Coastal Dune and Saltmarsh Natives MTA
Plants and practices to restore and protect fragile coastal ecosystems

About this book:

"Coastal Dune and Saltmarsh Natives" serves as a comprehensive guide for restoring and protecting fragile coastal ecosystems through the strategic use of native plants and nature-based solutions. The book emphasizes understanding the intricate interplay between dunes and saltmarshes, highlighting their roles as biological infrastructure that captures sand, attenuates waves, stores carbon, and provides vital habitat. It systematically details the abiotic drivers shaping these environments—wind, waves, salt, and tides—and categorizes native plants into functional groups based on their ecological roles, such as pioneers, stabilizers, and soil engineers.

The text delves into practical techniques for site assessment, emphasizing the critical importance of evaluating elevation, inundation regimes, soil characteristics, and salinity gradients to inform successful plant selection and placement. It offers detailed guidance on dune stabilization through methods like sand fencing and brush bundles, followed by instruction on planting dunes effectively, including considerations for layouts, spacing, seasonality, and aftercare. Similarly, for saltmarshes, the book covers revegetation strategies tailored to tidal windows, creek edges, and panne recovery, ensuring plants are matched to their specific hydrological needs.

A significant portion of the book is dedicated to "living shorelines," presenting various typologies from vegetated-only approaches to hybrid designs incorporating low-profile structures like rock sills, coir logs, and biogenic breakwaters such as oyster reefs. It explores the suitability and siting of these solutions, linking them to wave climate, sediment supply, and regional plant palettes across Atlantic, Gulf, Pacific, and island coasts. Crucially, the book also addresses the restoration of hydrology and sediment pathways, the challenges of invasive species management and nuisance wildlife, and the importance of seed sourcing, genetic diversity, and climate-smart provenancing for long-term resilience.

Beyond the ecological and technical aspects, the book underscores the human dimensions of coastal restoration. It provides practical advice on construction logistics, safety protocols, permitting, policy navigation, and the vital role of interagency coordination. It champions community science, volunteer engagement, and stewardship models as essential for project success and long-term sustainability. The text concludes by discussing monitoring and adaptive management strategies, leveraging tools like drones and GIS, and exploring funding, costs, and the scalability of nature-based solutions through diverse case studies from urban, rural, and tribal shorelines.

What You'll Find Inside:

• How dunes and saltmarshes function as interconnected systems that jointly provide wave attenuation, sediment capture, and habitat value
• Methods for matching native plant species to specific microhabitats based on elevation gradients, salinity regimes, and hydrological conditions
• Field-tested techniques for dune stabilization (fencing, brush bundles) and saltmarsh revegetation (tidal windows, creek edge stabilization)
• Regional plant palettes and restoration considerations for Atlantic, Gulf, Pacific, and island coasts accounting for local climate and sediment dynamics
• Adaptive management frameworks including monitoring protocols, storm response strategies, and community engagement models for long-term resilience

Who's It For:

This book is designed for coastal practitioners including shoreline managers, landscape architects, agency staff, tribal natural resource personnel, and volunteer coordinators who are actively involved in dune and saltmarsh restoration projects. It provides practical, step-by-step guidance for those needing to assess sites, select appropriate native species, implement stabilization and revegetation techniques, and manage long-term stewardship of living shorelines. The content is particularly valuable for professionals working on nature-based solutions who require science-backed methods that balance ecological function with risk reduction and community engagement.