Westport Light State Park, along with the Westport Jetty, stands as one of Washington State Parks' premier natural assets and the state's leading beach access point for surfing. The Westport Jetty attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors annually, offering a world-class destination for surfing, clam-digging, birdwatching, kiteboarding, fishing, rock hounding, and relaxing. The beaches and jetty area are particularly popular with surfers from across the Pacific Northwest, providing consistent, high-quality waves that are both accessible and challenging for all skill levels. On many summer and fall days, the Westport Jetty boasts clean waves that draw hundreds of daily visitors. It has also hosted past surf competitions like the Cleanwater Classic and the current Westport Longboard Classic.
Westport Light was originally dedicated in 1968. In 1993, the Westport Light Trail was completed along the bluff overlooking the ocean. A significant expansion occurred in 2015 when Washington State Parks acquired 293 acres, connecting West Haven State Park and Twin Harbors State Park to create Westport Light State Park. This expansion came at a crucial time, as private golf course developers had proposed transforming the entire area into a private golf course. However, concerns about recreational impacts and environmental degradation halted the construction of this private golf course, allowing the state to purchase the property for the perpetual enjoyment of all.
Recently, another golf course, the Westport Golf Links (WGL) project, is being proposed. Proponents of the WGL project are advocating for a public-private partnership to construct a Scottish links-style golf course on approximately 562 acres of Westport Light State Park lands, primarily situated across the dune landscape near the ocean. This proposal includes the development of a lodge, clubhouse, and other golf amenities, as well as an expansion of parking lots and a proposed concession-style clubhouse that would occupy a large portion adjacent to the surf area parking. Surfrider Foundation Washington is concerned about this project due to several potential impacts.
Firstly, encouraging increased traffic to the Westport Jetty area will undoubtedly have a noticeable effect on peak traffic volumes and the experience and needs of the members of the communities that we represent.
Currently, erosion issues at the jetty access have been severely impacted by the recent and drastic erosion of the shoreline access trails. This highlights that the entire area is extremely susceptible to coastal erosion from winter storm activity, which coincides with factors like king tides and sea level rise. The current project proposes constructing infrastructure near this bluff with a proposed 80-year lifespan. We question the assumption that worsening bluff erosion won't severely jeopardize the viability of nearshore construction decades down the road. Project proponents claim that this can be mitigated by using taxpayer dollars and the Army Corps of Engineers to provide indefinite beach nourishment through dredge spoils. Regardless of feasibility, building new infrastructure in the path of rising seas is not where we should be investing time and money.
Third, we have concerns about damage to critical wetlands. The placement of an 18-hole golf course will impact around 35 acres of wetlands. While developers are required to create and implement a mitigation strategy, we need more information about whether this mitigation will adequately replace the mosaic of wetlands critical for species such as migratory birds, amphibians, and endangered species. Grays Harbor Audubon recently reported dozens of bird species on a recent expedition. It is conceivable that adding habitat fragmentation and increased traffic from dozens of golfers will significantly impact these bird species.
An aerial view of the unique coastal wetland mosaic in Westport Light State Park
Fourth, we have significant questions regarding water quality and availability. The Westport golf proposal states that there will be a need for a significant amount of irrigation, even for a more natural Scottish links-style golf course. Developers claim they will need to drill an additional well to supply water and retrofit the community sewage treatment plant in order to use the outfall pipe to supply reclaimed water for irrigation purposes. The City of Westport has reported limited groundwater availability with water shortages in the past. We worry about the effect of further drawdowns from another well source on the Westport water supply. Additionally, even with modern sewage reclamation, we still have questions about how chemicals like pharmaceuticals or PFAS could potentially accumulate in both the aquifer recharge and in nearby shellfish beds.
Additionally, while developers and proponents of this project plan to use significantly fewer greens than a traditional golf course, there will still be large areas of manicured greens that will require pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers. We have significant concerns that even with the most stringent state and federal best practices surrounding these applications, there is still a significant risk over the lifetime of this project that there could be spills or accumulations of chemical compounds that could pose a threat to human health or marine life, or that could bioaccumulate in razor clam beds utilized by tens of thousands of Washingtonians every year.
Westport is already grappling with coastal erosion and risks to vulnerable infrastructure. Any new development should avoid building in harm's way.
Finally, developers assert that public access would not be impacted. However, we have concerns that a large portion of a State Park, recently purchased with tax money for the perpetual enjoyment of all Washingtonians, would be impacted by closing off large sections of this park to paying members of an expensive golf course. We have questions about equity and the long-term consequences over the course of an 80-year lease that would prevent future efforts to create a publicly enjoyable place for all Washingtonians. Our 2014 Recreation Use Survey found that Grays Harbor County was the second-most visited coastal county, with the Westport Light area identified as a major hotspot for numerous recreational activities that brought in hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue (and that was in 2014 dollars - the current value of coastal tourism is likely much higher given inflation and the increase in outdoor recreation across the state). Any disruption to these existing uses could have negative economic consequences, with no guarantee that the benefits of the proposed golf course would outweigh these losses.
Results from our 2014 Recreation Use Survey that identified the top recreational activities across Washington's coasts
The proposal includes three alternatives. Two of these offer different configurations and permutations of the golf course. The third alternative is a "no action" alternative. Golf course developers suggest that by pursuing a "no action" alternative, the city and state are left with serious issues, including invasive species, fire danger from unmitigated fuel loading, and a lack of access to the interior park and its wetlands. While these points are valid, assuming that the current golf course proposal is the only option negates the fact that there are other alternatives we can consider regarding what we want to see in this public space. A golf course is one of many options, but building one eliminates the possibility of future efforts to create a park that is both accessible and enjoyable for the community of Westport and all Washingtonians, but without the significant environmental impacts.
There is an absolute need to support rural local economies, and Westport would certainly benefit from economic development. While the Westport Golf Links proposal would undoubtedly create a short-term supply of jobs and increase traffic from golf-related tourism, it is not proven that the long-term promises developers claim will actually be realized, or that these will not come at the expense of negatively impacting existing tourism draws like surfing, shellfish harvesting, birdwatching, or quiet coastal enjoyment.
See Project Maps and Overview Here
Review the complete Draft Environmental Impact Statement Materials
What can you do? Comment on the proposal BEFORE MONDAY, JUNE 9th by emailing wgl.wlsp.deis.comments@gmail.com