Beaver activity may conflict with human interests in some locations, but beaver populations also provide many ecological benefits. Increases in both beaver and human populations suggest that there is growing need to find ways to co-exist with them. Beginning in 2017, King County began a beaver management and planning program with a dual purpose: (1) to help ensure King County staff who regularly deal with complaints and other beaver-related issues do so in a consistent manner and with the same set of science-based solutions, and have those tools be the most effective, and (2) to go beyond the current best available science and forge new solutions to apparent problems, so that humans and beavers can exist to the benefit of both people and the environment.

This literature review on available beaver management tools and techniques is part of a series of technical papers being produced by the Science and Technical Support Section of King County Water and Land Resources Division. It will form part of the scientific foundation that will help guide decisions in addressing beaver related issues faced by King County staff. The primary audience is King County staff, and much of the document is written with that audience in mind – that is, usefulness to technical County staff. This paper will likely also be useful to other local government agencies, non-profits, Tribes, and individual landowners in their efforts to manage beaver-human interactions. Other summaries of beaver management tools have been written, but this one has gone to great lengths to research the original literature on each of the topics in order to reduce any chances for misinterpretation of findings.