This week, the habitat restoration team has been at work on projects that will help create resilient shorelines along the Bay. In Warwick, we have been removing pavement at the ends of roads where they dead-end on the shoreline. Many of these roads were damaged during recent storms, or are under water at very high tides. The pavement was located in areas that would otherwise be wetland, and they provide important public access points to the shoreline. We have been able to preserve the public access paths while creating an area for stormwater to infiltrate and for plants to grow. See this article in the Warwick Beacon.
Another project has been taking place at King's Park in Newport. This pubic beach has also been eroding as sea level rises, and the park often floods during high tides and storms. Natural erosion control is being created with sand filled coconut fiber envelopes that protect the shoreline. This low-lying area of Newport, near Wellington Avenue often floods when water backs up through the storm drains and into the neighborhoods. This article in Newport This Week helps to explain the project.