Escambia County is thrilled to announce a $10.93 million award from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s National Coast Resiliency Fund. The award will fund construction of the Magazine Point phase of the Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project at Naval Air Station Pensacola.
The project will construct approximately 33 acres of emergency marsh, five acres of oyster reef breakwaters and provide natural recruitment for 25 acres of submerged aquatic vegetation. By improving these habitats, the project is expected to protect 6,200 linear feet of exposed shoreline and benefit coastal bird species. In addition, implementing natural infrastructure solutions along Magazine Point will protect the U.S. Navy’s 500-foot vessel exclusion zone as well as training facilities for 5,000 enlisted Navy and Marine Corps trainees.
“This natural living shoreline infrastructure solution will help protect Naval Air Station Pensacola from future storm events while also establishing new fishery habitat with oyster reefs and submerged aquatic vegetation,” said Escambia County Natural Resources Director Chips Kirschenfeld.
Partial funding was provided by the Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative. The REPI provides funding reduce risks to mission-critical infrastructure and enhance climate change resiliency at military installations around the country.
The Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project is a large-scale living shoreline to be constructed in southwestern Pensacola Bay. Project goals include the creation of approximately 20,000 linear feet of emergent and submerged reef breakwaters and 200 acres of emergent marsh and submerged aquatic vegetation habitat. Visit here to learn more about the Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline project.