12 Aug 2022

Swan Island: Monitoring and Adaptive Management Plan

Abstract: Swan Island is a 10.12 ha island located in the Maryland waters of the Chesapeake Bay. Because of its value as a natural wave break for the town of Ewell on nearby Smith Island, as well as the ongoing erosion and subsidence of the island, in 2019 US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)–Baltimore District placed 45,873 m³ of dredged sediment and planted 200,000 marsh plants. This restoration provided an opportunity to quantify the engineering (that is, resilience) and ecological performance of the island, postplacement. The lack of quantitative data on the performance of natural features such as islands has led to perceived uncertainties that are often cited as barriers to implementation. To address these data gaps, a multidisciplinary collaboration of five government entities identified project objectives and monitoring parameters through a series of mediated workshops and then developed a conceptual model to articulate those parameters and the linkages between them. This monitoring and adaptive management plan (MAMP) documents those monitoring parameters and procedures and can serve as an example for other scales, regions, and research questions. Documenting research and monitoring efforts may help to foster widespread acceptance of nature-based solutions such as islands.

12 Aug 2022

Development of a Three-Dimensional Vegetative Loss Mechanism for the Geophysical Scale Transport Multi-Block Hydrodynamic Sediment and Water Quality Transport Modeling System (GSMB)

PURPOSE: The US Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) Environmental Laboratory (EL) and Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory (CHL) have completed several large scale hydrodynamic, sediment and water quality transport studies. These studies have been successfully executed utilizing the Geophysical Scale Transport Modeling System (GSMB), which is composed of multiple process models (Figure 1). Due to being directly and indirectly linked within the GSMB framework, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) accepted wave, hydrodynamic, sediment, and water quality transport models are both directly and indirectly linked within the GSMB framework.

12 Aug 2022

User Guide: The DEM Breakline and Differencing Analysis Tool—Gridded Elevation Model Analysis with a Convenient Graphical User Interface

Abstract: Gridded elevation models of the earth’s surface derived from airborne lidar data or other sources can provide qualitative and quantitative information about the terrain and its surface features through analysis of the local spatial variation in elevation. The DEM Breakline and Differencing Analysis Tool was developed to extract and display micro-terrain features and vegetative cover based on the numerical modeling of elevation discontinuities or breaklines (breaks-in-slope), slope, terrain ruggedness, local surface optima, and the local elevation difference between first surface and bare earth input models. Using numerical algorithms developed in-house at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Geospatial Research Laboratory, various parameters are calculated for each cell in the model matrix in an initial processing phase. The results are combined and thresholded by the user in different ways for display and analysis. A graphical user interface provides control of input models, processing, and display as color-mapped overlays. Output displays can be saved as images, and the overlay data can be saved as raster layers for input into geographic information systems for further analysis.

11 Aug 2022

Environmental Evaluation and Management of Dredged Material for Beneficial Use: A Regional Beneficial Use Testing Manual for the Great Lakes

Abstract: The Environmental Evaluation and Management of Dredged Material for Beneficial Use: A Regional Beneficial Use Testing Manual for the Great Lakes (a.k.a. Great Lakes Beneficial Use Testing Manual) is a resource document providing technical guidance for evaluating the suitability of dredged sediment for beneficial use in aquatic and terrestrial environments in the Great Lakes region. The procedures in this manual are based on the Environmental Laboratory extensive research, working with US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Great Lakes districts, state resource agencies, and local stakeholders seeking to develop dredged material beneficial use alternatives consistent with regional needs and goals. This manual is the first guidance document developed by USACE for evaluating the environmental suitability of dredged material specifically for beneficial use placements. It provides a tiered framework for evaluating the environmental suitability of aquatic and upland beneficial uses consistent with the Inland Testing Manual and the Upland Testing Manual. This manual is intended to serve as a regional platform to increase collaborative problem-solving and endorse a common understanding of the scientific and institutional practices for evaluating dredged material for any beneficial use. Dredged sediment may be managed as a valuable resource, with great potential to create economic, environmental, and social benefits.

11 Aug 2022

Realizing Multiple Benefits in a Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project through Application of Engineering With Nature® Principles

PURPOSE: The application of Engineering With Nature® (EWN®) principles in urban environments and watersheds within and outside the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is increasing. Extreme rainfall events have triggered the need and development of more sustainable urban infrastructure in urban areas such as New Orleans, Louisiana. This technical note documents a USACE–New Orleans District (MVN) project that successfully applied EWN principles in an urban landscape to reduce flood risk while providing other environmental, social, economic, and engineering benefits to both the community and the environment.

11 Aug 2022

Oyster Reef Connectivity: Ecological Benefits and Associated Vulnerabilities

OVERVIEW: Global oyster abundance has declined ~85 % over the past 200 years, primarily because of overharvesting (Beck, Brumbaugh, and Airoldi 2011; Kirby 2004). Healthy oyster reef systems benefit the environment in many ways, including water-quality improvement, shoreline protection, increased biological and habitat diversity, and carbon sequestration. To maintain these environmental benefits, reef-restoration efforts that produce healthy, sustainable oyster reefs are essential. To this end, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has been involved in reef-restoration projects in many locations, including extensive efforts in the Chesapeake Bay (Virginia, Maryland), coastal regions of New York and New Jersey, and the Gulf of Mexico.

