This project, implemented by the NC Division of Water Quality and NC Division of Forest Resources, aimed to reduce nitrogen and mercury loading of downstream waters in the Albemarle/Palmico estuary system by restoring wetland hydrology and native bog vegetation to a 640-acre research area. Activities included installation of water-control structures and replanting 100,000 trees.

Brunswick Town–Fort Anderson is an important historic site on the North Carolina coast. To prevent further erosion and negative impacts from storms and sea-level rise, the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources installed 140-meters of Reefmaker along the shoreline. This stabilized the shoreline and produces multiple co-benefits.  

Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, near Jacksonville, North Carolina contains over 2600 acres of coastal wetlands that are at risk of drowning due to sea-level rise, low elevation, and limited sediment supply. This project served as an experiment to determine viability of thin-layer placement for marsh restoration in similar locations.  

The North Carolina Coastal Federation created the state’s first living shoreline at a freshwater, high-energy site. This living shoreline replaced a failing bulkhead, and provided the state with important information on freshwater living shorelines, sources of erosion, and stormwater management practices. The project owes some of its success to being small, non-controversial, and well-designed.  

The Great Dismal Swamp, a 45,000-ha state and federally protected Coastal Plain peatland located on the border of North Carolina and Virginia, was degraded after centuries of drainage and logging. To restore its ecosystem structure and function, US FWS installed two adjustable water control structures (WCS).

Masonboro Island, NC contains a back barrier tidal marsh that is unable to maintain a healthy elevation as sea-level rises. This project examined the effect of placing dredged material on the microtidal marsh environment. Thin-layer placement increased stem densities and can be used to mitigate effects of degrading marshes. 

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. 

North Carolina Highway 24 is located between multiple waterways and is vulnerable to sea-level rise, storm surges, and coastal erosion. The NC Department of Transportation opted for nature-based solutions over traditional repairs. This project constructed 260 meters of living shoreline, comprised of granite rock and oyster reef structures and a 0.1-hectare salt marsh. 

The city of Kinston, North Carolina experienced devastating flood losses in the 1990s. After a string of three hurricanes flooded or damaged over 75% of homes in Lenoir county, Kinston took action to improve flood resiliency. The city purchased flood-prone properties and relocated neighborhoods to higher ground. This restored natural floodplain functions. 

Five years after the Allen Road Fire, the U.S. government established the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in the North Carolina cost to restore the ditched, dried, and burned peatlands and convert them back into carbon sinks. Refuge managers are working in a 19-year effort to construct an equally ingenious hydrologic system.