Living Shorelines
Living shorelines help protect shorelines from erosion and provide habitat for marine life.
Living shorelines prevent erosion and protect shorelines using natural materials, like oysters or vegetation. They mimic the natural environment, stabilizing the banks of tidal creeks and shorelines while providing habitat and improving water quality. They offer an alternative to hardened structures, like bulkheads or revetments, that disrupt the natural connection between the water and upland areas.
In Georgia, living shorelines consist of recycled oyster shells or flexible concrete material that is placed on the bank. The material attracts oyster larvae, which settle and create a living oyster reef that helps stabilize the shoreline. The upper portion of living shorelines are planted with smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), the dominant salt marsh species in Georgia, as well as other types of native vegetation. These plants have extensive roots that help stabilize the shoreline by holding sediment in place.
Georgia’s Living Shoreline Work Group, which includes project managers, experts, practitioners, researchers, resource managers, conservationists and state and federal agencies have worked together to study living shorelines as an alternative way to protect property and provide habitat for marine life and wildlife.
Explore some of the living shoreline sites on the Georgia coast below to learn more!
Ashantilly Living Shoreline, Sapelo Island
The Ashantilly living shoreline on Sapelo was funded by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and SINERR. Oyster bags and native plants were installed in 2010 with the goal of stabilizing areas where the stream bank was eroding. The shoreline was updated in 2022 using Flexamat®, which are flexible concrete block mats that stabilize the shoreline. The material supports oyster and vegetation growth.
Mosquito Creek Living Shoreline, Little St. Simons Island
Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant, in partnership with GA DNR Coastal Resources Division, The Nature Conservancy, Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve and Little St. Simons Island, LLC, established a living shoreline on Little St. Simons Island. The project was funded in part by a grant from the Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership NOAA Community Based Restoration Grant Program and by Little St. Simons Island, LLC. The project goal was to remove a failing bulkhead and use oyster shells to stabilize the creek bank.
Burton 4-H Center Living Shoreline, Tybee Island
Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant completed the construction and installation of the base layer for a living shoreline project at the Burton 4-H Center on Tybee Island, a project partially funded by a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant. The goals of this project were to stabilize an eroding bank at the Burton 4-H Center and increase the amount of oyster and marsh habitat in Horse Pen Creek.
Skidaway Island State Park Living Shoreline
This shoreline project encompasses 110 linear feet across from Sandpiper Trail. Bags containing recycled oyster shells and native plants were implemented to stabilize the bank and alleviate stormwater runoff.
Georgia DNR Coastal Resources Headquarters Living Shoreline, Brunswick
A wooden bulkhead was replaced at this 160 linear foot location. Four sections were marked to show examples of different methods and materials of creating a living shoreline, including native vegetation, a stone infiltration trench, erosion control mats and straw jute nets.
Property Living Shoreline, Tolomato Island
In 2021, Flexamat® was placed on a private property’s 95-linear foot shoreline along a tidal creek. Other materials included the granite rip rap toe, native vegetation, and 2-inch galvanized pipe used as the deadman anchor. Oysters have successfully grown along the foot of the living shoreline and there is substantial vegetation growth in the upper portion of the shoreline.
Living Shoreline Resources
Various site characteristics are incorporated in the design, construction, evaluation and maintenance of shoreline stabilization projects.
For those in learning more about living shorelines as an erosion control method on your estuarine shoreline property, you can contact the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Coastal Resources Division for technical assistance and regulatory guidance. Visit GA DNR’s website for more information https://coastalgadnr.org/LivingShorelines.