![]() The Living Shorelines Decision Support Tool for Casco Bay map viewer provides generalized information regarding the potential suitability of living shoreline approaches for sections of shoreline in Casco Bay, Maine. ![]() Living Shorelines Decision Support Tool for Casco Bay This page, which will evolve as additional resources are developed, is meant to share some of the projects and resources which have been undertaken by the State in efforts to further coastal resiliency through the use of living shorelines. Although this technique may protect property, it can exacerbate erosion on neighboring properties, and over time, can result in loss of protected resources such as marshes and mudflats due to storms and sea level rise.Īs a result, there has been an increased interest by the State and many Maine municipalities to explore employing living shoreline techniques, especially in coastal bluff environments, to help curtail erosion while still maintaining the natural continuity of the land-water interface and providing habitat value. These areas have seen large amounts of development over the past few decades, and an increasing percentage of them have been stabilized by traditional shoreline engineering methods such as installing rip-rap. A large majority of Maine’s coast, approximately 40%, is made up of unconsolidated, erodible bluffs. However, Maine’s sandy beaches only account for about 2% of Maine’s overall coastal shoreline. Living shoreline techniques have also been employed along Maine’s sandy beach and dune environments in the forms of dune restoration, construction, and beach nourishment through the beneficial reuse of dredged materials, usually from the dredging of a federal harbor. In the past few decades, the majority of Maine’s experience with designing, permitting, and constructing “living shorelines” has been related to stream restoration activities, most notably beneficially reusing woody debris and rocks. *Definition adapted from NOAA’s Guidance for Considering the Use of Living Shorelines (2015) maintains continuity of the natural land–water interface and reduce erosion while providing habitat value and enhancing coastal resilience.oyster reefs or rock sills) for added stability and incorporates vegetation or other living, natural “soft” elements alone or in combination with some type of harder shoreline structure (e.g.has a footprint that is made up mostly of native material.Living shoreline* is a broad term that encompasses a range of shoreline stabilization techniques along estuarine coasts, bays, sheltered coastlines, and tributaries.
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