Living Shorelines

In 1996 Bart Hastings worked closely with Delaware’s DNREC to test and develop new methods of shoreline stabilization and erosion control as alternatives to bulkheading and rip-rap. That work helped set the standard for living shoreline projects in Delaware.

Three decades of that experience later, it is the reason a living shoreline is a real option here and not just a brochure line.

What a living shoreline is

A nature-based approach to stabilizing a shoreline that uses native vegetation, strategically placed stone and specialized erosion-control products. Plantings combined with stone sills, biodegradable mats and coir logs absorb wave energy, filter runoff and create habitat for fish, crabs and birds.

How it works

Instead of reflecting wave energy the way a hard wall can, a living shoreline absorbs and dissipates it while still allowing natural sediment movement. As the vegetation establishes, its roots help hold the shoreline.

Where it fits — and where it doesn’t

A living shoreline is a site-specific approach, not a universal one. It is generally not suited to steep or sharply defined banks that need significant soil retention — those usually call for a structural answer such as a bulkhead or rip-rap. On the right site, and sometimes with an offshore sill reducing wave energy in front of it, it is an excellent one.

A planted shoreline is not finished the day construction ends. It is finished when the vegetation has established — so we measure it.

1. Measure plant coverage. Success is monitored by vegetation coverage per square foot across the planted area.
2. Observe establishment and growth. Coverage is checked over time, so we can see where the planting is taking and where it isn’t.
3. Plant where it’s needed. Supplemental planting goes in based on the establishment and growth we observe.