursuant to the local master program or is an unlisted use, must obtain a conditional use permit even though the development or use does not require a substantial development permit. When a development or use is proposed that does not comply with the bulk, dimensional and performance standards of the master program, such development or use can only be authorized by approval of a variance.

(c)    The burden of proof that a development or use is exempt from the permit process is on the applicant.

(d)    If any part of a proposed development is not eligible for exemption, then a substantial development permit is required for the entire proposed development project.

(e)    Local government may attach conditions to the approval of exempted developments and/or uses as necessary to assure consistency of the project with the act and the local master program.

(2)    The following developments shall not require substantial development permits:

(a)    Any development of which the total cost or fair market value, whichever is higher, does not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars, if such development does not materially interfere with the normal public use of the water or shorelines of the state. For purposes of determining whether or not a permit is required, the total cost or fair market value shall be based on the value of development that is occurring on shorelines of the state as defined in RCW 90.58.030(2)(c). The total cost or fair market value of the development shall include the fair market value of any donated, contributed or found labor, equipment or materials;

(b)    Normal maintenance or repair of existing structures or developments, including damage by accident, fire or elements. “Normal maintenance” includes those usual acts to prevent a decline, lapse, or cessation from a lawfully established condition. “Normal repair” means to restore a development to a state comparable to its original condition, including but not limited to its size, shape, configuration, location and external appearance, within a reasonable period after decay or partial destruction, except where repair causes substantial adverse effects to shoreline resource or environment. Replacement of a structure or development may be authorized as repair where such replacement is the common method of repair for the type of structure or development and the replacement structure or development is comparable to the original structure or development including but not limited to its size, shape, configuration, location and external appearance and the replacement does not cause substantial adverse effects to shoreline resources or environment;

(c)    Construction of the normal protective bulkhead common to single-family residences. A “normal protective” bulkhead includes those structural and nonstructural developments installed at or near, and parallel to, the ordinary high water mark for the sole purpose of protecting an existing single-family residence and appurtenant structures from loss or damage by erosion. A normal protective bulkhead is not exempt if constructed for the purpose of creating dry land. When a vertical or near vertical wall is being constructed or reconstructed, not more than one cubic yard of fill per one foot of wall may be used as backfill. When an existing bulkhead is being repaired by construction of a vertical wall fronting the existing wall, it shall be constructed no further waterward of the existing bulkhead than is necessary for construction of new footings. When a bulkhead has deteriorated such that an ordinary high water mark has been established by the presence and action of water landward of the bulkhead then the replacement bulkhead must be located at or near the actual ordinary high water mark. Beach nourishment and bio-engineered erosion control projects may be considered a normal protective bulkhead when any structural elements are consistent with the above requirements and when the project has been approved by the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

(d)    Emergency construction necessary to protect property from damage by the elements. An “emergency” is an unanticipated and imminent threat to public health, safety, or the environment which requires immediate action within a time too short to allow full compliance with this chapter. Emergency construction does not include development of new permanent protective structures where none previously existed. Where new protective structures are deemed by the administrator to be the appropriate means to address the emergency situation, upon abatement of the emergency situation the new structure shall be removed or any permit which would have been required, absent an emergency, pursuant to Chapter 90.58 RCW, these regulations, or the local master program, obtained. All emergency construction shall be consistent with the policies of Chapter 90.58 RCW and the local master program. As a general matter, flooding or other seasonal events that can be anticipated and may occur but that are not imminent are not an emergency;

(e)    Construction and practices normal or necessary for farming, irrigation, and ranching activities, including agricultural service roads and utilities on shorelands, construction of a barn or similar agricultural structure, and the construction and maintenance of irrigation structures including but not limited to head gates, pumping facilities, and irrigation channels: provided, that a feedlot of any size, all processing plants, other activities of a commercial nature, alteration of the contour of the shorelands by leveling or filling other than that which results from normal cultivation, shall not be considered normal or necessary farming or ranching activities. A feedlot shall be an enclosure or facility used or capable of being used for feeding livestock hay, grain, silage, or other livestock feed, but shall not include land for growing crops or vegetation for livestock feeding and/or grazing, nor shall it include normal livestock wintering operations;

(f)    Construction or modification, by or under the authority of the Coast Guard or a designated port management authority, of navigational aids such as channel markers and anchor buoys;

