12 Dec 2024

Restoration Monitoring Metric Framework: Integrating Innovative Remote-Sensing Technologies: Comparisons between Field and Remotely Sensed Vegetation Surveys of Restored Forested and Grassland Sites in Ohio

Abstract: Restoration monitoring is generally perceived as costly and time-consuming, yet the concept of universal restoration monitoring metrics is trending for evaluation of restoration performance across spatial scales, project boundaries, and jurisdictions. Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) practitioners seek to restore natural resources injured by oil spills or hazardous substance releases into the environment. Therefore, a multiagency team [US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), US Department of the Interior (DOI), and US Department of Energy (DOE)] developed and field-tested a multitiered monitoring framework, illustrating a range of field and remote-sensing techniques and methodologies. The restoration monitoring framework and field demonstration offer a unique methodology to acquire and evaluate simultaneously collected, multiscale/multiplatform data. The result of this research provides new insights to (1) assist planning, implementing, and monitoring restoration progress and effectiveness; and (2) apply common monitoring methods, endpoints, and metrics to other types of ecosystem restoration initiatives. Although the aim was to inform monitoring and management of areas that had been injured, these methods could also be used to inform restoration monitoring practices in a broader context, benefiting environmental stewardship missions of all project partners.

17 Aug 2022

Evaluation of Methods for Monitoring Herbaceous Vegetation

Abstract: This special report seeks to advance the field of ecological restoration by reviewing selected reports on the processes, procedures, and protocols associated with monitoring of ecological restoration projects. Specifically, this report identifies selected published herbaceous vegetation monitoring protocols at the national, regional, and local levels and then evaluates the recommended sampling design and methods from these identified protocols. Finally, the report analyzes the sampling designs and methods in the context of monitoring restored herbaceous vegetation at US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) ecosystem restoration sites. By providing this information and the accompanying analyses in one document, this special report aids the current effort to standardize data-collection methods in monitoring ecosystem restoration projects.

1 Oct 2020

Documenting Engineering with Nature® Implementation within the US Army Corps of Engineers Baltimore District – Completed Projects and Opportunities for Chronosequence Analysis

Purpose:  The following documents the beneficial use of dredged materials in a subset of shallow draft navigation projects conducted by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Baltimore District between 1904 and 2016. The available data demonstrates (1) the expansion of beneficial uses of dredged materials over time incorporating Engineering With Nature® (EWN) approaches and (2) provides baseline information supporting chronosequence studies of habitat restoration/creation trajectories designed to evaluate project success.

9 Jul 2020

PUBLICATION NOTICE: Hydrodynamics of a Recently Restored Coastal Wetland: Hamilton Wetlands, California

Abstract: Hamilton Wetlands is a recently restored tidally influenced basin located along the northwest coast of San Pablo Bay, California. Instruments to measure waves, currents, and wind were deployed for a period of up to 2 years shortly after tidal flow was re-introduced to the wetland to examine the sediment and hydrodynamic response. The results indicate that local re-suspension is relatively rare owing to the weak interior tidal currents and the limited fetch within the 3 km long basin. Asymmetries in the acoustic backscatter intensity combined with the much higher flow speeds measured at the entrance suggest a net import of fine sediment. The basin also experiences a distinct seasonal variation that likely contributes to sediment re-distribution. During the summer months, higher wind speeds correlate with turbidity suggesting local re-suspension of fines that are distributed by winds. Overall, the measurements suggest that the sediment dynamics in this shallow water system are controlled by two main factors: (1) net sediment import through the inlet entrance and (2) mixing of interior sediment through a combination of intermittent wind and wave stirring.