Greenshores

The Green Shores project is designed to encourage sustainable use of coastal ecosystems through planning and design which recognizes the ecological features and functions of coastal systems. The conceptual vision for Green Shores is a voluntary assessment/certification process for shore developments, similar to the LEED certification system for buildings. In addition, Green Shores is providing support for the development of sample bylaw and zoning language to assist local and regional governments to enshrine the key principles of Green Shores in land use regulations. The Green Shores project is conducting specific pilot projects/case studies that showcase alternatives to conventional coastal shore development.

Green Shores enables project planning and design that connects people with the shore environment, delivers triple bottom line (environment, social and economic) benefits and recognizes that site specific, cost effective solutions can only be achieved by using an integrated design approach.

The guiding principles for Green Shores are: 

1. Preserve the integrity or  connectivity of coastal processes.
2. Maintain or enhance habitat diversity and function (on a local or regional scale).
3. Minimize or reduce pollutants to the marine environment.
4. Reduce cumulative impacts to the coastal environment.