In 2012, Hurricane Sandy damaged the marsh areas of the Ninigret Wildlife Refuge and the adjacent barrier island that protected it from the Atlantic Ocean.
Responding to this, the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) in December 2016 contracted with JF Brennan Company Inc., an environmental services and marine construction firm that specializes in waterway remediation and habitat restoration, to dredge two sedimentation basins within the refuge breachway channel.
Sand deposited into the Ninigret Inlet during the hurricane was dredged using two 8″ hydraulic dredgers and transported via pipeline back to the marsh. A bulldozer and amphibious excavator placed the sand to rebuild the damaged protective islands and stop salt water encroachment.
Approximately 30,000 cubic yards of sand for beach renourishment were placed along the marsh’s barrier island during the project.
The goals of this coastal protection scheme were to preserve the functions of the existing salt marsh making it more resilient to future sea level rise, to slow the entry of sediment into the pond and to improve navigation by creating a deeper breachway channel.
Brennan has just released this very interesting video about the Ninigret Wildlife Refuge dredging project.