Kyle Point 2020

Kyle Point Living Shoreline

PRE

  • A private shoreline on the Severn River in Round Bay was partially hardened with blue stone revetment and a wooden bulkhead. The remainder of the shoreline was a steep coastal bluff that was losing trees and eroding at an alarming rate.

  • The owners wanted to create a living shoreline to improve water quality, protect their property from further erosion, provide habitat, and increase their access to the water and wildlife’s access to the shoreline.

POST

  •  A unique living shoreline design was created and implemented to restore this stretch of beach back to its natural state.

  • A series of horseshoe-shaped embayments dissipate wave energy, stabilize the shoreline, and create tidal marsh, beach strand, and submerged aquatic vegetation habitat. Native building materials were used, such as sand, woodchips, cobble, and sandstone.

  • The beauty of a dynamic living shoreline is that it is able to adjust and adapt with natural changes in order to achieve true resiliency amidst rising water levels, climate change, and storms.

  • Unique critters spotted on this shoreline:

    • Horseshoe crabs

    • Diamondback terrapins

    • River otters

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STATS

Created:

  • 1,367 linear feet of living shoreline 

  • 42,486 square feet of marsh 

Removes annually:

  • 88lbs of nitrogen

  • 5lbs of phosphorus

  • 140 tons of sediment

Winchester Ravine RSC 2017

Winchester Ravine Restoration

PRE

  • The hillside on Winchester community property was obscured by thick, aggressive bamboo.

  • An obscured outfall poured neighborhood runoff into a deeply incised ditch.

  • The ditch was a persistent source of sediment-laden runoff channeling into Little Cove on Chase Creek on the north shore of the Severn River.

POST 

  • Over the course of two phases of this project, the outfall has been swapped with two RSCs (Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance) that mimic natural systems using a series of alternating pools and riffles to slow the flow of water and treat excess nutrients and sediments.

  • Healthy habitat has been created for native plants, amphibians, birds, and other wildlife. The invasive bamboo has been replaced with thriving natives, such as highbush blueberries and sweetspire.

  • A pea gravel path now leads neighbors down to the bottom of the project, where they can stop and read interpretive signs along the way and kids can catch bull frogs while exploring the pools.

  • This project showcases how stormwater management can serve a purpose beyond its original intent, providing ecological uplift and creating a community asset.

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STATS

  • The project treats runoff from an 18.26-acre watershed of which 4.38 acres are impervious

  • Each year this project removes…

    •  87.19 lbs/yr of nitrogen

    • 7.92 lbs/yr of phosphorus

    • 2,450 lbs/yr of total suspended solids

Cabin Branch Headwater RSC 2012

Cabin Branch Stream Restoration

PRE

  • The highly urbanized headwaters of Cabin Branch (Saltworks Creek) are buried under asphalt, parking lots, and the Annapolis Mall, leading to a broken downstream system.

  • Cabin Branch was a degraded stream carrying sediments, toxic contaminants, and nutrients from impervious, urbanized areas into Saltworks Creek.

  • During storms, water poured off paved surfaces into this straight, gouged stream channel, which continued to erode and become even more disconnected from its natural floodplain.

POST

  • The Regenerative Stream Channel (RSC) approach was used, which integrates ecosystem restoration with stormwater runoff. 

  • Through RSC a system of cobble riffles, berms, seepage wetlands, shallow pools, and native plants restores stream and wetland function, reconnects the stream to the floodplain, and restores historic plant communities.

  • Cabin Branch now delivers much improved water quality downstream and offers enhanced habitat for fish and amphibians, contributing to a healthier Severn River and Chesapeake Bay.

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STATS

  • 1700 linear feet restored

  • Over 2500 native species planted

  • Drainage area treated: 144 acres