"Government and private partnerships are absolutely essential to achieving sustainable development of
ecosystems at a regional level."
Keith Laughlin
Executive Director, President Council on Sustainable Development
Coastal America Northeast Regional Principals Meeting
September 1996
II. STRENGTHENING REGIONAL EFFORTS
Coastal America's nine Regional Implementation Teams (RITs) are composed of regional representatives from the partnership agencies who collaboratively develop site-specific, watershed-focused proposals which are enhanced through the partnership process. The RITs develop regional action strategies designed to define major ecological issues, special focus areas, goals and objectives within each region. Within the framework of each regional strategy, site-specific coastal projects addressing such issues as habitat loss and nonpoint source pollution are identified and planned. Finally, each RIT establishes priorities for project implementation.
The collaborative efforts of the RITs led to the initiation of more than 190 projects throughout the country involving at least 300 nonfederal sponsors. The ability of RITs to combine program talents and resources has led to innovative solutions, a greater focus on collaborative program direction, and timely project implementation. The value of the Coastal America process can be described along five major themes: The Partnership Process; Public Involvement/Education; Technology Transfer; A System's Approach; and Adaptive Management and Monitoring.
- The Partnership Process: By combining resources and authorities, Coastal America partners have been able to collectively accomplish tasks that no single organization could accomplish alone. For example, the use of military training exercises as a means to restore habitat was a key to success in several submerged aquatic vegetation restoration projects.
- Public Involvement/Education: Recognizing that the active involvement of the public increases their environmental awareness and leads to positive action, the first two Coastal Ecosystem Learning Centers have been designated at the New England Aquarium in Boston and the Florida Aquarium in Tampa.
- Technology Transfer: Coastal America has successfully demonstrated proven technologies and has encouraged their utilization in various regions of the country. The use of dredge material as fill and the breaching of existing levees was successful in restoring wetlands in the Sonoma Baylands of California and is now being considered for the nearby Hamilton Army Air Field.
- A System Approach: The partnership has demonstrated how a broad regional issue can be addressed at the local level. For example, the Northeast RIT's primary goal is to restore ecological productivity to coastal wetlands throughout the region. Surveys of the location and cause of degraded wetlands throughout the region have resulted in a series of local wetland restoration projects such as Little River Salt Marsh Restoration, Connecticut.
- Adaptive Management and Monitoring: Through experiences, the RITs have found that evaluating what does and does not work is critical to ensuring successful efforts in the future. In the Jim Creek project in Washington, salmon released from the hatchery were tagged before they were released so that the projects success could be monitored. In the Galilee, Rhode Island project, prerestoration model predictions of salt marsh restoration are being refined by post construction monitoring.
The following sections highlight the regional strategies, specific projects and some of the lessons learned from Coastal America's partnership efforts at the regional level.
Coastal America Regions
Northeast | Mid-Atlantic | Southeast | Gulf of Mexico | Southwest | Northwest | Great Lakes | Alaska
"The Galilee salt marsh restoration project shows how environmental goals can be realized in concert with sustainable economic development objectives."
Governor Lincoln Almond
State of Rhode Island
Galilee Salt Marsh Project Event
October 1996
NORTHEAST
In an effort to increase awareness of the critical coastal problems in the region, the Northeast RIT is working to improve the understanding of coastal issues at all levels. To better inform the public, the RIT has joined forces with the New England Aquarium to create the first Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center. In addition, a meeting of the region's environmental leaders was held to better understand the problems of the area and determine how to work together to solve the most critical of these problems.
The Northeast RIT believes that restoring ecological productivity to habitat such as salt marshes is the single most important restoration initiative in New England. The Galilee wetland project was one of the first projects developed in the Northeast RIT. A ceremony to celebrate the initiation of construction was held on October 15, 1996. This project, together with the following projects, demonstrates the importance of working together to better understand the problem of habitat degradation so that more timely and cost-effective solutions can be found.
Navy Research and Development Eelgrass Project
During the Summer of 1996 an investigation on eelgrass was carried out in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. Partners in the project included the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management's Narragansett Bay National Estuary Program. Sonar and other remote sensing equipment was used to image several areas. Ground truth referencing was done by the Navy dive team. Techniques developed through this project will be used to better plan and implement future coastal restoration and protection efforts by allowing submerged aquatic vegetation to be more readily identified.
