Avalon Living-Shoreline Gets $1M For Bay Protection

The borough has received a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation $1 million grant to support the creation of a living shoreline at its Bay Park Marina.

(Search All Cape May County Listings Here!)

The nature-based shoreline project will be part of a comprehensive rejuvenation project at the marina that will include other resiliency and sustainability efforts.

Mayor John McCorristin said the borough appreciates “the confidence of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to create a living shoreline at Bay Park Marina.” He added that coastal communities need to explore both “structural and natural components to resiliency efforts.”

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration defines a living shoreline as “a protected, stabilized coastal edge made of natural materials such as plants, sand or rock. Unlike a concrete seawall or other hard structure, which impede the growth of plants and animals, living shorelines grow over time.”

NOAA considers such shorelines as “an innovative and cost-effective technique for coastal management.”

The Fish and Wildlife Foundation and NOAA announced $139 million in grants to support nature-based solutions for coastal management in 31 states. The Avalon grant was one of four awarded in New Jersey. It requires the borough to provide matching funds for the amount of grant funds used.

The project will result in 750 feet of vegetated shoreline at the marina. It is part of the efforts included in the marina project that aim at reducing sunny-day flood inundation in the neighborhood. The borough hopes that project will serve as a model effort for other living shoreline projects in the region.