Critical Areas Protection

Although not all counties and cities are fully planning under the GMA, all counties and cities in the state are required to adopt development regulations to protect critical areas, and to periodically review those regulations.

The Critical Areas Handbook is designed to help Washington communities review and, if needed, revise locally adopted programs for designating and protecting critical areas under the Growth Management Act.

• Complete Critical Areas Handbook (PDF)

The recommendations in this handbook are not mandatory, for there is no single best approach to critical areas protection for all communities. Each city or county must decide which approaches are appropriate to apply locally, consistent with the requirements of the GMA and the community’s future vision.

The Washington State Departments of Commerce, Ecology and Fish and Wildlife developed an 11-week webinar series for an in-depth review of best practices, case studies, resources and tools to enhance monitoring and adaptive management efforts for your critical areas and shorelines. Links to the videos of the workshops are listed below. For more information about the series, and to view presentations and additional webinar resources, visit the project webpage. 

• Workshop 1 – How to Successfully Protect Critical Areas and Shorelines: A Step-by-Step Introduction to Monitoring and Adaptive Management 
• Workshop 2 – Setting the Stage: Successful Adaptive Management and Critical Areas Monitoring Program Basics
• Workshop 3 – Wetlands 
• Workshop 4 – Geologically Hazardous
• Workshop 5 – Fish and Wildlife Habitat Conservation Areas
• Workshop 6 – Frequently Flooded Areas
• Workshop 7 – Critical Aquifer Recharge Areas (CARAs)
• Workshop 8 – Shoreline 
• Workshop 9 – Permit Implementation Monitoring Tools 
• Workshop 10 – CAO Performance Indicators 
• Workshop 11 – Adaptive Management Interactive Workshop 

Growth Management Services and other state agencies provide technical assistance through detailed guidebooks and other publications to assist local governments in planning.

• Small Communities Critical Area Implementation Handbook (PDF)
• Critical Areas Checklist, March 2024 (PDF)
• Summary of Critical Areas WAC Amendments, December 2018 (PDF)

Wetlands

Wetlands are fragile ecosystems that serve a number of important beneficial functions. Wetlands assist in the reduction of erosion, siltation, flooding, ground and surface water pollution, and provide wildlife, plant, and fisheries habitats. Wetlands destruction or impairment may result in increased public and private costs or property losses.

In designating wetlands for regulatory purposes, counties and cities are required to use the definition of wetlands in RCW 36.70A.030(20). Counties and cities are encouraged to make their actions consistent with the intent and goals of “protection of wetlands”, Executive Orders 89-10 and 90-04 as they exist on September 1, 1990.

Resources: Washington Department of Ecology at Ecology’s GMA and Local Wetland Regulations web page provides several guidance publications to counties and cities regarding regulations for protecting and managing wetlands. Contact information for Ecology wetlands specialists is also available if you have a specific question.

Critical Aquifer Recharge Area

Water is an essential life-sustaining element. Much of Washington’s drinking water comes from ground water supplies. Once ground water is contaminated it is difficult, costly, and sometimes impossible to clean up. Preventing contamination is necessary to avoid exorbitant costs, hardships, and potential physical harm to people.

The quality of ground water in an aquifer is inextricably linked to its recharge area. Where aquifers and their recharge areas have been studied, counties and cities should use this information as the basis for classifying and designating critical aquifer recharge areas. Where no specific hydrogeologic studies have been done, counties and cities may use existing soil, surficial geologic and well log information to determine where recharge areas are likely to be located.

Resources: The Department of Ecology provides best available science and guidance on its Critical Aquifer Recharge Areas web page and a contact for technical assistance.

Frequently Flooded Areas

Floodplains and other areas subject to flooding perform important hydrologic functions and may present a risk to persons and property. Classifications of frequently flooded areas should include, at a minimum, the 100-year floodplain designations of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Flood Insurance Program. Historic losses to salmon habitat have occurred as a result of development encroaching into floodplains. In addition to minimizing adverse effects to human health, safety and infrastructure, floodplains are ideal locations for salmon habitat restoration.

Resources: The Department of Ecology’s Floodplain Management web page provides information on floodplain mapping and contacts for technical assistance.

Geologically Hazardous Areas

Geologically hazardous areas include areas susceptible to erosion, sliding, earthquake, or other geological events. They pose a threat to the health and safety of citizens, fish, and wildlife, when incompatible commercial, residential, or industrial development is sited in areas of significant hazard.
Some geological hazards can be reduced or mitigated by engineering, design, or modified construction or mining practices so that risks to health and safety are acceptable. When technology cannot reduce risks to acceptable levels, building in geologically hazardous areas is best avoided. This distinction should be considered by counties and cities that do not now classify geological hazards in their critical areas ordinance. Counties and cities should also consider classifying geologically hazardous areas as either known or suspected risk, no risk, or unknown where data are not available to determine the presence or absence of a geological hazard.

Resources: The Washington State Department of Natural Resources’ Geologic Hazards and the Environment web site provides information on earthquakes and faults, landslides, volcanoes and lahars, tsunamis, and geologic hazard maps. The Department also maintains a Geologic Information Portal that contains interactive earth science mapping, data, and related information on several topics. The Portal provides a user guide in written and video formats.

Fish and Wildlife Habitat Conservation Areas

Fish and wildlife habitat conservation is the management of land for maintaining species in suitable habitats within their natural geographic distribution so that isolated subpopulations are not created. This does not mean that all individuals of all species must be maintained at all times, but it does mean cooperative and coordinated land use planning is critically important among counties and cities in a region.

Resources: The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife Priority Habitats and Species (PHS) Program provides relevant information on important fish, wildlife, and habitat resources in Washington. PHS is the agency’s primary means of transferring fish and wildlife information from their resource experts to those who can protect habitat. The Priority Habitats and Species web page provides a PHS list, management recommendations, GIS maps and digital data, and PHS on the Web, a web-based interactive map.

The Governor’s Salmon Recovery Office (GSRO) was formed through the Salmon Recovery Act to coordinate statewide salmon recovery. Each of the seven regions in the state developed their own locally derived salmon recovery plans, which are a good source of information about what habitats are important to anadromous fisheries and what efforts are ongoing to protect and enhance them. The GSRO and Recreation and Conservation Office website provides links to the recovery plans, monitoring efforts, policies, and the lead entities that coordinate salmon recovery locally.