Little River Salt Marsh Restoration
One Coastal America project that has benefited from the Northeast RITs previous studies is located in New Haven, Connecticut, on the Little River. The earlier RIT study determined the location of salt marshes degraded by roadway and railbed construction along the Eastern Connecticut coast, and evaluated the impacts. Old culvert design was found to be the primary cause of wetland degradation at the Little River Salt Marsh Restoration project site.
The project was initiated this spring when the city of New Haven reported to the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Office of the Long Island Sound Program (OLISP) that several culverts had collapsed and were causing back flooding. Because the Coastal America study had pinpointed the cause of wetland degradation, OLISP agreed to provide supplemental funding from the Coves and Embayment Restoration Fund to increase the number of culverts to eliminate the tidal restriction, reduce flooding and restore several hundred acres of adjacent wetlands. These restored wetlands will enhance wildlife habitat especially for shellfish. DEP's Fisheries Division also provided guidance on a design to facilitate fish passage by anadromous finfish. Permits were issued for the work and the old culverts have been removed. The new culverts will soon be installed by DEP's Wetlands Restoration Team.
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MID-ATLANTIC
Region-wide, the Mid-Atlantic RIT seeks to promote opportunities among federal agencies that cut across traditional institutional barriers to accomplish projects that promote environmental stewardship, sustainable development and infrastructure enhancement. An area of focus is creating opportunities to assist urban communities with the resolution of environmental issues affecting their redevelopment. The Mid-Atlantic RIT is also engaging in forums to match federal programming with local community needs and provide agency support and project endorsement.
Glen Cove Waterfront Revitalization Project
The town of Glen Cove, New York is a waterfront community located on Long Island, with many of the same aging urban waterfront problems that exist in hundreds of coastal towns around the country. Some of Glen Cove's issues include a harbor-side superfund site, a bankrupt "half-built" condominium, a recently-closed waterfront incinerator, urban runoff, and excess sedimentation. The town has developed an impressive revitalization plan, taking advantage of the opportunities and amenities at hand such as a marina that is actively used by lobster fishermen, and public property available for development. The plan's implementation would turn the harbor into an exciting destination with public access to the water, a proposed museum, and cleaner air, land and water. The Mid-Atlantic RIT began discussions with the Mayor of Glen Cove, officials of New York's Coastal Management Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management to determine potential opportunities for federal assistance for this community's economic and waterfront redevelopment goals. Team members in the New York region will investigate the potential for funding and program support focused on watershed planning, contaminated cleanup, waterfront access and sustainable development.
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SOUTHEAST
Over the last five years, the Southeast RIT has focused considerable effort on sharing information and building networks of communication among the partners. This year, the RIT created a homepage on the National Marine Fisheries Service, SE Region's WEB site, co-sponsored Coastal America's annual retreat, and developed a project database. The spirit of cooperation created by this increased communication has resulted in a series of successful projects, including a project to remove the invasive Brazilian Pepper plants and replant native mangroves in Florida.
Munyon Island Restoration Update
The Munyon Island Restoration project involves the removal and recontouring of dredged material placed on the island during construction of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway to restore about 11 acres of shallow water mangrove habitat. Combined with restoration projects on the island completed by Palm Beach County, the total acreage of restored habitat on Munyon Island will be approximately 22 acres. Excess material removed from the island during the current project is being used to fill an anoxic submerged borrow site to restore another 9 acres of protective shallow water habitat. Construction began with the ground breaking ceremony on October 28, 1996, and is expected to be completed in the Spring of 1997. Successful implementation of this project has resulted in a proposal for a similar partnership project for habitat restoration on nearby Peanut Island.
Pepperbusters/Johnny Mangrove Seed Project
The Pepperbusters/Johnny Mangrove Seed Project is an effort to remove the invasive Brazilian pepper and replant native mangroves in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida. Volunteers organized by the Marine Resources Council of East Florida are working to reestablish functioning mangrove and salt marsh communities. The goal is to improve fisheries production, water quality and biodiversity. Rather than a simple tree planting exercise, the project will establish habitat for fish and wildlife, and protect seagrass habitat. Mangroves, seagrasses and emergent wetlands provide the bulk of the fisheries habitat for estuarine species and nearly 80 percent of the commercial fish caught offshore utilize these habitats.
