Coupling breakwalls with oyster restoration structures enhances living shoreline performance along energetic shorelines

Coastal resilience surges as living shorelines reduce lateral erosion of salt marshes

“…Furthermore, there are several cobenefits that living shoreline projects can provide almost immediately. For example, sill or breakwater structures can reduce wave energy immediately after installation but their performance capacity for dampening wave energy can vary with design (Safak et al, 2020) and can increase over time (Manis et al, 2014). With respect to lateral shoreline protection from Hurricane Florence and since installation, the results of our study show a lack of influence of living shoreline project age, aligning with similar findings by Polk and Eulie (2018) who also found a lack of influence of project age on SCR.…”

“…There is still limited guidance available to waterfront landowners, marine contractors, and coastal engineers on living shoreline siting and design parameter limits (Bilkovic et al, 2016;Morris et al, 2019; Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022:82-98 © 2021 SETAC DOI: 10.1002/ieam.4447 Smith et al, 2020). However, a growing breadth of research is addressing this gap, including: understanding wave energy transmission through living shorelines relative to tidal frame (Safak et al, 2020), siting considerations (Mitchell & Bilkovic, 2019), and understanding how individual attitudes motivate shoreline management decisions (Scyphers et al, 2020;Smith et al, 2017). Our findings suggest that living shoreline siting and sill design may be suitable for broader conditions than previously known.…”

“…Over a long term (years), living shorelines that include a seaward breakwater or sill have been shown to reduce the rate of lateral erosion (compared to unaltered shorelines) and in some instances facilitate shore zone building via lateral accretion (Polk & Eulie, 2018). However, there are limitations on the amount of wave energy reduction that can be provided by living shoreline sills, based on water level and sill construction Manis et al, 2014;Safak et al, 2020). Thus, the siting (e.g., fetch [the distance wind travels across a water body generating wave height, which is critical in fetch-limited environments], sediment supply, space for landward retreat) and design (e.g., height, width, and configuration) of sills is critical (Mitchell & Bilkovic, 2019), as the primary force causing lateral and vertical erosion of salt marsh edges is wind-wave attack (Tonelli et al, 2010).…”

Biodegradable Material for Oyster Reef Restoration: First-Year Performance and Biogeochemical Considerations in a Coastal Lagoon

“…The reef structures generated from oyster colonies within the intertidal and subtidal zones of estuaries provide a habitat for decapods, fishes, and bivalves, thus contributing to the value and influence of oysters (e.g., [1,2]). Moreover, oyster reefs attenuate wave energy to reduce shoreline erosion, improve water clarity by removing suspended particulates, promote denitrification, and support nutrient cycling and storage in the sediments [3][4][5][6][7].…”

“…Overall, strategies and approaches to oyster reef restoration are diverse and often regionally unique. Examples include the usage of: metal-based materials, such as gabions [5][6][7] or crab traps [8], rock-based materials, such as ReefBall™, domes, or oyster castles [8][9][10][11][12], limestone materials, such as limestone marl, aggregates, cobbles, or siliceous limestone [10,[12][13][14][15], natural fiber-based materials, such as jute, burlap ribbon, or coconut coir [11,16], and plastic-based materials, such as Naltex™ mesh bags or Vexar™ aquaculture mesh [4,17,18]. Many of these approaches utilize recycled oyster shells in the restoration, while others employ alternative substrates for oyster colonization or planting [19].…”