Anne Arundel County has been awarded a $1 million grant to support sediment management and marsh restoration.
Anne Arundel County and the Resilience Authority of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County announced that they have been awarded a $1,007,500 National Coastal Resilience Fund grant, leveraging $2,916,000 in matching funds, to complete final designs for three restoration sites that will use Regional Sediment Management (RSM) to rebuild and protect coastal marshes. This investment will restore critical habitat, strengthen natural flood protection, and demonstrate a replicable model for managing sediment as a community asset rather than a waste product.
The project will deliver final, shovel-ready designs for three marsh restoration sites that will use locally sourced dredged material to rebuild degraded tidal wetlands. These marshes serve as essential natural defenses for coastal communities—reducing wave energy, buffering storm surge, supporting fisheries and wildlife, and helping stabilize vulnerable shorelines. As sea level rise accelerates marsh loss across the Chesapeake Bay, this effort will help protect residents, infrastructure, and ecologically vital landscapes.
According to the press release,
“Anne Arundel County is facing challenges that require both urgency and innovation, and the Resilience Authority gives us another essential tool in the toolbox to meet this moment,” said County Executive Steuart Pittman. “By pairing local expertise with outside investment, the Authority enables us to advance projects that restore critical ecosystems, protect infrastructure, reduce flooding, and strengthen the long-term resilience of communities across the county.”
A major focus of the project is increasing the resilience of the South County shoreline by restoring damaged marshes and barrier islands using clean dredged material. The work will restore and enhance five degraded marshlands, creating natural buffers that protect homes, businesses, and public infrastructure from storms and erosion. Using dredged material for restoration—rather than relying on traditional upland disposal—offers a more affordable, environmentally responsible alternative that reduces pressure on state and local dredging programs.
