Environmental Concern was awarded the Walton Preserve Living Shoreline and Habitat Enhancement Project from the Town of North Beach in Calvert County. Funding for the project is the result of a $540,000 grant North Beach obtained from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (NFWF) Hurricane Sandy Coastal Resiliency Grant Program. Only 4 NFWF grants were awarded in Maryland, and 53 nationwide.
Environmental Concern will construct a Living Shoreline at the Town’s Walton Beach Nature Preserve site located between MD RT 261 and the open waters of the Chesapeake Bay (a short 8 mile boat trip from Tilghman Island on the Eastern Shore, directly across the Bay to North Beach on the Western Shore). The design will protect the 105-acre North Beach salt marsh from further erosion and prevent damage to the road. The North Beach salt marsh is also an important Black Duck stopover. The Living Shoreline will provide additional habitat for this and other important species, as well as provide numerous water quality and educational benefits.
A portion of the grant will fund the participation of approximately 600 students in the restoration process. The students will learn about the importance of wetlands while being immersed in the large-scale restoration project. Students will be active participants in an “Assistant Wetland Scientists Program” that will immerse them in the water, mud, and fun of implementing best management practices. Students will collect baseline measurements of water quality by testing physical parameters including nitrates, phosphates, salinity, pH levels and more. All of the information collected will be used to evaluate the success of the restoration project after the shoreline restoration has been completed.
The scope of the student participation in the large scale living shoreline project has the potential to become the model for future outdoor education experiences. The students will continue to visit the North Beach restored shoreline, knowing that they took part in creating a thriving habitat that will improve water quality and provide food, cover and nesting for waterfowl. They made a difference in their community – one that all residents of North Beach will benefit from.
Environmental Concern is a non-profit corporation established in 1972 that exists to promote public understanding and stewardship of wetlands with the goal of improving water quality and enhancing nature’s habitat.
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