{"id":13400,"date":"2021-04-20T15:47:03","date_gmt":"2021-04-20T19:47:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/currents\/?p=13400"},"modified":"2021-05-10T10:28:10","modified_gmt":"2021-05-10T14:28:10","slug":"building-coastal-resilience-through-shoreline-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/currents\/2021\/04\/building-coastal-resilience-through-shoreline-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Building Coastal Resilience Through Shoreline Management"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Shannon Pelkey<\/strong><\/p>\n
Using a drone researchers are able to collect high resolution imagery of their living shoreline study sites. The imagery captures an oyster bag sill living shoreline that aids in protecting the fringing salt marsh from wave energy. As the image shows, the interface between water and land is preserved because of the way living shorelines are designed. <\/em><\/p><\/div>\n
North Carolina\u2019s estuaries are home to vast, lush salt marshes, mounds of oyster reefs, and flowing seagrass beds. These beautiful habitats provide a wealth of ecosystem services, including shoreline protection, sediment and nutrient filtration, habitat for our fisheries, and carbon sequestration, yet they are increasingly under threat.<\/p>\n
Hazards that impact estuaries range from wave energy from boat wakes to severe storms, from unsustainable development to rising water levels and temperatures. To protect our homes and communities from coastal hazards, coastal managers use a range of solutions where the land meets the water, including hard structures like bulkheads and nature-based approaches like living shorelines.<\/p>\n
Graduate students Emory Wellman (East Carolina University) and Kelsey Beachman (UNC Wilmington) use a real-time kinematic-GPS unit to collect high resolution elevation data at a rock sill living shoreline. Elevation data can help scientists better understand whether the marsh is growing. <\/em><\/p><\/div>\n