Coastal Erosion Control Snapshots

Introduction to the Coastal Erosion Control Snapshots

This group of Coastal Erosion Control Snapshots were designed to provide information to landowners and land use managers on coastal erosion mitigation strategies that could be implemented on the outer coast of Oregon, USA. The Snapshots provide easy to understand visualizations of the various strategies and important information on the environmental setting, advantages/disadvantages, metrics of success, design life, cost considerations, permitting, and maintenance cycles associated with their implementation. Many of the strategies presented here are considered non-structural, nature-based solutions, designed to function similarly to natural beaches, dunes, and back shore habitats and can be combined to make more resilient hybrid alternatives. We also feature structural solutions such as riprap and sea walls to serve as comparison. The Snapshots are focused on the outer coast of Oregon, but many of the strategies could be transferred to estuarine coastlines as well. Accompanying these Snapshots is an online guide that provides a simple overview of the coastal processes that result in the erosion and flooding hazards typical of the region. Additionally, the online guide includes a set of definitions for policy and permitting and contextual information meant to help with the interpretation of the Snapshots. 

Notes about the Snapshots

  • The Snapshot series is meant to be an overview of various coastal erosion control alternatives for landowners and land use managers. Not all possible erosion control strategies are presented, nor is the information exhaustive. 
  • Coastal engineers and informed contractors should be consulted for the design and implementation of various erosion control alternatives 
  • Non-structural, natured-based solutions will be easier to permit than structural solutions. Permitting requirements should be confirmed with each permitting agency and are subject to change with updated local planning rules and regulations or state rule and law changes. 
  • Multiple erosion control alternatives may be combined into hybrid strategies that may impact the permitting process.
  • Many of the erosion control strategies outlined in the Snapshots will require the use of heavy equipment on the beach, dune or back shore that may impact beach access and habitat for coastal species. 


The Coastal Erosion Control Snapshot series was created in 2025/2026 by a group of graduate students and faculty at Oregon State University and the University of Washington as part of a pilot project funded by the Cascadia Coastlines and Peoples Hazards Research Hub. The information in the Snapshots was co-developed and reviewed by a working group comprised of state agency professionals, state planners, and non-governmental organizations who work on the Oregon coast. Additionally, the Snapshots were presented during two workshops in spring of 2026 where additional feedback was solicited from a boarder audience of engineering, contractors, planners, state agency representatives, and landowners from Oregon, Washington, and Northern California.

   

 
 
 

For the downloadable PDF version, see here.

Acknowledgements

  • The development of this series of Coastal Erosion Control Snapshots was supported by the  Cascadia Coastlines and Peoples Hazards Research Hub, NSF Coastlines and People Large‐Scale Hub (NSF award number 2103713).
  • A group of graduate students and faculty at Oregon State University compiled the content for the Snapshots and graduate student MacKenzie Keen designed and formatted the Snapshot drawings and layout. 
  • A working group was formed composed of Oregon State agency representatives and NGOs representatives to brainstorm useful information to include in the Snapshots review the Snapshot content prior to publishing.

Creators List (alphabetical order by last name):

Graduate students and Postdocs at the time of creation: Colin Arnowil (OSU), Hailey Bond (OSU), Ian Clifford (OSU), Jenny Hamilton (OSU), Selwyn Heminway (OSU), MacKenzie Keen (UW), Kayla Ostrow (OSU), Mark Rotolo (OSU), Andrew Schuldt (OSU), Carly Ringer (OSU), Danielle Whalen (OSU), Louiza Wise (OSU)

Faculty: Celina Balderes Guzmán (UW), Sally Hacker (OSU), Peter Ruggiero (OSU), Meagan Wengrove (OSU)

Workgroup List: Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Oregon Surfrider Foundation, Oregon Sea Grant, OSU Extension, Oregon Department of Transportation, Friends of the Dunes

Contact for questions: Meagan Wengrove, meagan.wengrove@oregonstate.edu

Suggested Citation:

Wengrove, M., Clifford, I., Hacker, S., Heminway, S., Keen, M., Ringer, C., Ruggiero, P., Schuldt, A., Whalen, D., Wise, L., Arnowil, C., Balderas Guzmán, C., Bond, H., Hamilton, J., Ostrow, K., Rotolo, M., 2026. The Coastal Erosion Control Snapshots. Access through: The Cascadia Coastlines and Peoples Hub, link: https://cascadiacopeshub.org/coastal-erosion-control-snapshots/


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