Creating planning documents enforcing state laws can be dry work. But it is important work.

Good then, that the Whatcom County citizens, interest groups and government officials are doing some of it very well.

Earlier this month, the state Department of Ecology approved the Whatcom County Shoreline Master Program, and hailed it as a model for other counties.

The shoreline plan is a set of environmental rules meant to protect and enhance the environment while allowing continued human use. So, for example, new recreational piers on our shores would be limited to no more than four-feet wide.

Other rules include increasing the required setbacks from bodies of water and limiting the kinds of materials that can be used to shore up banks on the water's edge.

Some are bound to see the new, more restrictive, rules as a limit on private property rights. But we think it's better to consider them protection - protection against harm on your property from activity on your neighbor's property and protection against liability should work on your property be considered hurting our all-important water resources.

Perhaps the best thing about the now-approved plan was how it was put together. After the state demanded updates to shorelines rules in 2003, the county brought together developers, land owners, farmers, industrial interests, Indian tribes and environmental groups to address the questions.

That so many interest groups were able to come together and find a common ground that has earned praise from state regulators is proof that if we work together as a community, we can create real solutions that address both environmental issues and the needs of the people that own the land.

We salute everyone who put their time and effort into creating such a workable plan.