Upcoming webinars

Shoreline Public Access

August 26, 2026 | 1-3pm | Zoom

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This webinar will focus on shoreline public access, which is the opportunity for the public "to reach, touch, and enjoy the water’s edge, to travel on the waters of the state, and to view the water and the shoreline from adjacent locations” [WAC 173-26-221(4)]. Protecting public access to the state’s shorelines is one of three major policies of the Shoreline Management Act (SMA): “The public's opportunity to enjoy the physical and aesthetic qualities of natural shorelines of the state shall be preserved to the greatest extent feasible…” [RCW 90.58.020].

As the 2024-2026 NOAA Coastal Management Fellow at the WA Department of Ecology, Robyn Norman will be providing information on the basics of shoreline public access informed by Washington's Shoreline Management Act and Shoreline Master Program (SMP) requirements. She will share updates on Ecology’s shoreline public access geospatial and informational resources, including outputs, potential uses, and future directions, and will provide observations related to her work in Washington's 15 coastal counties during her fellowship. 

Our other three presenters, Andy Hokit and Mendy Harlow, of the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group (HCSEG); and Chris Waldbillig, of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, will present on a salmon habitat restoration and public access project in Hood Canal. The project’s goals are to restore seven acres of estuarine wetland habitat and reconnect a disrupted trail network at the Mary E. Theler Wetlands Nature Preserve. As one of the largest estuary trail complexes on Hood Canal, the 3.2-mile Theler Wetlands Trail provides bird watching groups, educational institutions, and the surrounding community with the experience of viewing native plants, fish, and wildlife in the Union River Estuary. These lands have held considerable value to the Belfair community for decades. A section of the trail atop the levee has been compromised by high tides for over a decade. This project will build an elevated pier in the footprint of the old levee and fully reconnect the trail system to maintain public access at this site while improving habitat conditions.

Meet our speakers:

Robyn Norman is the 2024-2026 NOAA Coastal Management Fellow at the Washington Department of Ecology focusing on shoreline public access projects across Washington’s 15 coastal counties. Her work includes developing resources and tools that support the use, preservation, and expansion of shoreline public access, with a focus on resources for sea level rise planning and increasing access for all types of communities. She holds a MS in Biology from Cal Poly Humboldt, where her thesis centered around regional gray whale foraging ecology, and a BS in Biology from Oregon State University.

Andy Hokit has managed restoration projects for the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group (HCSEG) since 2020 in the Union, Duckabush, Tahuya, and Big Beef watersheds. The HCSEG is one of 12 original Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups, or RFEGs, created by the State Legislature in 1990. There are now 14 RFEGs across Washington. The RFEGs were created to be active partners in assisting Washington in salmon recovery efforts, supported by community volunteers. The RFEGs are tasked with supplementing fish populations, restoring salmon habitat, and developing salmon-related education programs.

Mendy Harlow is the Executive Director of the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group. The majority of Mendy’s time with HCSEG has been focused on managing small and large scale habitat restoration projects throughout Hood Canal. She has served as the group’s executive director since 2013. She holds a bachelor of science in wildlife, watershed and rangeland resources from the University of Arizona. 

Chris Waldbillig has worked for Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for 26 years.  Currently, he is a Restoration Coordinator in the Habitat Enhancement and Restoration Team within the Habitat Program. He works with Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups statewide, Coastal Marine Resource Councils, European Green Crab trapping partners on the coast, and dabbles in near-shore restoration focused projects.  He has worked in WDFW Protection Division supervising and training Habitat Biologists, written plenty of HPA’s, and started at the agency (way back in the 90’s) in Fish Program working around Lake Washington, Columbia River, and Puget Sound near-shore environments with juvenile and adult salmon, along with all other near-shore fish assemblages.

Logistics

Have comments, questions, or an idea for a meeting?
Contact Sydney Fishman, sfishma@uw.edu.