Design of structural stabilization measures. A. Soft approaches shall be used unless demonstrated not to be sufficient to protect primary structures, dwellings, and businesses. Hard armoring solutions shall not be authorized except when a geotechnical report prepared in accordance with regulation 7.16(6) confirms that there is a significant possibility that a primary structure will be damaged within three years as a result of shoreline erosion in the absence of such hard armoring measures, or where waiting until the need is that immediate, would foreclose the opportunity to use measures that avoid impacts on ecological functions. Thus, where the geotechnical report confirms a need to prevent potential damage to a primary structure, but the need is not as immediate as the three years, that report may still be used to justify more immediate authorization to protect against erosion using soft measures.
