Let us know what you think of the Roadmap website. Provide your feedback →

Nature-Based Solutions Case Study Search

This database contains over 400 implementations of nature-based solutions. Use the filters to identify the case studies most relevant to you.

While all cases here exemplify applications of NBS strategies, they were gathered from various sources and not all were written using the framing of nature-based solutions. To qualify as a nature-based solution, a project must provide benefits to both people and nature. In some instances, the human benefits are present but not emphasized in the case write ups; these cases were included because they still provide useful information to learn from.

Other searches:

Find nature-based solutions strategies (project types)

Find tools and resources

Muskegon Lake’s shoreline and wetlands were severely degraded from industrial waste disposal, shoreline land use, and stormwater management. The Amoco Fish and Wildlife Habitat Restoration Project restored wetlands and wildlife habitat at a 9-hectare site. A constructed shoal system, the removal of a concrete wall, and a planted embankment restored wetland habitat. 

State/Territory:

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)–Detroit District and several other partners used Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding to reconnect 340 kilometers of the Boardman River to Grand Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan. This project involved three dam removals over six years, and improved riverine habitat for important species. 

State/Territory:

Lake Ontario’s Braddock Bay has lost 123 acres of emergent wetland. The Braddock Bay Ecosystem Restoration Project was created to save and reestablish 340 acres of this coastal wetland area. This project will increase habitat for fish and wildlife, reduce erosion, manage invasive species, and increase bay-area property values. 

State/Territory:

Restoring Lake St. Clair, between Michigan and Canada, has been an international priority for decades. The Clinton River Mouth Wetland, at the edge of Lake St. Clair is the site of a restoration project headed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This project will remove invasive species and use dredged materials to create wetland habitat. 

State/Territory:

Galloway Creek, a tributary to the impaired Clinton River in Michigan, provides cold-water base flows that support trout species. Development led to a straightened, degraded, and disconnected creek that runs through a golf course. This project restored floodplain connectivity, improved geomorphic stability, and built in-stream habitat for fish species and aquatic wildlife. 

State/Territory:

Dredged material was used to nourish the beach at 61st Street on Galveston Island, TX. This project increases recreational opportunities on the beaches and increases tourism to Galveston and nearby Houston, TX. This project is part of a long-term strategy to provide storm protection, increase property value, and reduce erosion. 

NBS Strategies:
State/Territory:

Central Meriden, Connecticut, is continuously devastated by flooding due to urbanization and loss of wetland habitats. The city led a daylighting project to re-naturalized the river that had been covered by industrialization. Businesses in the Hub were relocated and 1700 linear feet of concrete culverts over 30 feet wide were demolished, excavated, and removed.

State/Territory:

King Fisher Beach in Port O’Connor, Texas is a major destination for tourists and local recreation. It is increasingly susceptible to the impacts of storm surge, sea-level rise, and erosion. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers nourished King Fisher Beach with 58,305 cubic meters of dredged sediment. 

NBS Strategies:
State/Territory:

The Three Forks Ranch in Routt County, Colorado was purchased by David Pratt in 1999. Dave Rosgen of Wildland Hydrology was later hired to improve the hydrology and habitat conditions of a 10.5-mile stretch of the Little Snake River flowing across the property.

State/Territory:

Toledo, Ohio has experienced increased stormwater flooding and sewage system overflows, causing water quality issues and flood hazards. The city created the the Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) Task Force to address these issues. One of GSI’s projects on Maywood Avenue used green infrastructure to improve water quality and reduce runoff.  

State/Territory:

Unity Island, in the Upper Niagara River, lost coastal wetland habitat due to both industrial development and the construction of docks, marinas, and water control structures. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers used 43,000 cubic meters of dredged sediment to create 2 hectares of emergent and submerged wetland habitat. 

State/Territory: