Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Expanding The Use Of Natural And Nature-Based Infrastructure To Enhance Coastal Resiliency, Marcia Berman, Pamela Mason, Jessica Hendricks, Tamia Rudnicky

Reports

The vulnerability of coastal communities and the growing risks of coastal infrastructure continue largely due to past and ongoing patterns of development in high risk areas. This project is focused on increasing the use of natural and nature-based features (NNBFs) to increase resilience of coastal communities to flooding caused by extreme weather events.

Farm Resiliency Education For At-Risk Coastal Areas In The Chesapeake Bay, Kristen Saacke Blunk, Kristen Hughes Evans, Jennifer Miller Herzog, Julie Herman, Carl Hershner, Donna Bilkovic, Kirk J. Havens

Reports

The Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) in collaboration with its partners, the Land Trust Alliance, Sustainable Chesapeake, and The Nature Conservancy, explored and refined questions critical for advising and guiding landowners who farm within coastal areas that are vulnerable to sea level rise and saltwater intrusion, and ultimately, loss of arable cropland in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. While the questions posed are those that agricultural experts across the coastal zones are struggling with, this effort focused on identifying the current state of the science and informational gaps; building current, best professional guidance for landowner conservation program choices; and developing …

Shoreline Management Handbook, Pamela Mason, Angela King, Clay Bernick

Reports

Shoreline habitats and processes are impacted by the decisions we make about managing coastal development and shorelines. Shoreline Management is making choices to address the desire to protect upland property from erosion or develop property balanced with the benefits and uses of natural and nature-based shoreline features and shoreline habitat restoration. This requires a weighing of the private benefits and cots of management actions and the benefits and costs to public held common resources, also known as the public trust. The natural features along our shorelines -tidal wetlands, beaches and dunes, and riparian buffers, are economically and ecologically valuable. They …

Expanding The Use Of Natural And Nature-Based Infrastructure To Enhance Coastal Resiliency: Forecast And Hind-Cast Load Reductions From Living Shoreline Bmps : Project Report (Year 2 Of 3), Marcia Berman, Pamela Mason, Tamia Rudnicky

Reports

The vulnerability of coastal communities and the growing risks to coastal infrastructure continue largely due to past and ongoing patterns of development in high risk areas. This project is focused on increasing the use of natural and nature-based features (NNBFs) to increase resilience of coastal communities to flooding caused by extreme weather events. This project has proposed two efforts to increase understanding of NNBFS; 1) describe the current status, and 2) quantify role of NNBF creation/ restoration for water quality benefits in support of coastal resilience. The products of the 3-year project are intended to support informed coastal management decision-making …

Assessing Ecological And Economic Effects Of Derelict Fishing Gear: A Guiding Framework, Christopher F.G. Jeffrey, Kirk J. Havens, H. Ward Slacum Jr., Donna Marie Bilkovic, Danielle Zaveta, Andrew M. Scheld, Sean Willard, John D. Evans

Reports

Developing standardized protocols to assess the ecological and socio-economic effects of marine debris – especially, derelict fishing gear – is critical for the protection of natural resources and for evaluating policies and programs designed to reduce and remove debris. This document outlines a Derelict Fishing Gear Assessment Framework to guide the development and implementation of derelict gear assessment, management and mitigation. The framework draws from techniques and protocols developed to assess derelict crab traps effects in the Chesapeake Bay and on past derelict gear assessments either conducted by or known to the framework authors. However, this framework is generalized and …

Ecological And Economic Effects Of Derelict Fishing Gear In The Chesapeake Bay 2015/2016 Final Assessment Report, Donna M. Bilkovic, H. Ward Slacum Jr., Kirk J. Havens, Danielle Zaveta, Christopher F.G. Jeffrey, Andrew M. Scheld, David Stanhope, Kory Angstadt, John D. Evans

Reports

Derelict fishing gear represents a major challenge to marine resource management: whether through deliberate abandonment or through accidental loss, derelict traps in particular have significant negative effects both economic (e.g., reduced fishery harvest from ghost fishing and gear competition that leads to the reduced efficiency of active gear) and ecological (e.g., degraded habitats and marine food webs and crab and bycatch mortality). Throughout the Chesapeake Bay, commercial harvest of hard-shelled blue crabs is a major fishing activity: every year sees the deployment of several hundred thousand blue crab traps (known locally as crab “pots”) across the Bay, of which an …

The Dilemma Of Derelict Gear: Datasets, Andrew M. Scheld, Donna M. Bilkovic, Kirk J. Havens

Data

No abstract provided.

Biofiltration Potential Of Ribbed Mussel Populations, Donna Marie Bilkovic, Molly Mitchell

Reports

Our primary study objective was to characterize the ribbed mussel population and estimate their water processing potential along the York River, Virginia.

Composition, Distribution, And Dynamics Of Intertidal Epibiota On Coastal Defense Structures, Donna Marie Bilkovic, Molly Mitchell

Reports

Proliferation of artificial structures to protect shorelines has introduced novel habitat to most coastal environments and fragmented natural habitats. These changes can result in disrupted connectivity, habitat homogenization, and altered estuarine landscapes, with uncertain implications for estuarine and marine faunal community structure and function. In estuaries, such as Chesapeake Bay, where soft-bottom habitat dominates and rocky shorelines are rare, the introduction of artificial rocky structure may enhance recruitment of species that are limited by the availability of suitable substrate including native and introduced species (Bilkovic & Mitchell 2013). There is a significant lack of empirical data on the types of …

Rehoboth Bay, Delaware Shoreline Inventory Report Methods And Guidelines, Marcia Berman, Sharon Killeen, Carl Hershner, Karinna Nunez, Karen Reay, Kory Angstadt, Tamia Rudnicky, Dan Schatt, David Stanhope

Reports

Shoreline Situation Reports (SSR) were first generated by VIMS in the 1970's to report the condition and status of the shore lands. The SSR series were published in hardcopy on a county by county basis for each of the Tidewater Virginia localities. The reports were intended to assist planners, managers, and regulators in decisions pertaining to management of coastal areas and natural resources therein. This is the first Shoreline Inventory Report for the Rehoboth Bay section of Delaware. Data collected describes conditions in the immediate riparian zone, the bank, and along the shore. There are three shapefiles that are part …

Ecological And Erosion Protection Functions Of Chesapeake Bay Living Shorelines : Comprehensive Monitoring Of Ecological And Erosion Protection Functions Of Chesapeake Bay Living Shorelines (Cmls), Phase Ii, Donna Marie Bilkovic, Molly Mitchell

Reports

Armoring shorelines to prevent erosion, improve access, and accommodate individual landscaping interests can result in fragmentation or loss of habitats, reduction in capacity to moderate pollutant loads delivered to coastal waters, reduction in nekton and macrobenthic integrity (Bilkovic et al. 2005, King et al. 2005, Seitz et al. 2006, Bilkovic et al. 2006, Bilkovic & Roggero 2008), increases in invasive species, such as Phragmites australis (Chambers et al. 1999, King et al. 2007), and disturbance of sediment budgets sustaining adjacent properties. As an alternative to traditional armoring of shorelines, shoreline protection techniques incorporating natural elements from the system are increasingly …

Ecological And Erosion Protection Functions Of Chesapeake Bay Living Shorelines : Comprehensive Monitoring Of Ecological And Erosion Protection Functions Of Chesapeake Bay Living Shorelines (Cmls), Phase I, Donna Marie Bilkovic, Molly Mitchell

Reports

Armoring shorelines to prevent erosion, improve access, and accommodate individual landscaping interests can result in fragmentation or loss of habitats, reduction in capacity to moderate pollutant loads delivered to coastal waters, reduction in nekton and macrobenthic integrity (Bilkovic et al. 2005, King et al. 2005, Seitz et al. 2006, Bilkovic et al. 2006, Bilkovic & Roggero 2008), increases in invasive species, such as Phragmites australis (Chambers et al. 1999, King et al. 2007), and disturbance of sediment budgets sustaining adjacent properties. As an alternative to traditional armoring of shorelines, shoreline protection techniques incorporating natural elements from the system are increasingly …

Estuarine Blue Infrastructure: Priority Conservation Areas For The Seaside Of Virginia’S Eastern Shore, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

