Protect Coasts

Green infrastructure can help protect coastal areas, which are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Sea level rise and heavy storms can result in erosion and flooding of these sensitive areas, as well as loss of natural habitat, property and infrastructure damage, and community displacement. Temperatures are expected to continue to climb as the climate changes, resulting in continued rising sea levels, amplified storm surges, and greater frequency and intensity of storms. Coastal communities with fewer resources to prepare for, respond to, and recover from these impacts, and those with environmental justice concerns, are especially at risk.

A green infrastructure approach to coastal improvement—a "living shoreline"—can make coastal areas more resilient to climate change impacts. Explore the sections below to learn more about this approach and find resources for implementation.

On this page:

• Using Green Infrastructure to Protect Coasts
• Resources
• References

Using Green Infrastructure to Protect Coasts

Living shorelines can be created using plants, reefs, sand, and natural barriers to reduce erosion and flooding while maintaining the natural shoreline and its processes. Living shorelines are more resilient against storms than hard structures, such as bulkheads and sea walls, as well as more cost effective since they require less maintenance. They provide multiple ecosystem benefits, including improved water quality, enhancing habitat, and carbon sequestration.ⁱ They can also lessen climate change impacts on human health and property: restoring affected wetlands can reduce property damage by buffering the velocity and intensity of waves.^{ii, iii}

Consider Living Shoreline Composition

Living shorelines can be a mixture of structural and organic materials, including:

• Native wetland plants, which are adapted to local soil, temperature ranges, salinity, wind, and tidal conditions.^iv
• Stone and rock structures, which reduce wave impacts.
• Mussel beds or oyster reefs, which increase habitat diversity, improve water quality, and reduce wave impacts.
• Submerged aquatic vegetation, which enhances water quality, reduces erosion, and boosts ecosystem productivity.^v
• Coir fiber logs, which are biodegradable and can provide temporary stabilization in planting areas before the plants grow and provide their own stabilization.^vi
• Sand fill, which can be used to fill in eroded areas and raise elevation.

Using these materials can restore coastal shorelines to a more natural condition. Green infrastructure can also be used in combination with gray infrastructure, such as sea walls and jetties. More information on green, gray, and hybrid approaches can be found on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Habitat Blueprint Living Shorelines webpage.

Assess Site-Specific Needs

Communities can launch coastal improvement projects like living shorelines by hosting a meeting to begin the process of establishing site-specific needs, such as recreational use, ecological diversity, and other community-specific goals. It is often beneficial to include leaders in the state or regional area who are concerned with the environmental needs of the community. After establishing site-specific needs, it is a good idea to conduct a site assessment to verify previously gathered information and fill in any data gaps. This process should include determining the:

• Height, shape, and slope of the bank
• Rate at which the shoreline is eroding
• Available landward space for marsh migration
• Level of wave or wind energy in the area
• Tidal ranges and currents
• Evidence of existing vegetation
• Water depth, type of substrate, and salinity of the water body
• Existing structures

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control determined restoration strategies for habitat in the Delaware Inland Bays (pdf) by first determining site-specific needs and conducting site assessments. In one example, the restoration area was located near routine dredging operations. The site needed to be elevated, and with dredging work nearby, dredging material became a resource for elevating the marsh. Timing the project development with the dredging work allowed for efficiency and success in not only increasing the elevation, but also aiding native vegetation growth.

Resources

Animations:

• Green Infrastructure Protective Services Animation — This animation from NOAA shows how storms impact coasts and how green infrastructure can help.

Case Studies:

• Living Shorelines Publications — Living shorelines case studies by the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium.
• Naturally Resilient Communities — A database of nature-based solutions for flooding and erosion, which also includes case studies, funding information, and additional resources.

Guides:

• Living Shorelines and Nature Based Solutions Guidebook (pdf) — A guide that walks through the assessment, planning, and implementation of living shorelines and nature-based solutions using existing state, federal, and international guidance.

