Jeff DeQuattroMobile, AlabamaCoastal Projects ManagerThe Nature Conservancy

Photo by Beth Young

Coffee Island – 1500 meters

Alabama Port – 750 meters

Mobile, Alabama

Helen-Wood Park – 300 meters

Bon Secour Bay – ~250 meters

Alabama Living Shoreline Projects Completed

The Swift Tract – 1,715 meters

• Create healthy oyster reefs to act as living shoreline breakwaters

• Enhance critical habitat fish and invertebrates

• Protect shorelines

• Create jobs

• Heavy pre-and-post restoration scientific monitoring.

• Demonstrate alternative to bulkheads

• Socio-Economic Survey

• Demonstrate how larger-scale oyster restoration improves environmental/economic resiliency.

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Project in Mobile, AL $2.9 Million to create 1.5 miles of oyster reef breakwaters

• Full time crew of 12 to 20

people

• ~150,000 bags of oyster shell

Bagged Oyster Shell

• Full time crew of about 6

people

• 3,168 Mini-Bay Reef Balls

Reef Balls

• Full time crew of about 8 to

10 people

• 492 ReefBLK units

Photos by Beth Young and JoeBay Aerials

ReefBLK

Socio-Economics of the ARRA Project in Alabama

Number of Positions at Height of the Project = 84 positions

Average Positions for almost 3 years (33 months) = 31.5 positions

ARRA efforts leading to larger scale restoration

Identified areas to restore by consulting with…

•Natural Resource Managers

•Scientists

•Commercial Fishers

•Charter Fishers

•Recreational Fishers

•Community Leaders

•Underserved Communities

•Best Available Data

Socio-Economics of Restoration – Job Training

Photos by Andrew Kornylak

Socio-Economics of Restoration – Volunteerism

Socio-Economics of Restoration – Volunteerism

Photo by Jeff DeQuattro

Thank You!