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17a 2010

Living Shoreline Restoration

Graphic Credit: Mobile Press Register

Living Shoreline Restoration

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

• Sparse biotic community

• Eroding shoreline

• Oyster bar foundation

• Shoreline stabilized

• Seagrass colonization?

• Some small fish and invertebrates

• Large oyster reef

• Expanded emergent marsh

• Expanded seagrass?

• Small and Large fish and invertebrates

• Sparse biotic community

• Eroding shoreline

• Oyster bar foundation

• Shoreline stabilized

• Seagrass colonization?

• Some small fish and invertebrates

• Large oyster reef

• Expanded emergent marsh

• Expanded seagrass?

• Small and Large fish and invertebrates

Goals for TNC Breakwater Project

• Reef Construction,• Shoreline Stabilization,• Marsh Re-growth, • Faunal Utilization, and• Seagrass Colonization.

Site Locations

Site 2

Site 1

Dauphin Island Sea Lab

Mobile Bay

Portersville Bay

Bayou La Batre

Mobile

Site 2

Site 1

Dauphin Island Sea Lab

Mobile Bay

Portersville Bay

Bayou La Batre

Site 2

Site 1

Dauphin Island Sea Lab

Mobile Bay

Portersville Bay

Bayou La Batre

Mobile

Site Locations

Site 1: Bay Front Park to Heron Point Bridge, Mobile Bay; Mobile County, AL (30.344917N, -88.123355W)

Site 2: Coffee Island, Portersville Bay; Mobile County, AL (30.338954N, -88.253860W)

Why did the shoreline need strengthening?Coffee Island Historical Erosion Aerial Photography (slide courtesy of Carl Ferraro)

Project Update - Bagged Oyster Shell

• Wayne Eldridge with J&W Marine Enterprises, Inc.

• Full Time Crew of about 8 -10 people

• Magical Oyster Bagging Machine

• Creating approximately 140,000 bags of oyster shell.

Project Update - Reef Balls

• Reef Innovations, Inc.• Larry Beggs – President• Robbie Duke –

Superintendant• Harry Rolfe - Superintendant

• Crew of 6 people

• Creating 3,168 Reef Balls.

Project Update - ReefBLKs

• Coastal Environments, Inc.

• Mitch Tinsley – Project Manager

•Crew of about 8 people.

•Creating 492 units to cover 750 linear meters of breakwater.

Alabama Port Treatment Layouts

Alabama PortTreatment Material

1 Control2 Shell Bags3 ReefBLKs4 Reef Balls5 Reef Balls6 Shell Bags7 ReefBLKs8 Control

• Treatments are labeled from North to South

• Each Treatment is 125m (~137 yd) in length

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Coffee Island Treatment Layouts

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Coffee IslandTreatment Material

1 Control2 Reef Balls3 Shell Bags4 ReefBLKs5 ReefBLKs6 Reef Balls7 Control8 Shell Bags

• Treatments are labeled from North to South

• Each Treatment is 125m (~137 yd) in length

ReefBLK Layout

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Beach

Berm

Marsh

30m

125m

2.64m

Beach

Berm

Marsh

30m30m

125m125m

2.64m2.64m2.64m

Distance from Shore - 30mLength - 125mWidth ~ 2.64mHeight ~ 0.61m

ReefBLK Site Bathymetries

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Alabama Port 3

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60

Elev

atio

n

-1.8

-1.6

-1.4

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

Nov. 19 2009Jan. 5 2010

Alabama Port 7

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.4

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

Nov 19 2009Jan 5 2010

Coffee Island 4

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Ele

vatio

n

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

Nov. 16 2009Jan. 13 2010

Coffee Island 5

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

Nov. 16 2009Jan. 13 2010

Reef Ball Layout

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Distance from Shore - 30mLength - 125mWidth ~ 2.64mHeight ~ 0.61m

Beach

Berm

Marsh

30m

2.28m

125m

Beach

Berm

Marsh

30m30m

2.28m2.28m2.28m

125m125m

Distance from Shore - 30mLength - 125mWidth - 2.28mHeight - 0.53m

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Reef Ball Site Bathymetries

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Alabama Port 4

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Ele

vatio

n

-1.8

-1.6

-1.4

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

Nov. 19 2009Jan. 5 2010

Alabama Port 5

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60

Elev

atio

n

-1.4

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

Nov. 19 2009Jan. 5 2010

Coffee Island 2

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

Nov. 16 2009Jan. 13 2010

Coffee Island 6

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

Nov. 16 2009Jan. 13 2010

Bagged Oyster Shell Layout

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

30m

10m

17m

10m 10m10m

17m 17m 17m17m

Beach

Berm

Marsh

30m30m

4m

10m10m

17m17m

10m10m 10m10m10m10m

17m17m17m17m

Beach

Berm

Marsh

Distance from Shore - 30mTotal Length - 125mWidth - 4mHeight ~ 0.7m

Bagged Shell Site Bathymetries

Slide Credit: Jared McKee - DISL

Alabama Port 2

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-2.5

-2.0

-1.5

-1.0

-0.5

0.0

0.5

Nov. 19 2009Jan. 5 2010

Alabama Port 6

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

Nov. 19 2009Jan. 5 2010

Coffee Island 3

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

Nov. 16 2009Jan. 13 2010

Coffee Island 8

Distance from Transit

10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Elev

atio

n

-1.2

-1.0

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

Nov. 16 2009Jan. 13 2010

Geo-Grid

• Geo-Grid is being used to help prevent subsidence in the soft soils within the project area.

• Geo-Grid will be placed, staked, and weighted down just prior to deployment of various treatments

Monitoring Metrics

1. Oyster Abundance2. Seagrass Cover3. Finfish and Mobile Invertebrates4. Sediment Size and Organic Content5. Shoreline Stabilization6. Marsh Plant Density

Socio-Economic Component

Major Goal: To better understand the link between coastal residents and coastal resources

1) What are the biggest threats to coastal fisheries and habitats?

2) Which habitats and resources are the most important to protect and restore?

3) Where does an oyster have its greatest economic value?

Slide Credit: Steven Scyphers- USA

Socio-Economic Survey Details

Target Group: Coastal Alabama Residents (n=1000)*Focus on Bayou la Batre, Alabama

Method: Random dial Telephone Survey

Project Leadership:USA: Dr. Sean Powers

Dr. Steve PicouSteven Scyphers (sscyphers@disl.org)

UNF: Dr. Jeffrey WillCollaborators:

NOAA: Dr. Peter EdwardsTNC: Dr. Rob Brumbaugh

Slide Credit: Steven Scyphers- USA

Q&A

Questions?

Comments?

Thank you!

“As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away, leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell and washed it down with the crisp taste of

the wine, I lost the empty feeling and began to be happy and to make plans.”

Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast