US Army Corps of Engineers

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U.S. Army Corps of EngineersMobile District

General Permit for Living Shorelinesin Alabama and Mississippi

Sandy P. Gibson

Project Manager, Coastal Alabama

Regulatory Division, Mobile District

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Living Shoreline General PermitAuthority: Sections 10 and 404

Benefits of a Living Shoreline:

- Restoration and creation of valuable Essential Fishery Habitat

-Creates a natural buffer that absorbs wave energy and reduces erosion while maintaining natural shoreline dynamics

- Can be applied across a range of inland and coastal habitats or ecoregions

- Preserve, create, or maintains habitat for aquatic and terrestrial species.

- Serve as a storage cells for floodwaters and reduces storm surge

- Restore and enhance critical feeding and nursery habitat for finfish and shellfish.

- Enhances water quality by trapping and filtering surface runoff of pollutants.

- Provides aesthetic values by enhanced landscaping

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Living Shoreline General PermitAuthority: Sections 10 and 404

Purpose of the LSGP :

Promoting Preservation and Restoration of :

Dunes Protection and propagation of essential fish habitat

Beaches Submerged aquatic vegetation

Wetlands Shoreline restoration and nourishment

Threatened and Endangered Estuarine and Freshwater Species Critical Habitat Marshes

Note: This LSGP cannot be used for large beach restoration projects such as Dauphin Island. Gulf Shores, Orange Beach beaches.

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Protection locations may extend from the existing shoreline at

Mean High Water (Tide) or Ordinary High Water and extend water-ward.

Project Authorizations are dependent upon:

- Site-specific Conditions (i.e., wave action, velocity, substrate, elevation, habitat, landscape position)

- Project purpose and need (if possible, leave the shoreline alone)

- Coordination and approval from other jurisdictional agencies (ADCNR, USFWS, NMFS).

- Other special considerations (i.e., breeding or nesting season, etc.)

Living Shoreline General Permit

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Living Shoreline General Permit

Protection fronting Wetlands and Sensitive Habitats:

- No fill will be placed in wetland areas;

- Normal hydrologic regime to be maintained in wetland areas

- Matching wetland elevations: If scarping has occurred due to scour or scalloping, fill discharges limited to minimum necessary to achieve adjacent wetland elevation.

- Gaps in breakwaters: Detached breakwaters should contain an appropriate number of gaps to ensure adequate tidal flushing and shoreline habitat access for marine and terrestrial organisms.

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Types of Protection should be selected based upon a minimalistic approach - limited in size but adequate enough for protection and take into account natural sediment transport processes. **Mississippi has a drafted 0.25-acre limit to water bottom fill within the Mississippi Sound due to its designation as Gulf Sturgeon Critical Habitat (GSCH). A sliver of GSCH also exists in Alabama, west of Dauphin Island.

Material Considerations:- Natural Materials (i.e, root balls, logs, cut brush or biodegradable products)- Oyster Shell and Oyster Shell Support Structures (i.e., bagged shells, reef balls and/or cradles for stability- Concrete- Riprap

Living Shoreline General Permit

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Special Conditions address items including:

- State Water Quality and Coastal Zone consistency- State Historic Preservation Office Coordination- ADCNR-State Lands Division Coordination- Riparian Use and Ownership of Accreted Areas- Conditions for Threatened and Endangered Species- Markers and Signage - Submerged Aquatic Vegetation- Compliance Monitoring- Implement and maintain best management practices during construction.

Living Shoreline General Permit

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- Exclusions:

- Fill in wetlands including bottomland hardwoods;

- Solid structures roughly perpendicular to the shore or bank;

- Activities which result in or for purpose of land reclamation;

- Activities which creates a hazard to navigation; and

- Loose or bagged oyster shell unless project area approved by the Alabama Department of Public Health.

Living Shoreline General Permit

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Private Property OwnerWeeks Bay

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Coffee Island Northeast shoreline - Photo © Mary Kate Stubljar/The Nature Conservancy

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Swift Tract Eroded Shoreline - Photo © Mary Kate Stubljar/The Nature

Conservancy

Challenges:

What works and what doesn’t?

Natural Shoreline Accretion and Waterbottom Ownership

Habitat-specific Plant Stock and

Species Lists

Sediment Transport Processes

Biological and Chemical Monitoring

Education Outreach

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CURRENT STATUS

- WQ and CZM certification has been issued.

- Final Permit language and Decision Documents are being finalized.

- Date for Issuance in Alabama: 1 October 2011

Living Shoreline General Permit

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Superior Public Service Moving Forward

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QUESTIONS?

Corps HQ: http://www.usace.army.mil/inet/functions/cw/cecwo/reg

District Guidance and Access to Program InformationMobile District:

http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/RD/reg

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