A team of researchers from Volusia County has come up with a plan to better protect structures during major storms.
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The solution: a concept known as living seawalls.
Crumbling concrete can still be seen along the Volusia County coastline after strong winds and waves from three hurricanes destroyed dozens of seawalls in two years.
After realizing how many of them failed, local researchers decided it was time to reexamine how they were built in the past.
Embry-Riddle professor Siddharth Parida is now part of a team planning to bring living seawalls to the province.
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“You have a structural component and you also have an environmental component, so they are very aesthetic,” says Parida.
The concept could still include concrete, but it would be constructed of sand and covered in natural vegetation rather than the large self-contained walls that currently cover much of the coast.
Parida explains that these types of structures can better prevent erosion because the vegetation retains sand.
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“We saw from the sand dunes of New Smyrna Beach that they are quite healthy. Even after being hit by three hurricanes in two years, they are still quite healthy. That means they can prevent erosion a lot,” said Parida.
His team has already received a grant from the National Science Foundation, which is supported by the Department of Energy and the Department of Homeland Security through FEMA.
Now they’re starting a series of workshops to get input from the community.
The first workshop is Wednesday, November 13 at 5:30 PM at the Brannon Center in New Smyrna Beach. A second is scheduled for the following Wednesday, November 27 at 5:30 PM at the Ponce Inlet Community Center.
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