COACHES ISLAND / POPLAR ISLAND RESTORATION

Poplar Island, recently on the verge of disappearing, is now a national model for habitat restoration and the beneficial use of dredge materials. The US Army Corp of Engineers, has teamed with the Maryland Port Administration and other Federal and State agencies to restore Poplar Island using dredged material from the Baltimore Harbor and Channels Federal navigation projects. Just off the Chesapeake Bay coastline, about 34 miles south of Baltimore, Poplar Island is being returned to its former size and important ecological function while helping to ensure the economic vitality of the region. Approximately 68 million cubic yards of dredged material will be placed to develop 735 acres of wetlands, 840 acres of uplands and 140 acres of open water embayment. During the process of restoration, Coaches Island suffered from the changing currents due to the reformed Poplar Island. Coaches Island, an adjacent, privately owned island, was in need of beach protection and restoration.

Maccaferri’s Mactube®s, high strength woven geotextile containers, were chosen to protect the newly restored beaches on Coaches Island. These “soft” armored structures would provide a cost effective solution and have minimal impact on the environment. The Maryland Environmental Service performed the work, along with dredger, Ecodredge. Maccaferri provided installation assistance with our knowledgeable sales staff and technical department. After the beach was restored, vegetation was planted to help stabilize the beach and to reestablish the natural habitat for this sensitive ecosystem.