Erosion and disappearing habitats along our coastlines can impact nearshore and offshore habitats. Living shorelines can help reduce these impacts by stabilizing the coastal edge and enhancing fisheries’ biodiversity. Project Greenshores in Pensacola Bay, Florida, is being used as a model in a new interactive website created by Dauphin Island Sea Lab’s Dr. Ron Baker’s lab to demonstrate how living shorelines work.

Project Greenshores began in the early 2000s to restore oyster reefs and create new salt marsh and seagrass habitats along Pensacola Bay. The project has created 50 acres of oyster reef and marsh habitat to date. Dr. Baker and his team dissect the project to show the habitats created and the fisheries’ biodiversity it supports.

“We created the website to help people understand the value of our coastal habitats and how living shorelines can help to restore and enhance the habitat,” Dr. Ron Baker explained.

Living shorelines are dynamic and include a variety of structures made from natural materials. Marsh grass helps to hold the sediment in place and create a habitat, oyster reefs also create a habitat, and breakwaters help to decrease the wave action along these areas to protect the habitats created.

The website outlines each item, with videos used to survey and monitor the area. It also includes a reference guide to the fish species that can be spotted in the area.

The website was built with a grant from the Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary Program. Click here to learn more about Project Greenshores and the benefits of a living shoreline.