Shorelines Matter Brochure

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Changes we make along  
shorelines can affect wildlife and 
property values. 
Shorelines are habitat for hundreds of 
species connecting food webs from the land 
to the ocean abyss.
Actions we take now can safeguard  
marine life for generations.
Explore your options for balancing shoreline 
stabilization and habitat conservation. 
We have resources 
to help guide your 
decisions and find 
the right option for 
your shoreline.
Shorelines are living 
systems, constantly 
changing, as is their nature.
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Nature is the ultimate shoreline engineer! 
Shoreline stabilization options vary along a gradient from “soft” to “hard.
“Soft” options (bioengineering) use  
natural vegetation, logs and low slopes 
to stabilize soils, provide upland drainage 
and habitat. Raised foreshores, or beach 
nourishment, add fine beach sediments  
to dissipate wave energy. Soft shore designs 
work with nature to resist erosion and 
protect shorelines.
•	 Set	structures	back	from	 
the high-water mark
•	 Maintain	and	enhance	
vegetation and upland  
drainage controls
•	 Add	logs,	driftwood	&	stumps
“Hard” shoreline options are immovable 
barriers to wave energy. “Hard armouring” 
includes seawalls, riprap, retaining walls 
or any shore hardening structure. Rather 
than resisting erosion, hard armouring can 
increase erosion and damage shorelines.
NATURAL SHORES RESIST EROSION
•	 Trees	and	shrubs	absorb	moisture,	
reducing runoff and erosion. 
•	 Vegetation	stabilizes	slopes	and	creates	
shoreline habitats.
•	 Shorelines	erode	naturally,	building	
beaches	&	maintaining	ecological	values.
•	 Natural	beach	slopes	and	soft	sediments	
absorb wave energy.
DEVELOPMENT	INCREASES	EROSION
•	 Paved	surfaces	and	vegetation	removal	
can saturate soils causing lawns and 
slopes to slump or fail.
•	 Seawalls	block	sediment	needed	to	
maintain beaches and spits.
•	 Wave	scouring	against	hard	surfaces	
removes pebble and sands.
•	 Over	time,	wave	scouring	causes	beach	
slopes to steepen and degrades soft-
sediment beaches and fish habitat.
•	 Energy	reflected	off	armouring	generates	
more waves and can damage properties.
•	 Failed	seawalls	put	properties	at	risk.
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soft shore designhard shore design
•	 Slope	and	beach	
sediment enhancement 
(raised foreshore using 
sand/gravel mix)
•		Breakwaters
•		Retaining	walls
•	Concrete	groynes
•	Seawalls	and	stacked	 
stone walls (riprap)

Over time, the tides, winds, and 
currents have sculpted Thetis 
coastlines providing us with 
spectacular views and a wealth of 
biodiversity.
Erosion is necessary to maintain coastal 
beaches. Eroded sediment transported from 
watersheds and feeder bluffs build beaches 
and salt marshes. 
Different “shoreline types” are the result of 
balances between these coastal processes and 
sediment transport.
“Shoreline types” are sediment classes that 
describe the int

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