The experience gained from these operations will be used to develop a shoreline ecosystem restoration manual for use by volunteer groups. The National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Habitat Conservation, has provided funding for the planting effort and for the development of materials for training volunteers for similar projects throughout Florida.
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"Having access to resources from federal agencies will boost our environmental education efforts and help us spread the word about the value of coastal ecosystems."
John C. Racanelli, President, The Florida Aquarium
The Florida Aquarium Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center Designation Ceremony
November 8, 1996
GULF OF MEXICO
The Gulf of Mexico region has over 16,000 square miles of wetlands and one of the most productive fisheries in the nation, however, this vital resource is threatened by both natural and human alterations. As a result, the Gulf of Mexico RIT has made addressing the following critical problems a priority: habitat degradation, coastal and shoreline erosion, nutrient enrichment and pollution, freshwater diversions and alterations, and decline in living aquatic resources. To further the knowledge of the public's general understanding of these problems, the RIT designated the Florida Aquarium as a Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center.
Florida Aquarium Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center
The Florida Aquarium in Tampa, Florida, was designated as the second Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center in a ceremony held on November 8, 1996. The designation and future cooperation between Coastal America's federal partners and the aquarium will provide the facility with valuable educational resources designed to increase the public's understanding and appreciation of coastal and marine issues. Keynote speakers at the designation ceremony included John C. Racanelli, President of the Florida Aquarium; Martin Lancaster, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works; Tampa's Mayor Dick Greco; and Senator Bob Graham. Following the keynoted speeches, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed and a designation certificate and bronze plaque were presented to Mr. Racanelli. Coastal America's federal partners demonstrated their commitment to the aquarium by giving token gifts such as posters and educational publications, and pledged future support including educational materials and technical expertise.
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SOUTHWEST
California has lost nearly 90 percent of its wetlands. The Southwest RIT's number one priority is the preservation of the remaining 10 percent and the restoration of other wetlands habitat found in the region. The Southwest RITs top two projects will contribute to achieving its strategic objective of restoring the regions wetlands.
Prospect Island Restoration
The Prospect Island Restoration project will restore approximately 1300 acres of wetlands, riparian and upland habitats thereby enhancing conditions for fish and wildlife. The restoration objectives will be reached by constructing interior islands within Prospect Island, stabilizing the surrounding levees and interior islands with biotechnical plantings and hydroseeding above the tide line. The levee will then be breached, restoring full tidal action to the site. The interior's lands will be constructed so that upland, riparian and protected riverine aquatic, marsh, and mudflat habitats will grow at appropriate tidal elevations. Given that only 4 percent of the Sacramento Delta's original wetlands remain; this project will increase these wetlands to 9 percent. The project received initial funding in July 1996. Partners in this $5 million project include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Interior, the Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the CalFed Bay-Delta Program. An additional $1.25 million has been put in an endowment to cover maintenance costs. Construction is scheduled to begin in 1998.
Hamilton Army Airfield Restoration Update
The Hamilton Army Airfield Restoration project will restore approximately 700 acres of previously diked historic tidal salt marsh to create a diverse array of wetland and wildlife habitats. The restoration will benefit a number of endangered species as well as migratory and resident species. The project is still in the formative stages, and the site is in the process of being disposed by the Department of the Army under the Base Realignment and Closure Act. The California Coastal Conservancy is providing funds for studying the feasibility of using dredged material to sequester contaminated soils and to provide a substrate for restoring the wetlands. Alternatives, including a plan to use natural sedimentation by breaching the levee and capping the runways to develop wetlands more rapidly, are being considered.
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"This first return represents a good cooperative effort toward rebuilding Coho Salmon runs in the Stillaguamish watershed. The Stillaguamish Tribe appreciates the Navy's efforts through the Coastal America Partnership in support of this fisheries enhancement project"
Kip Killebrew, Stillaguamish Tribal Fisheries Biologist
October 1996
NORTHWEST
The Northwest region of the country is currently struggling with a multitude of complex environmental issues covering a broad geographic area that encompasses very large and ecologically diverse watersheds. These complex issues made it necessary to have a large number of mandated interagency coordinating groups in the region to address regulatory environmental and developmental conflicts. The Northwest RIT is working with these groups to address important natural resource issues. The unique value of the Coastal America partnership is the spirit of voluntary cooperation that results in action. The Jim Creek Project clearly demonstrates how voluntary interagency cooperation is successfully creating a solution to one of the areas most critical problems, the restoration of salmon runs.