This project is an extension of earlier efforts within the coastal zone of Virginia to build a platform for enhanced Blue and Green Infrastructure planning. This project is motivated by an interest in extending statewide conservation efforts into estuarine systems and recognition that land use decisions on the upland effect water quality and habitat health in the receiving waters. The project in its entirety has been accomplished in distinct parts. Part one develops a Cumulative Resource Assessment to evaluate the distribution of aquatic natural resources within waters of Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay waters, Back Bay of Virginia Beach, Virginia, and the …

Delaware Shoreline Inventory: Appoquinimink River, Blackbird Creek, St. Jones River, Marcia Berman, Harry Berquist, Carl Hershner, Sharon Killeen, Tamia Rudnicky, Karen Reay, David Weiss

Reports

This shoreline inventory is developed as a tool for assessing conditions along primary shoreline in three watersheds that discharge into Delaware Bay. Field data were collected between September 11-13, 2007. Conditions are reported for three zones within the immediate riparian river area: riparian land use, bank and buffers, and the shoreline. A series of maps, tabular data, and GIS files are posted to a website and available electronically to serve as a resource to all managers and planners within the three watersheds. The survey provides a baseline to which future conditions can be compared and tracked through time.

Access report …

Refinement And Validation Of A Multi-Level Assessment Method For Mid-Atlantic Tidal Wetlands (Epa #Cd-973494-01), David L. O'Brien, Amy Jacobs, Marcia Berman, Tamia Rudnicky, Erin Mclaughlin, Andrew Howard

Reports

The Shoreline Inventory for Delaware Coastal Bays has occurred in a series of Phases beginning in 2005. Phase was to develop a Tidal Wetlands Protocol which included data development for the Shoreline Inventory for the Indian River Watershed.

The data inventory developed for the Shoreline Inventory is based on a three-tiered shoreline assessment approach. In most cases this assessment characterizes conditions that can be observed from a small boat navigating along the shoreline. Hand-held GPS units and GPS registered videography were used to collect data on conditions observed in the field. The three-tiered shoreline assessment approach divides the shore zone …

A Survey Of The Effectiveness Of Existing Marsh Toe Protection Structures In Virginia, Karen Duhring, Thomas A. Barnard, Center For Coastal Resources Managment, C. Scott Hardaway Jr., Shoreline Studies Program

Reports

Using tidal marshes and other vegetated treatments for upland erosion control has been an accepted practice for years, yet the scientific understanding and established guidelines for this approach are limited. This survey was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of existing marsh toe protection structures, a particular type of erosion control treatment associated with tidal marshes on Chesapeake Bay shorelines. Field evaluations were conducted at 36 sites in 6 localities on the Middle Peninsula and Northern Neck of Virginia. General dimensions of each structure were recorded and observations made of erosion evidence, structural integrity, construction access impacts, and adjacent landscape settings. …

Chowan River Basin North Carolina Riparian Shoreline Assessment Report - Report, Marcia Berman, Harry Berquist, Carl Hershner, Sharon Killeen, Karinna Nunez, Karen Reay, Tamia Rudnicky, David Weiss

Reports

The Comprehensive Coastal Inventory Program (CCI) at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has applied a protocol developed for surveying shoreline conditions in Virginia and Maryland to the tidal portion of the Chowan River basin. The protocol includes a method for collecting, classifying, mapping, and reporting conditions to assess riparian shorelines. The Chowan River Riparian Shoreline Assessment is intended to provide data to assist with land use and shoreline management. The effort on the Chowan is the first initiative in North Carolina that uses this protocol. The protocol has been applied to all tidal shoreline in Maryland and is …

Rapidan River Watershed Riparian Restoration Assessment, Friends Of The Rappahannock, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

A canoe based GPS survey was conducted of 111 miles of the Rapidan River and its major tributaries. The purpose of the survey was to collect the necessary baseline data to support the prioritization of stream reaches in the Rapidan River watershed for future streambank and/or riparian corridor restoration projects.

The data were post-processed and overlaid onto digital color orthophoto quarter quad images at a scale of 1: 12,000 (resolution = 2 meters). Areas with critical erosion and/or riparian restoration needs were prioritized based on the analyzed features.

Critical Elements In The Application Of Water Quality Standards To Wetlands : Classification System, Beneficial Use Designation And The Identification Of Exceptional Wetlands, Pamela A. Mason, Carl H. Hershner, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science. Department Of Resource Management And Policy, Wetlands Program

Reports

No abstract provided.