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DURHAM, N.C. – The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has awarded Audubon North Carolina a $3.05 million grant to fund innovative marsh restoration pilot projects at our Donal C. O’Brien Jr. Sanctuary at Pine Island. The projects will test nature-based methods for protecting and rebuilding Currituck Sound marshes, modeling techniques than can be used in communities across the North Carolina coast.
"Currituck Sound’s marshes are rapidly losing ground to erosion and rising seas, with major impacts for birds and people,” said Cat Bowler, Senior Coastal Resilience Program Manager at Audubon North Carolina. “These pilot projects have involved many partners over many years, and this grant is a critical next step because it will allow us to put innovative restoration techniques into practice.”
Lessons learned from the project can also be exported to coastal communities elsewhere in North Carolina. Some of the restoration techniques are new to the state and all will require close collaboration with regulators, Bowler said.
Currituck Sound’s fresh water marshes are a globally rare ecosystem, providing vital habitat for birds and a variety of benefits for local communities, from water filtration to erosion control. But these same wetlands face intense pressure from rising seas and encroaching development.
One recent analysis by UNC Chapel Hill and Elizabeth City State University using historic and present-day images found that, in the last 50 years, the marsh had receded by more than 300 feet in some of the most severely affected portions of the project area.
Audubon launched the marsh restoration pilot projects in 2019 and has received funding from NFWF, North Carolina’s Land and Water Fund, and the NC Environmental Enhancement Grant Program to support the planning and design work. The new grant will support implementation.
Restoration techniques that will be tested include:
- Thin-layer placement, a technique that involves applying dredged sediment in thin layers on the marsh surface. The technique has been successful in coastal states like Louisiana, but hasn’t been tested at scale in North Carolina.
- Living shoreline with soft sill using coir logs, which are made of woven, biodegradable material and are placed on bare mud in front of a marsh to help dampen the force of waves.
- Pine tree breakwater will be created by laying recycled trees between pilings in front of marsh islands. The trees help absorb wave energy before it reaches the marsh.
Read more about these marsh restoration techniques here.
Together, the pilot projects will help preserve the integrity of two larger marsh ecosystems totaling 3,481 acres of important bird habitat that also help protect critical infrastructure and residential properties in Currituck and Dare Counties.
Protecting and restoring natural infrastructure like marshes is one of the most effective—and cost-effective—ways to help coastal birds and communities adapt to our changing climate. Lessons learned from these pilot projects will inform future resilience work across northeast North Carolina and beyond.
Media Contact: Ben Graham, ben.graham@audubon.org
About Audubon North Carolina
Audubon North Carolina, a state program of the National Audubon Society, has offices in Durham, Corolla, and Wilmington. Learn more at www.nc.audubon.org and on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. A nonprofit conservation organization since 1905, Audubon works throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. Learn more at www.audubon.org and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @audubonsociety.