(g)    Construction on shorelands by an owner, lessee or contract purchaser of a single-family residence for their own use or for the use of their family, which residence does not exceed a height of thirty-five feet above average grade level and which meets all requirements of the state agency or local government having jurisdiction thereof. “Single-family residence” means a detached dwelling designed for and occupied by one family including those structures and developments within a contiguous ownership which are a normal appurtenance. An “appurtenance” is necessarily connected to the use and enjoyment of a single-family residence and is located landward of the ordinary high water mark and the perimeter of a wetland. On a statewide basis, normal appurtenances include a garage; deck; driveway; utilities; fences; installation of a septic tank and drainfield and grading which does not exceed two hundred fifty cubic yards and which does not involve placement of fill in any wetland or waterward of the ordinary high water mark. Local circumstances may dictate additional interpretations of normal appurtenances which shall be set forth and regulated within the applicable master program. Construction authorized under this exemption shall be located landward of the ordinary high water mark;

(h)    Construction of a dock, including a community dock, designed for pleasure craft only, for the private noncommercial use of the owners, lessee, or contract purchaser of a single-family and multiple-family residences. A dock is a landing and moorage facility for watercraft and does not include recreational decks, storage facilities or other appurtenances. This exception applies if either:

(i)    In salt waters, the fair market value of the dock does not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars; or

(ii)    In fresh waters the fair market value of the dock does not exceed ten thousand dollars, but if subsequent construction having a fair market value exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars occurs within five years of completion of the prior construction, the subsequent construction shall be considered a substantial development for the purpose of this chapter.

For purposes of this section salt water shall include the tidally influenced marine and estuarine water areas of the state including the Pacific Ocean, Strait of Juan de Fuca, Strait of Georgia and Puget Sound and all bays and inlets associated with any of the above;

(i)    Operation, maintenance, or construction of canals, waterways, drains, reservoirs, or other facilities that now exist or are hereafter created or developed as a part of an irrigation system for the primary purpose of making use of system waters, including return flow and artificially stored ground water from the irrigation of lands;

(j)    The marking of property lines or corners on state-owned lands, when such marking does not significantly interfere with normal public use of the surface of the water;

(k)    Operation and maintenance of any system of dikes, ditches, drains, or other facilities existing on June 4, 1975, which were created, developed or utilized primarily as a part of an agricultural drainage or diking system;

(l)    Any project with a certification from the governor pursuant to Chapter 80.50 RCW;

(m)    Site exploration and investigation activities that are prerequisite to preparation of an application for development authorization under this chapter, if:

(i)    The activity does not interfere with the normal public use of the surface waters;

(ii)    The activity will have no significant adverse impact on the environment including but not limited to fish, wildlife, fish or wildlife habitat, water quality, and aesthetic values;

(iii)    The activity does not involve the installation of any structure, and upon completion of the activity the vegetation and land configuration of the site are restored to conditions existing before the activity;

(iv)    A private entity seeking development authorization under this section first posts a performance bond or provides other evidence of financial responsibility to the local jurisdiction to ensure that the site is restored to preexisting conditions; and

(v)    The activity is not subject to the permit requirements of RCW 90.58.550;

(n)    The process of removing or controlling aquatic noxious weeds, as defined in RCW 17.26.020, through the use of an herbicide or other treatment methods applicable to weed control that are recommended by a final environmental impact statement published by the Department of Agriculture or the Department of Ecology jointly with other state agencies under Chapter 43.21C RCW;

(o)    Watershed restoration projects as defined herein. Local government shall review the projects for consistency with the shoreline master program in an expeditious manner and shall issue its decision along with any conditions within forty-five days of receiving all materials necessary to review the request for exemption from the applicant. No fee may be charged for accepting and processing requests for exemption for watershed restoration projects as used in this section.

(i)    “Watershed restoration project” means a public or private project authorized by the sponsor of a watershed restoration plan that implements the plan or a part of the plan and consists of one or more of the following activities:

(A)    A project that involves less than ten miles of stream reach, in which less than twenty-five cubic yards of sand, gravel, or soil is removed, imported, disturbed or discharged, and in which no existing vegetation is removed except as minimally necessary to facilitate additional plantings;

(B)    A project for the restoration of an eroded or unstable stream bank that employs the principles of bio-engineering, including limited use of rock as a stabilization only at the toe of the bank, and with primary emphasis on using native vegetation to control the erosive forces of flowing water; or

(C)    A project primarily designed to improve fish and wildlife habitat, remove or reduce impediments to migration of fish, or enhance the fishery resource available for use by all of the citizens of the state, provided that any structure, other than a bridge or culvert or in-stream habitat enhancement structure associated with the project, is less than two hundred square feet in floor area and is located above the ordinary high water mark of the stream.

