Evaluation of Ecological Impacts of Living Shoreline Restoration and Connection to Policy and Management

In many estuaries, much of the shoreline has been artificially hardened to prevent erosion, resulting in loss of soft (vegetated) nearshore habitat.  To counter this trend, restoration groups and managers in certain regions of the United States have been moving towards use of “living shorelines,” techniques that use natural habitat elements for stabilization rather than bulkhead or riprap revetment.  This restoration practice has roots in the Chesapeake Bay region, and has since spread to North Carolina, Florida, Texas, and now the Northeast, with some of these regions adopting new laws and new regulatory structures.  Some argue that policy change has advanced while gaps in knowledge about ecological performance still exist. The data presented in this talk are among the first steps in quantifying how quickly living shorelines assume "natural" ecological function.  Nekton at control marsh sites and at bulkhead sites slated for living shoreline installation were sampled before and after construction in a before-after control-impact design.   Results suggest that certain species can respond almost immediately to installation of living shorelines.  However, ultimate species assemblage may not exactly mirror natural marshes, as living shorelines often incorporate elements such as riprap or oyster shell not found in natural marsh.  Rather than a negative, these differences may be viewed as a positive, and incorporation of multiple structural habitat elements may expand the functional value of living shorelines.  The goal of this talk is to bring together groups interested in learning about and discussing  (a) the science and engineering of this technique, and (b) when we know “enough” to push for policy change and encourage/incent/require use of living shorelines.  Data on ecological function will be put in the context of questions about how these shorelines work, what their ecological benefits are, where to use them, and next steps in science and policy.