The Northwest (Vermont) Regional Planning Commission and Lake Champlain Sea Grant, with input from a number of local partners, produced a shoreline stabilization handbook [Download PDF] for Lake Champlain and other inland lakes. The handbook responds to a growing interest in managing shoreline erosion to prevent loss of property and structures in the Lake Champlain Basin in Vermont and New York. It is intended for primarily for use by landowners, municipalities, and state and local authorities. The handbook, following an overview of the erosion process and its causes, concentrates on specific shoreline stabilization options for Lake Champlain, including hard structural methods and bioengineered approaches. This hands on “how to” manual includes information on cost effective, non-structural approaches, such as bioengineering, and construction and land-use planning, to modify the processes of shoreline erosion. For the landowner, it also provides guidance on planning stabilization activities, planning construction or improvements in areas potentially exposed to erosion, and an overview of the permit process for Vermont and New York.

In September 2004, the handbook was selected as Outstanding Project of the Year by both the Northern New England Chapter of the American Planning Association (NNECAPA) and the Vermont Planners Association. In January 2006, the American Planning Association selected the guidebook as the Outstanding Planning Tool of 2005. Because of the interest in managing shoreline erosion to prevent loss of property and structures in the Lake Champlain Basin, LCSG, the NWRPC and the VT Agency for Natural Resources Lakes and Ponds Division will present five erosion prevention and control workshops at the annual Vermont Town Officer Training (TOEC) series. Over 700 Vermont town officers attend the annual TOEC training.