(ii)    “Watershed restoration plan” means a plan, developed or sponsored by the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Department of Ecology, the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Transportation, a federally recognized Indian tribe acting within and pursuant to its authority, a city, a county, or a conservation district that provides a general program and implementation measures or actions for the preservation, restoration, re-creation, or enhancement of the natural resources, character, and ecology of a stream, stream segment, drainage area, or watershed for which agency and public review has been conducted pursuant to Chapter 43.21C RCW, the State Environmental Policy Act;

(p)    A public or private project, the primary purpose of which is to improve fish or wildlife habitat or fish passage, when all of the following apply:

(i)    The project has been approved in writing by the Department of Fish and Wildlife as necessary for the improvement of the habitat or passage and appropriately designed and sited to accomplish the intended purpose;

(ii)    The project has received hydraulic project approval by the Department of Fish and Wildlife pursuant to Chapter 75.20 RCW; and

(iii)    The local government has determined that the project is consistent with the local shoreline master program. The local government shall make such determination in a timely manner and provide it by letter to the project proponent.

(3)    Hazardous substance remedial actions. The procedural requirements of Chapter 90.58 RCW shall not apply to a project for which a consent decree, order or agreed order has been issued pursuant to Chapter 70.105D RCW or to the Department of Ecology when it conducts a remedial action under Chapter 70.105D RCW. The department shall, in consultation with the appropriate local government, assure that such projects comply with the substantive requirements of Chapter 90.58 RCW, Chapter 173-26 WAC and the local master program.

88.    “Swale” means a shallow drainage conveyance with relatively gentle side slopes, generally with flow depths less than one foot.

89.    “Upland” is generally described as the area above and landward of the ordinary high water mark.

90.    Urban Environment Designation. An urban environment is an area of high intensity land use, including residential, commercial and industrial development, and describes shoreline areas presently experiencing intensive use pressures. The urban environment is an area in which urban services and infrastructure already exist or are planned in the comprehensive land use plan. Refer to Chapter 22.16.

91.    “Use” means the type of activity (including occupancy), or the character and form of improvements to which land is devoted.

92.    “Use activities” means those activities specifically identified within Chapter 22.28 of this title, the Kitsap County Shoreline Management Master Program.

93.    “Utilities” means services which produce or carry electric power, gas, sewage, water, communications, oil, including drainage conveyances and swales.

94.    “Vessels” means ships, boats, barges, or any other floating craft which are designed and used for navigation and do not interfere with normal public use of the water.

95.    “Water-dependent use” means a use or portion of a use which requires direct contact with the water and cannot exist at a non-water location due to the intrinsic nature of its operations. Examples of water-dependent uses may include ship cargo terminal loading areas, ferry and passenger terminals, barge loading facilities, ship building and dry docking marinas, aquaculture, and float plane facilities.

96.    “Water-enjoyment use” means a recreational use, or other use facilitating public access to the shoreline as a primary characteristic of the use; or a use that provides for recreational use or aesthetic enjoyment of the shoreline for a substantial number of people as a general character of the use and which through the location, design, and operation assure the public’s ability to enjoy the physical and aesthetic qualities of the shoreline. In order to qualify as a water-enjoyment use, the use must be open to the general public and the shoreline space of the project must be devoted to provisions that accommodate public shoreline enjoyment. Examples may include parks, piers, museums, restaurants, educational/scientific reserves, resorts, and mixed-use projects.

97.    “Water-oriented use” refers to any combination of water-dependent, water-related, and/or water-enjoyment uses and serves as an all-encompassing definition for priority uses under the act.

98.    “Water-related use” means a use or a portion of a use which is not intrinsically dependent on a waterfront location but whose operation cannot occur economically without a waterfront location. Examples of water-related uses may include warehousing of goods transported by water, seafood processing plants, hydroelectric generating plants, gravel storage when transported by barge, oil refineries where transport is by tanker, and log storage.

99.    “Wetlands” means those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface water or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas. Wetlands do not include those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland sites, including, but not limited to, irrigation and drainage ditches, grass-lined swales, canals, detention facilities, wastewater treatment facilities, farm ponds, and landscape amenities, or those wetlands created after July 1, 1990, that were unintentionally created as a result of the construction of a road, street, or highway. Wetlands may include those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland areas to mitigate the conversion of wetlands.

(Res. 27-1999 Exh. A, Part III, 1999)