Boston Harbor Eelgrass Restoration

An eelgrass restoration program implemented by the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries aimed to mitigate assumed impacts to marine resources resulting from the HubLine gas pipeline construction which transits the Harbor. The restoration was intended to provide important shallow-water eelgrass habitat to juvenile crustaceans, shellfish, and finfish which commonly inhabit sea grass meadows. In 2005, over 21,000 shoots were planted using hand planting and PVC/jute frames. While hand planting was the primary method, frame planting offered additional community education opportunities during volunteer involvement. However, a lack of organic loading in some areas made them less suitable for eelgrass growth, leading to less successful shoot establishment.