Seahurst Park's sea wall is a-tumbling down

Not that people living near Seahurst Park have anything against smelt or other forage fish that rely on sandy beaches to spawn and grow to become a key food source for salmon.


		Jim Bryant / P-I
	Tom Myler uses an excavator to remove driftwood along Seahurst Park's south sea wall as work begins on the park's shoreline restoration project. When completed, the section of the beach will be part of a two-thirds of a mile stretch of natural, unwalled beach habitat on Puget Sound.

Neighbors just didn't want the disruption particularly caused by sand and gravel trucks rumbling through the neighborhood.

But as Seahurst Park's gabion sea wall -- a pile of metal-meshed rock baskets -- increasingly deteriorated, it became clear that something else had to give if habitat was to be saved.

It was ultimately decided that the Army Corps of Engineers would use a barge instead of trucks to transport the dismantled sea wall and bring in the materials needed to restore the shoreline.

Yesterday, engineers set to work, joining city officials, environmentalists, neighbors and congressional delegates in a local celebration. The event included a symbolic release of marine critters, including crabs, whelks and small fish, to represent rejuvenation.

Environmentalists say that in the 32 years since King County built the sea wall, much has been learned about shoreline and habitat protection. As the sea wall has been eroded by waves, its 10-pound rocks breaking apart on the beach, the needed spawning conditions for smelt, sand lance and other forage fish have diminished, said Mark Plunkett, conservation coordinator for the Seattle Aquarium.


		Jim Bryant / P-I
	Mark Plunkett of the Seattle Aquarium examines marine life along Seahurst Park's sea wall. The critters were relocated while restoration work is being done.

"This whole thing is about salmon, providing fish that salmon want to eat," Plunkett said, adding that neither the beach nor nearby creeks are salmon spawning areas. "The idea is to get rid of the wall and create a sandy, small gravel beach -- the suitable substrate for forage fish -- and not the boulders."

Removing the sea wall and grading the shoreline to create a more gradual and natural slope to the beach will also improve a key migratory corridor for juvenile chinook salmon, fish biologists said. Fish prefer shallower water than what exists against the sea wall, experts said.

Andrea Takash, spokeswoman for the Army Corps of Engineers, said the barge is "the best option for not disturbing the public." The corps will bring in sand and gravel -- 15,000 tons of it -- to supplement and regrade the beach, she said, helping to replenish eelgrass and other critical habit for the salmon food chain.

The Seahurst Park Shoreline Restoration project is the first effort to be funded under the Puget Sound and Adjacent Waters Restoration Program, which received its first congressional appropriation last year. Project supporters credited state congressional delegates Patty Murray, Maria Cantwell and Jim McDermott for helping to secure the federal funding, which helps with about 80 percent of the project's total estimated cost of $1.5 million.

The city of Burien will spend about $286,000 for the project, which will take about two months, said Larry Fetter, city parks and recreation director. Although the beach near the sea wall will be closed to public access, there is other beach access along the shoreline, he said.

"As the (wall) baskets have broken, it's pretty much decimating the fish habitat in that area," Fetter said. "We tried to work with the neighborhoods, and I think they understand the environmental benefit and that there will still be good recreational use. I also think they're appreciative that we're not trucking the material in and out."

Tom Pelzel, president of the Hurstwood Community club, which represents about 120 residents living near Seahurst Park, agreed. He said that although some have questioned whether the project is worth the cost given other spending priorities, most residents' worries have been met.

"Originally, there were concerns, but I don't think there will be significant impacts now," Pelzel said. "We're a group of pretty reasonable people, as long as we're included in things that are going on."

Plunkett supports the sea wall removal, calling it "well worth the money."

"As we struggle with wise management of declining salmon, we've learned that those few unarmored (non-walled) beaches are like gold to salmon," Plunkett said.

"With this project, we're reclaiming 1,000 feet of shoreline and beach."

More headlines and info from Burien.