{"id":15384,"date":"2021-03-17T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-17T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/?p=15384"},"modified":"2021-03-17T10:26:00","modified_gmt":"2021-03-17T14:26:00","slug":"salt-marsh-restoration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/salt-marsh-restoration\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate Action through Salt Marsh Restoration"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
 DNRT’s and Mass Audubon\u2019s TerraCorps members, staff, and volunteers hard at work.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When we look to nature<\/a>, we can find many ways to adapt to and mitigate climate change. Restoring nature so it can perform these services is, in part, how Mass Audubon acts on climate. Wetland restoration work being done on the South Coast is a prime example.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On February 15, Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust (DNRT) and Mass Audubon\u2019s TerraCorps members, staff, and volunteers spent the day achieving this goal by removing invasive plant species on DNRT\u2019s Ocean View Farm Reserve (neighboring Mass Audubon\u2019s Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary). This effort is under the recently awarded<\/a> Southeast New England Program (SNEP) Watershed Grant. SNEP Watershed Grants<\/a> are funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through a collaboration with Restore America\u2019s Estuaries (RAE). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Big Deal about Invasive Species <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Invasive species are known for their ability to easily spread past their native habitats — either by accident, opportunity, or purposeful introduction — and establish themselves into new habitats. Upon their arrival, these species tend to out-compete native flora or fauna for resources. This can cascade into a variety of consequences such as already vulnerable wildlife losing critical food sources or homes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Wetlands? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Wetlands are our first line of defense when it comes to withstanding climate impacts like flooding, which we are now seeing more of due to\u00a0sea level rise<\/a>\u00a0and an increase in the frequency of\u00a0extreme weather events<\/a>. Not to mention,\u00a0healthy wetlands (like a\u00a0salt marsh)\u00a0store more carbon per unit area than some of Massachusetts\u2019 forests,\u00a0helping us mitigate climate change at the same time.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But wetlands also need to be able to adapt to climate change\u2019s impacts. As tides creep further up our shores, flood and salt intolerant wildlife move upland\u00a0as a response.\u00a0An abundance of\u00a0invasive\u00a0species inhibits\u00a0how well native plants (and their accompanying animals) can migrate landward.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staff and Volunteers at Work <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Following COVID-19 public health guidelines and armed with loppers, handsaws, and chainsaws, staff and volunteers worked together to remove invasive species such as Autumn Olive, Multiflora Rose, and Bush Honeysuckle.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The invasive\u00a0brush\u00a0must be cut from the ground to enhance\u00a0Ocean View Farm Reserve’s ability to act as a wetland buffer, or an\u00a0area\u00a0with plants that helps protect the wetland and all its climate services.\u00a0Volunteers\u00a0stacked\u00a0the cut brush on tarps and pulled\u00a0the brush over 100 yards to a suitable area for disposal.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The job doesn\u2019t end with invasive species removal, however. Staff and volunteers then began\u00a0planting\u00a0native grasses and flowers that are both salt and flood tolerant.\u00a0As\u00a0sea levels rise, these\u00a0actions will help facilitate wildlife and habitat movement landward as a response.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Bigger Picture <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The\u00a0work is\u00a0tedious and\u00a0grueling,\u00a0and\u00a0relies on\u00a0the dedication of\u00a0staff and volunteers to\u00a0restoring nature and protecting our world from climate change.\u00a0Invasive species removal is just\u00a0one component of the grant, which funds a variety of other science and restoration activities at Mass Audubon Great Neck and Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All these initiatives are designed to better understand how sea level rise impacts our coastal wetlands, how to protect these habitats from climate change (and therefore the wildlife and human communities surrounding them), and how to model broader climate resilience efforts in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you to our partners DNRT and TerraCorps for their collaboration on this project, Home Depot for donating tarps for our staff and volunteers to use during removals, and all the Mass Audubon and DNRT volunteers who lent their time and efforts to the project. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When we look to nature, we can find many ways to adapt to and mitigate climate change. Restoring nature so it can perform these services is, in part, how Mass Audubon acts on climate. Wetland restoration work being done on the South Coast is a prime example.   On February 15, Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust (DNRT) and Mass Audubon\u2019s TerraCorps members, staff, and volunteers spent the day achieving this […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":126,"featured_media":15386,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[178],"tags":[246,399,382,400],"class_list":["post-15384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate","tag-climate-action","tag-restoration","tag-salt-marsh","tag-wetlands"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/03\/02252021_DNRT_OVF_Workday_41.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t87A-408","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12375,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/meet-the-terracorps-crew\/","url_meta":{"origin":15384,"position":0},"title":"Meet the TerraCorps Crew","author":"Hillary T.","date":"February 27, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"This year, Mass Audubon has been fortunate to welcome four members of TerraCorps to our team. TerraCorps partners with AmeriCorps to pair emerging leaders with land-based organizations in Massachusetts. The TerraCorps service members gain valuable, real-world experience, and Mass Audubon benefits from their energy, enthusiasm, ideas, and hard work. Say\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/02\/SamH.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/02\/SamH.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/02\/SamH.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/02\/SamH.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16942,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/protecting-salt-marshes-at-allens-pond\/","url_meta":{"origin":15384,"position":1},"title":"Protecting Salt Marshes at Allens Pond\u00a0","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"June 8, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Visitors to Mass Audubon\u2019s Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary in South Dartmouth and Westport may be curious if they spot groups of individuals digging on the sanctuary\u2019s salt marsh.\u00a0 Under the watchful eye of Mass Audubon\u2019s Coastal Resilience Program Director Dr. Danielle Perry and the South East team, they are carving\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate"","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/06\/AP_KForesto-0677-2100x1400-1737e326-8e20-4582-a9c9-9b1bc4ce7f93.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/06\/AP_KForesto-0677-2100x1400-1737e326-8e20-4582-a9c9-9b1bc4ce7f93.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/06\/AP_KForesto-0677-2100x1400-1737e326-8e20-4582-a9c9-9b1bc4ce7f93.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/06\/AP_KForesto-0677-2100x1400-1737e326-8e20-4582-a9c9-9b1bc4ce7f93.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14937,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/coastal-climate-vulnerability-assessments\/","url_meta":{"origin":15384,"position":2},"title":"Understanding Coastal Climate Vulnerability","author":"Rishya N.","date":"November 18, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Our coasts are home to valuable habitats and beloved species. To protect them from climate change and understand how vulnerable these important regions are, Mass Audubon\u2019s Climate Adaptation Ecologist, Dr. Danielle Perry, PhD, laces up her work boots and jumps headfirst into cordgrass and salt water. Joppa Flats Education Center\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate"","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/11\/1655JorgeGalvez5718.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/11\/1655JorgeGalvez5718.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/11\/1655JorgeGalvez5718.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/11\/1655JorgeGalvez5718.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16656,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/women-in-science-at-mass-audubon\/","url_meta":{"origin":15384,"position":3},"title":"Women in Science at Mass Audubon\u00a0","author":"Kaylin D.","date":"February 11, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Our scientists help create solutions to some of today\u2019s most pressing problems surrounding climate change, land management, education, and wildlife protection. 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My two favorite merit badges were Nature and Environmental Science \u2013 but earning them took effort and time. I had to pick three different environments and observe patterns in them. 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