On Friday December 1, Audubon Mid-Atlantic hosted a field trip to the dredge placement site at the end of Riley Roberts Road to discuss the progress of the project. DIPP was able to send one of our members, Thom Stroschein, to attend this field trip and learn more about the project and its goals. Speakers included the environmental scientist responsible for monitoring the site, Audubon mid-Atlantic, and the US Army Corps of Engineers.
The speakers shared that one of the ecological goals of this effort was to elevate the marsh at the Deal Island Wildlife Manage Area by beneficially placing dredge material from the Wicomico River. The project partners set a goal to elevate the marsh high enough to provide nesting habitat for Saltmarsh Sparrows which are a good indicator species of the overall marsh health. The higher elevation marsh will provide habitat for many important species and benefits such as buffering this marsh against the impacts of rising seas.
Here are some of the key messages from that trip:
The project is wrapping up. The dredge placement phase is complete and the contractor is now in the process of dismantling and removing the pipes.
Over the coming months, the dredge material will settle and sink. We will not know the final elevation of the marsh until the material has fully settled.
Once the sediment has settled, the area will be assessed for planting native marsh plants.
The environmental scientist showed participants the monitoring locations around the site. Monitoring will continue post-placement by the environmental scientist and other project partners to track soil chemistry, elevation, and animal and plant responses.
DIPP was able to use this opportunity to provide feedback on how communication with residents could be improved on projects like this.
We will continue to give you updates as we hear them. In the meantime, we have posted a slideshow of photos from the field trip on our website: https://www.dealislandpeninsulapartners.org/dredge-news.