Jim Creek Project Update
The Coastal America sponsored fish hatchery at the Naval Radio Station, Jim Creek, Washington, has produced its first return spawning run. The Fall 1996 coho salmon spawning run included adult spawners that were raised at the hatchery and released in December 1993 for their run to the ocean. They returned on schedule and spawned in the creek, within 50 feet of where they were raised and released three years ago. The fish can be identified as coming from the hatchery by their clipped adipose fins and a small stainless steel wire segments embedded in the cartilaginous portion of the fish's nose. The small wire is coded with a series of scratches that identify the hatchery, batch of fish, species and year of release. The success of the salmon run is in large measure due to the volunteer partnership efforts to restore the watershed, thus ensuring the successful migration of the salmon from the mountain stream to the sea and back. Partners in the project include the State of Washington, the Stillaguamish Tribe, Trout Unlimited, and the Student Conservation Association of America.
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GREAT LAKES
The Great Lakes have a wide variety of problems such as nonpoint source pollution, contaminated sediments, exotic species invasion, and wetland habitat loss due to filling, development, high lake levels, coastal erosion and sedimentation. Like the Northwest region, the Great Lakes region has a large number of interagency coordinating groups to address these problems. The Great Lakes RIT works with these other coordinating groups and attempts to identify mutually compatible goals and objectives that could lead to collaborative activities.
Cat island Chain Restoration
Historically, the Cat Island chain had an average width of about 500 feet and extended northwest to southeast for approximately one and a half miles on the west side of Green Bay, Wisconsin. High lake levels in the mid-1980s to 90s resulted in the erosion of Cat Island. Today there is only one small island remnant, 400-foot diameter, above water. The island chain once protected leeside coastal wetlands from storm waves, ice damage and sediment resuspension.
In 1996, a study was initiated to investigate the potential for using harbor dredged material from the Lower Fox River and the Green Bay Harbor to restore the Cat Island archipelago, and reestablish beds of submerged aquatic vegetation. The dredged material would be held in place by berms, the submerged portion of which would provide solid surfaces suitable for benthic invertebrates, fish spawning, and rooting of wetland plants. The islands and wetlands to be restored by the project will be more productive and have greater species diversity than the existing habitat.
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"While Barneby's milkvetch does not symbolize all the ideals of the Air Force's environmental program it does give us the opportunity to illustrate that with the expertise of others, in partnership, the Air Force is ready to plan our activities, undertake operations, do environmental clean-up and remediation, as well as decrease federal spending and remove health and safety hazards...We hope this action, along with past cooperation with the local and state agencies, enhances the quality of life for the community."
Lieutenant Colonel Denny Willeck
US Air Force
Ceremony to sign Conservation Agreement on Barneby's Milkvetch
April 16, 1996
ALASKA
The current focus of the Alaska RIT's strategy is the restoration of critical habitat. In the past, several of the Alaska RIT's projects have involved the use of native plant species in restoration efforts. The Kenai River project used grasses and willows to help stabilize the shoreline of the river. Another project inventoried present and past biotic communities at two remote Air Force sites in the arctic coastal tundra to identify a group of plant species that may be suitable for revegetation efforts at other arctic coastal sites. In 1996, a Conservation Agreement was signed among several of Coastal America's federal partners to preserve and protect a rare plant species native to Alaska.
Barneby's Milkvetch Conservation Agreement and Program
The Alaska RIT endorsed a cooperative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the U.S. Air Force (USAF) to protect and conserve a rare plant species, Barneby's Milkvetch. The first phase of this effort will be implemented through a Conservation Agreement, the first ever among federal agencies in Alaska, and combine the expertise of four agencies: USFWS, USAF, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the Alaska Department of Natural Resources Plant Material Center. The Alaska Plant Materials Center has also developed a program to produce seeds and seedlings to be planted in 1997.
As a result of the agreement, USFWS and the BLM mapped the population, and were able to transplant over 100 plants prior to asbestos removal and building demolition at the Air Force base. This agreement has led to excellent coordination between the USFWS and the USAF, and the signing of an additional agreement for the protection development and management of vegetation at other Air Force installations in Alaska.
