New York Sea Grant and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) have awarded a total of $50,000 in St. Lawrence County to apply ecosystem-based management to complex environmental problems on the St. Lawrence River shoreline.

The City of Ogdensburg will get $25,000 for “Alternative Solutions for Managing Erosion: Engineered Solutions vs. Nature-Based Approach and the Implications for Access to Waterfront Recreation.”

This funding supports the siting and design of living shoreline features, and identification of impediments to their use.

The public will be engaged in a discussion about the best ways to protect the shoreline from erosion and flood damage, while preserving and enhancing opportunities for waterfront access and recreation.

The SAGE: Systems Approach to Geomorphic Engineering process developed by the US Army Corps of Engineers and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will be used to assess coastal vulnerability and develop risk reduction measures that both sustain a healthy environment and create a resilient shoreline, according to a press release from New York Sea Grant.

St. Lawrence County is also receiving $25,000 to enhance shoreline resilience along the St. Lawrence River in the county.

The county, in partnership with the City of Ogdensburg and the Town and Village of Morristown is using a stakeholder-driven plan to assess ecosystem vulnerability and determine how resiliency measures can be incorporated into local planning.

The area addressed includes 40 miles of frontage on the St. Lawrence River that includes the Towns of Lisbon, Oswegatchie, Morristown and Hammond, and the City of Ogdensburg and Village of Morristown.

New York Sea Grant Associate Director Katherine E. Bunting-Howarth said these and other projects “utilize living shoreline practices to protect property, enhance aquatic habitat, assess wastewater system upgrade options, and inform local stakeholders about resilience practices, while applying a comprehensive ecosystem-based management approach to benefit New York’s Great Lakes environmental and human communities and stakeholders.”