Home / Environment / Nature's Seawall: Living Shorelines Withstand Hurricane
Nature's Seawall: Living Shorelines Withstand Hurricane
5 Sep
Summary
- Living shorelines in New Smyrna Beach resisted Hurricane Matthew's force.
- Natural defenses with vegetation and sand showed minimal erosion.
- Nearby conventional structures suffered significant storm damage.
In October 2016, New Smyrna Beach, Florida, experienced the full force of Hurricane Matthew. The storm brought winds exceeding 90 miles per hour and water levels approximately four feet above normal, severely testing coastal defenses. A demonstration project employing a living shoreline approach, supported by NOAA and the St Johns River Water Management District, remarkably withstood the hurricane's impact.
This innovative project integrated natural materials such as vegetation, sand, and limited rock to stabilize the shoreline and create wildlife habitat, diverging from conventional concrete seawalls and bulkheads. Despite being directly in the path of the storm's most destructive winds, the living shoreline structures remained intact with minimal erosion, a stark contrast to nearby hardened structures, one of which lost its roof.
Further evidence of living shorelines' efficacy came from North Carolina, where the Coastal Federation reported no visible damage to examined living shorelines after Hurricane Matthew. In contrast, at least half of the hardened shorelines surveyed showed signs of damage, including sediment scouring and water overtopping. The New Smyrna Beach demonstration thus provided a compelling case for the resilience and ecological benefits of natural coastal protection methods against severe weather events.
