Willapa Erosion Control Action Now (WECAN)

What’s At Stake

It is difficult to overstate the urgency for additional erosion protection measures along the north shore of Willapa Bay. In recent years, storm surges and tidal actions have threatened to breach the remaining defenses of State Road 105, particularly during winter months. This would result in the flooding of nearly 4,000 acres of private and public lands, including lands of cultural and historical significance to the Shoalwater Bay Tribe and approximately 350 acres of Grayland’s cranberry farms. Saltwater inundation of the cranberry beds would cause long-term crop failure, resulting in a direct loss to the local economy of at least $3 to $5 million each year.

There are no alternate routes for transit along the northern shore of Willapa Bay, so damage to SR 105 would compromise utility lines as well as access to schools, the Shoalwater Bay Tribe health clinic, and law enforcement and emergency response services for over 1300 businesses and residences.

At the mouth of Willapa Bay lies the community of North Cove, where the shoreline has eroded away at an average rate of 100 feet per year over the course of the past century. As of 2016, 537 parcels totaling 2,018 acres have been lost, with an estimated total value of $20.3 million. An additional 499 parcels totaling 547 acres are projected to erode by 2060 if no protection measures are taken.

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