The MacDill Air Force Base (AFB) Oyster Reef Shoreline Stabilization Project in Tampa, Florida is a collaboration between the base and Tampa Bay Watch, a local nonprofit. This living shoreline project reduces erosion, provides protection from storms and sea-level rise, improves water quality, and enhances habitat. 

The Maidford River Saltmarsh of Sachuest Point Wildlife Refuge in Middletown, Rhode Island was degraded as a result of sea level rise and powerful storm surges, particularly during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. This project was designed to improve the marsh’s resiliency against sea level rise, which involved a thin layer deposition and invasive plant species management.

Mangrove Reef Walls are seawall-enhancing panels that create engineered-living habitat along developed waterfronts. These were installed in two locations in Florida in 2016 and 2018. These can improve biodiversity and water quality, and reduce erosion in areas where “traditional” living shorelines are not feasible (high energy zones, narrow canals, steep slopes). 

The West Lake estuary and watershed is an urban/suburban estuary ecosystem with one of the largest ports in the USA (Port Everglades). Dredging and filling in support of this port have modified both the shallow edge and bottom of the estuary. This project successful establishment of 500 hectares of mangroves at West Lake in Broward County, Florida.

This project aims to clear dead trees and debris deposited by Hurricane Andrew in 1992 from mangrove tidal passageways in Matheson Hammock Park on Biscayne Bay. In a five-year effort to prevent further damage to this sensitive habitat, the debris are removed by volunteers using canoes and manual labor instead of large machinery.

The Maumee River Riparian Zone Restoration is a reforestation effort on 75 acres of farm land with a goal of restoring riparian bottomland habitat from being contaminated by hazardous substance releases from the Fort Wayne Reduction Site. The project reforested bottomland/riparian habitat with native and naturally-occurring tree and shrub species that are tolerant of wet conditions.

Water at the Tar Creek Superfund site in Oklahoma’s Tri-State Lead-Zinc District contains elevated concentrations of trace metals that have degraded local streams. To remedy water and stream quality, the Mayer Ranch passive treatment system uses natural processes to produce treated water that meets in-stream quality criteria and maximizes benefits. 

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.  

The over 3-meter-high unstable banks of Meadowview stream were a serious public safety concern to the nearby community. To create a safer environment, the community installed a 3:1 slope planted with Californian native plants along the stream bank that was stabilized with compost rolls seeded with native grasses.

This project removed three aging dams and replaced a fourth on the Mill River in Taunton, Massachusetts to increase the area’s ecological and community resilience and reduce flooding. These efforts reconnected more than 48 kilometers of rivers and streams linked to Narragansett Bay. 

The San Antonio River was historically modified to reduce flooding, leaving it devoid of its ecological function. The Mission Reach Ecosystem Restoration and Recreation Project aimed to reduce flooding, restore the riverine ecosystem, and provide recreational opportunities to a 13-kilometer stretch of the river.  

This project aimed to restore oyster cultch areas in the waters of Hancock and Harrison Counties in Mississippi.  Cultch material, such as oyster shell or limestone, was deployed at a rate of 100 cubic yards per acre, and successfully restored and enhanced approximately 1,430 acres of oyster cultch area.

The confluence of Mud Creek and the French Broad River in Henderson County, North Carolina was degraded by agricultural development and urban runoff.  The Mud Creek confluence project addressed these issues by restoring a montane alluvial floodplain forest, a rare natural community in North Carolina made up of specific vegetation communities and habitats. 

Marsh along the Narrow River had been suffering from extended periods of water inundation from sea level rise, as well as erosion from boat wakes, resulting in the die-off of lower marsh species and the shrinking of high marsh habitat.

The Illinois Coastal Management Program and Navy Pier, Inc collaborated to redevelop Chicago’s Navy Pier with green infrastructure projects. These projects aimed to reduce runoff, flooding, and pollution. The project planted trees in planters designed specifically for this project to retain and filter stormwater, or redirect it for future use.

The North Simpson Habitat Restoration Project aimed to improve the riprarian habitat on the floodplains of a near-perennial riparian area that came into existence since the 1970s as a consequence of municipal effluent discharge. Numerous native tree, shrub, grass, and forb species were planted in shallow water-harvesting basin to facilitate self-sustaining recovery.

The Olympia Oyster Restoration Project aimed to restore the threatened Olympia oysters, which had nearly gone extinct due to over-harvesting, sediment loads, and pollution. The project team 1) identified appropriate habitats for oyster restoration, 2) modified substrate for growing oysters by adding old oyster shells, 3) propagated and seed oyster spat, and 4) monitored results.

In 2011, Tropical Storm Irene brought intense flooding to Otter Creek, causing severe damage to the city of Rutland, but minimal damage to Middlebury, located only 30 miles downstream. Middlebury’s conservation and restoration of Otter Creek’s floodplain and wetlands mitigated potential flood impacts and damage.  

This project will test the oyster recruitment and growth ability of different types of cultch material in Mobile Bay, Alabama. Oyster density and growth has declined in Mobile Bay due to damage from hurricanes and increases in oyster drill populations. This project will restore reef and help inform future restoration project materials. 

Two major fires and subsequent flooding events wreaked havoc on a critical watershed and reservoir that supplies Denver with water. Water utilities partnered with the U.S. Forest Service and corporate sponsors to manage the watershed and improve forest health.