Programs:

• EPA National Estuary Program — An EPA place-based program to protect and restore the water quality and ecological integrity of estuaries of national significance. Currently, 28 estuaries located along the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coasts, as well as Puerto Rico, are designated as estuaries of national significance.
• EPA Coastal Wetlands Initiative — This EPA initiative addresses the need to enhance conservation of coastal wetlands.
• Coastal Resilience Program — The Nature Conservancy's program provides information to communities, planners, businesses, and policymakers to help them address sea-level rise and coastal hazards in their decisionmaking.
• Engineering With Nature — This program within the U.S. Army Corps works towards aligning natural processes with engineering processes. The EWN website provides a host of tools, project case studies, publications, and presentations.
• Living Shorelines Academy — A one-stop shop for living shorelines resources. Resources on this website include a project database, videos, publications, and training modules for property owners and design and construction professionals. There is also a forum to ask questions and a professional directory to find contacts.
• NOAA Habitat Blueprint Living Shorelines — Building on existing NOAA programs, the NOAA Habitat Blueprint program applies a framework to protect and restore coastal resources through designated habitat focus areas. The site includes infographics and a map of more than 120 living shoreline demonstration projects.
• NOAA Office of Coastal Management — Programs and resources from NOAA for protecting and enhancing coastal resources.
• Partnership for the Delaware Estuary — Website to connect people, science, and nature to promote a healthy Delaware River and Bay. It links to science and research, publications, and educational and volunteer opportunities.

Reports and Studies:

• Gedan, K.B., M. L. Kirwan, E. Wolanski, E.B. Barbier, and B. R. Silliman. (2011). The present and future role of coastal wetland vegetation in protecting shorelines: Answering recent challenges to the paradigm. Climatic Change, 106, 7–29. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
• Smith, C.S., B. Puckett, R.K. Gittman, and C.H. Peterson. (2016). Living shorelines enhanced the resilience of saltmarshes to Hurricane Matthew (2016). Ecological Applications: Ecological Society of America 28(4), 871–877. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
• The Center for Inland Bays — Website that provides access to the Center for Inland Bays publications and reports.

Tools:

• Climate Resilience Evaluation and Awareness Tool (CREAT) — This map provides easy-to-access scenario-based climate change projections to utility assets and operations.
• Adaptation Tool Kit: Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Land Use — This page on the Adaptation Clearinghouse website describes the toolkit, which explores 18 different land-use tools for responding to threats posed by sea-level rise to both public and private coastal development and infrastructure. The toolkit also provides policymakers with a framework for decisionmaking.
• Digital Coast — A website sponsored by NOAA in collaboration with organizations committed to providing data and information, tools, and training resources to help address timely coastal issues (e.g., land use, coastal conservation, hazards, marine spatial planning).
• Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Research and Technical Assistance — Enables transportation agencies to use natural and nature-based features to improve the resilience of transportation systems. FHWA sponsored five pilot projects to assess the potential for nature-based techniques to protect specific locations along coastal roads and bridges. FHWA is also developing a white paper, regional peer exchanges, and an implementation guide.
• Ecosystem-Based Management (EBM) Tools Network — The EBM Tools Network is an alliance of EBM tool users, providers, and researchers that promotes the use and development of EBM in coastal and marine environments and watersheds that affect them. The network hosts the EBM Tools Database, which enables users to find, share, and contribute information about EBM, decision-support tools, and projects and resources for innovative, interdisciplinary coastal-marine spatial planning.
• NOAA Adapting Stormwater Management for Coastal Floods Tool — Website with tools for calculating stormwater impacts on coastal flooding.
• Sea Grant Climate Adaptation Resources — A list of adaptation resources on the website of Pennsylvania Sea Grant, a partnership between Penn State University, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and NOAA.

References

1. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2021). What Is a Living Shoreline? Retrieved December 2, 2022.
2. Sun, F., and R.T. Carson. (2020). Coastal wetlands reduce property damage during tropical cyclones. Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences, 117(11), 5719. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
3. Sheng, Y.P., A.A. Rivera-Nieves, R. Zou, and V.A. Paramygin. (2021). Role of wetlands in reducing structural loss is highly dependent on characteristics of storms and local wetland and structure conditions. Scientific Reports, 11, 5237. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
4. Virginia Institute of Marine Science. Living Shoreline Vegetation. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
5. Virginia Institute of Marine Science. Evaluation of Living Shoreline Techniques (pdf). Retrieved April 25, 2023.
6. Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Center for Coastal Resources Management. Living Shorelines: Design Options—Fiber Logs. Retrieved April 25, 2023.