10 Aug 2022

Evaluation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems for Flood Risk Management: Results of Terrain and Structure Assessments

Abstract: The 2017 Duck Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Pilot Experiment was conducted by the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory, Field Research Facility (FRF), to assess the potential for different UAS to support US Army Corps of Engineers coastal and flood risk management. By involving participants from multiple ERDC laboratories, federal agencies, academia, and private industry, the work unit leads were able to leverage assets, resources, and expertise to assess data from multiple UAS. This report compares datasets from several UAS to assess their potential to survey and observe coastal terrain and structures. In this report, UAS data product accuracy was analyzed within the context of three potential applications: (1) general coastal terrain survey accuracy across the FRF property; (2) small-scale feature detection and observation within the experiment infrastructure area; and (3) accuracy for surveying coastal foredunes. The report concludes by presenting tradeoffs between UAS accuracy and the cost to operate to aid in selection of the best UAS for a particular task. While the technology and exact UAS models vary through time, the lessons learned from this study illustrate that UAS are available at a variety of costs to satisfy varying coastal management data needs.

8 Aug 2022

A Community Engagement Framework Using Mental Modeling: The Seven Mile Island Innovation Lab Community Engagement Pilot—Phase I

Abstract: The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) engages and collaborates with multiple stakeholders—from agency partners, to public, private, and not-for-profit organizations, to community residents—to develop its dredged-sediment long-term management strategy (LTMS) that expands beneficial-use (BU) practices. In spring 2019, USACE collaborated with Decision Partners, the USACE–Philadelphia District Operations Division, The Wetlands Institute, and the Engineering With Nature program leadership to adapt, test, and refine the proven behavioral-science-based processes, methods, and tools based on Decision Partners’ Mental Modeling Insight, or MMI, approach for engaging stakeholders, including community members, as part of the Seven Mile Island Innovation Laboratory (SMIIL) initiative in coastal New Jersey. The team identified key community stakeholders and conducted research to better understand their values, interests, priorities, and preferences regarding wetlands and USACE activities in the Seven Mile Island area and those activities’ effects on wetlands, including protecting the environment, wildlife habitat, aesthetic beauty, maintaining navigability, and supporting coastal resilience. Understanding stakeholder needs, values, interests, priorities, and preferences is key to designing effective engagement strategies for diverse communities for SMIIL and provides a foundation for the community engagement framework currently being developed for application across USACE.

8 Aug 2022

The Use of US Army Corps of Engineers Reservoirs as Stopover Sites for the Aransas–Wood Buffalo Population of Whooping Crane

Abstract: This technical report summarizes the use of US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) reservoirs as spring and fall migration stopover sites for the endangered Aransas–Wood Buffalo population of whooping cranes (WHCR), which proved much greater than previously known. We assessed stopover use within the migration flyway with satellite transmitter data on 68 WHCR during 2009–2018 from a study by the US Geological Survey (USGS) and collaborators, resulting in over 165,000 location records, supplemented by incidental observations from the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the USGS Biodiversity Information Serving Our Nation (BISON) databases. Significant stopover use was observed during both spring and fall migration, and one reservoir served as a wintering location in multiple years. Future efforts should include (a) continued monitoring for WHCR at USACE reservoirs within the flyway; (b) reservoir-specific management plans at all projects with significant WHCR stopover; (c) a USACE-specific and range-wide Endangered Species Act Section 7(a)(1) conservation plan that specifies proactive conservation actions; (d) habitat management plans that include potential pool-level modifications during spring and fall to optimize stopover habitat conditions; and (e) continued evaluation of habitat conditions at USACE reservoirs.

5 Aug 2022

South Pole Station Snowdrift Model

Abstract: The elevated building at Scott-Amundsen South Pole Station was designed to mitigate the effects of windblown snow on it and the surrounding infrastructure. Because the elevation of the snow surface increases annually, the station is periodically lifted on its support columns to maintain its design height above the snow surface. To assist with planning these lifts, this effort developed a computational model to simulate snowdrift formation around the elevated building. The model uses computational fluid dynamics methods and synthetic wind record generation derived from statistical analysis of meteorological data. Simulations assessed the impact of several options for the lifting operation on drifts surrounding the elevated building. Simulation results indicate that raising the eastern-most building section (Pod A), or the entire station all at once, can reduce drift accumulation rates over the nearby arches structures. Long-term analyses, spanning 5–6 years, determine whether an equilibrium drift condition may be reached after a long period of undisturbed drift development. These simulations showed that after about 6 years, the rate of growth of the upwind drift slows, appearing to approach an equilibrium condition. However, the adjacent drifts were still increasing in depth at a roughly linear rate, indicating that equilibrium for those drifts was still several seasons away.