Improving the overall quality of marsh habitats after decades of disruption

Alabama Connecting Coastal Waters Post-Construction Restoration Monitoring

The Fish River marsh at the Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) is a highly productive estuarine system. However, the existing salt marsh habitats are interspersed with canals that were dredged in the late 1960s and early 1970s that do not allow adequate water exchange. This causes stagnant water in the uppermost portion of the canals, leading to low dissolved oxygen levels that reduce the value of the habitat.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Habitat Conservation set out to restore existing marsh habitats, increase sheet flow and tidal flushing, and encourage natural vegetation colonization after restoration efforts thereby improving the overall quality of the marsh habitat. As part of a joint venture with Baird & Associates, team members from our Pensacola and Mobile offices are working alongside Moffatt & Nichol to conduct two years of post-construction vegetative and hydrologic monitoring.

Our team was responsible for leading the marsh vegetation monitoring component of the project and for compiling annual monitoring results into a single, comprehensive report. This includes integrating our vegetation monitoring methods and findings with the hydrological monitoring methods and results provided by Moffatt & Nichol. One consolidated report is produced for each year of monitoring to enable a clear, integrated assessment and to quantify and qualify overall progress toward meeting the project’s objectives. Construction efforts included backfilling the old canals with on-site material to improve water flow and restore 50 acres of marsh habitat.

The NERR functions as an important nursery for commercially and recreationally valuable finfish and shellfish, as well as other marine and terrestrial wildlife. Restoration efforts like this are helping enhance and preserve these vital ecosystems.