Through this project, four southeast National Estuarine Research Reserves created a region-wide student-driven program for teachers that furthered understanding of estuarine habitat restoration. The project built on the successes of previous efforts that engaged students in smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) restoration.

This project supported the development of new, innovative visitor displays at three national estuarine research reserves. Guana Tolomato Matanzas, Mission-Aransas, and Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserves partnered with University of Delaware students to produce educational, gesture-controlled computer games installed on interactive screens in each reserve’s exhibit hall.

Dams and Sediment in the Hudson answered key questions about how dam removal will impact conditions in the estuary and offered surprising new findings about tidal marshes in the Hudson River valley. The project used a multidisciplinary approach that combined field observations with an analysis of sediment transport using a proven hydrodynamic model.

This project will enhance stakeholder capacity to make informed decisions on the protection and restoration of buffers around the Great Bay Estuary by addressing the following question: What are the options for addressing the challenges to effectively protect and restore buffer zones around New Hampshire's Great Bay?

This project provided support for local governments to obtain necessary information to modernize and revise the Coos Bay estuary management plan. Through an integrative assessment, the project team leveraged knowledge from community members, synthesized and compiled existing information, and applied a triple bottom line lens (economic, social, and environmental) to portray current conditions and uses in the estuary, and generate options and recommendations for local governments to improve their estuarine and shoreland management.

The research team developed a vegetation-resolving three-dimensional surge-wave model to simulate storm impacts on Piermont Marsh and the adjacent Village. The model incorporated locally collected data on plant distribution and structure, as well as observed and simulated wind and water level data from the Hudson River. By modeling the impacts of Superstorm Sandy, they found that marsh vegetation with predominantly invasive common reed, Phragmites australis, reduced 66% of the wave energy, but less than 1% of the flood, at the Village.

To restore the ecosystem services lost through coastal habitat degradation, restoration projects have been conducted but most lack monitoring or evaluations. Limited monitoring and evaluation prevents comparisons across designs to determine which are the most functional sustainable, and cost-effective. Additionally, information about the advantages of and how to perform restoration projects is currently limited. Limited comparisons across restoration designs and the sparse information on how to conduct restoration projects significantly hinders the implementation of projects.

The Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve is leveraging approaches and lessons learned from the first "Bringing Wetlands to Market" project, which was developed by the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve and supported by the Science Collaborative from the National Estuarine Research Reserve System.

This project combined observations with the development of a hydrodynamic model to better understand and predict water and sediment flows in the Coos estuary. The project team collected time-series data of water properties including temperature and salinity, velocity, sediment type, and sediment concentration at monitoring stations in the Coos estuary, including the first bathymetric dataset to cover the entire estuary. These were combined with existing time series and maps.

Through this project, results will be transferred to a variety of end users and products and activities will be developed with end user feedback. Products include a publication in a high impact scientific journal, a short user-friendly summary of this publication, well-designed PowerPoint presentations for a variety of audiences, and a "do it yourself" tool so others can apply the novel marsh assessment approach to additional marshes.