Four Resiliency Projects Approved by Board of Public Works

The Board of Public Works today approved $248,480 for four Resiliency through Restoration projects, selected through a competitive solicitation, to help Maryland’s communities enhance their resiliency to the effects of climate change, erosion, flooding, and extreme weather.

In year three of the program, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources will help design four nature-based projects in four jurisdictions to demonstrate the protective benefits of natural features. Projects will include shoreline restoration, wetland enhancement, green infrastructure, and stream restoration. These approved projects will complement 12 resiliency projects already underway and expand the suite of best practices available to enhance community resiliency.

“This first-of-its-kind program demonstrates how coastal and inland communities can work in harmony with nature to prepare for the impacts of climate change,” Maryland Natural Resources Secretary Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio said. “In collaboration with local partners, we are pursuing innovative nature-based techniques to help protect Maryland’s environment, communities, and economic assets from flooding, erosion, and sea level rise.”

The following awards have been approved:

• Prince George’s County, Hyattsville – The Low Impact Development Center will design a submerged gravel wetland with climate-resilient features to reduce localized flooding, improve water quality, and help protect roadways and commercial infrastructure in a highly impervious area of Hyattsville. 
• Queen Anne’s County, Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center – The Wildfowl Trust of North America will design a thin-layer sediment placement project to enhance tidal wetlands and increase community and ecological resilience to sea level rise in Grasonville.
• St. Mary’s County, Myrtle Point Park – St. Mary’s County will design a living shoreline with climate-resilient and wetland enhancement features to address erosion and sea level rise while preserving beach access within Myrtle Point Park.
• Worcester County, Swans Gut Creek – The Maryland Coastal Bays Program will design a regenerative stream channel to reduce flood impacts to the Swans Gut Creek road and bridge while providing fish passage benefits at Big Millpond dam.

These design projects are part of a larger Resiliency through Restoration Initiative, which also supports restoration targeting, climate-resilient designs, monitoring, adaptive management, community outreach, and education.