The Nature Conservancy restored a 54-acre oyster reef in Matagorda Bay, Texas. This project successfully restored large, thriving oyster reefs that have enhanced biodiversity in the bay. This increase in biodiversity has improved recreational fishing opportunities and fishing-related tourism in the area. The increase in fishing at Half Moon Bay reef adds around $691,000 to Texas’ gross domestic product annually.
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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.
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The Hamilton Wetlands Site, just north of San Francisco, was diked and dried almost a century ago for commercial development. This loss of marsh impacted endangered species and lessened the area’s coastal resilience. This project is restoring marsh functions and ecosystems, as well as creating recreational opportunities.
Hancock County Marsh Coastal Preserve was the fastest eroding marsh in Mississippi. To reverse this loss and improve the preserve, this project constructed three habitat-restoration components: a 10-kilometer segmented living shoreline, 19 hectares of restored intertidal marsh, and a 19-hectare subtidal reef in Heron Bay.
The Harbor Brook CSO 018 Constructed Wetlands Pilot Project serves the dual purposes of treating overflows from CSO 018, currently discharged into Harbor Brook, while also acting as a demonstration project to test the effectiveness of three types of constructed wetland treatment systems (floating wetland island, vertical down flow, and surface water treatment wetlands).
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.
The Hassalo on Eighth community transformed a previously underdeveloped area—formerly a vast parking lot—into a vibrant, eco-friendly, 24-hour community minutes from downtown Portland. The development features green roofs, rainwater harvesting and treatment facilities, on-site wastewater treatment and reuse, infiltration systems, district energy, and natural daylighting.
The Herring River Restoration Project in Massachusetts will replace the restrictive dike at the mouth of the river with a bridge that will allow tidal water to flow freely between the river and Wellfleet Harbor. This will restore the biodiverse, productive, estuary that existed pre-dike construction.
Horner Park is a 14-acre restoration area along the north branch of the Chicago River. This is a part of a larger goal to reconnect sustainable habitat along the Chicago River. Hydrogeomorphology, native plant communities, and riparian buffers were restored at this site.
Dams in the Penobscot River have prevented fish passage from the Gulf of Maine for centuries. To restore connectivity, the Penobscot River Restoration Trust built the largest nature-based fish bypass channel in the United States. This project will help restore Atlantic Salmon populations, and the cultural heritage of the Penobscot Nation.
Clayton County Water Authority (CCWA) has converted from spray irrigation-land application to constructed wetlands to treat municipality wastewater for Clayton County, Georgia. Constructed wetlands lower construction costs from $10 a gallon under the conventional methods to $4.73 a gallon. They also reduce land use by 75%, save energy, and reduce equipment, materials, and maintenance cost.
Clear Lake City, Texas is located south of Houston and experiences frequent flooding from hurricanes and urban runoff. After conducting an impact study on how to reduce flooding, the Clear Lake City Water Authority (CLCWA) worked to purchase a 200-acre golf course to transform it into a park and stormwater retention area.
Jackson Park, along the Lake Michigan shoreline in Chicago, Illinois is a historic park and valuable green space for the city. The park was overrun with invasive species and degraded from poor geomorphology. This project restored 16 hectares of habitat while preserving and rehabilitating the cultural history of Jackson Park.
In 2015, the Jennings County Soil and Water Conservation District launched the "Share Some Space" program to address the declining pollinator population by creating new habitats across the county. Over four and a half years, the district collaborated with local, state, and national partners to educate the public about the importance of pollinators.
Johnson Creek in Portland Oregon faces frequent nuisance flooding events due to urbanization and development-caused degradation. The city of Portland began purchasing vulnerable properties and moving people out of the floodplain, in order to begin reconnecting Johnson Creek to its floodplain and restoring wetland habitat.
The Ed Pastor Kino Environmental Restoration Project (KERP) aimed to restore natural areas by redeveloping an unlined stormwater detention basin in Tucson, Arizona. KERP covers 125 acres and includes constructed stream courses, five vegetation-lined ponds, restored native vegetation communities, flood control structures, and a recreational path.
This project aimed to restore the Lavaca Bay from being contaminated by discharged mercury from a chlorine-alkali processing unit at its Point Comfort. A staged approach to restoration was adopted with the first stage focused on recreational fishing service losses. The second stage focused on natural resource injuries and service losses of an ecological nature.
Cincinnati is one of the nation’s top five combined sewer overflow (CSO) dischargers, causing severely polluted waterways and building damage. The Lick Run Watershed hosts the Cincinnati-area's largest combined sewer and was a priority for improved stormwater management. The Lick Run Watershed Strategic Integration Plan aims to eliminate 400 million gallons of combined sewer overflow annually.
Long Beach Island, NJ is a barrier island that is heavily impacted by coastal storms and hurricanes. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the NJ Department of Environmental Protection created berms and dunes along the island with sand from an offshore borrow source to reduce flooding, erosion, and storm impacts on the island’s communities.
Shoreline erosion and habitat loss has inhibited tribal use and access to the Missouri River for the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. This project restored degraded wetland and riparian habitats along two kilometers of Lake Sharpe shoreline, and improved recreational access to the river. The Missouri River is important to the life and culture of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe.
A 1960s-era levee on the Dungeness River resulted in a straighter channel, increased water velocities, reduced habitat, and a decline in the effectiveness of the levee. This project removed part of the old levee, built a setback levee, and relocated a road bisecting the floodplain.