Nott Island is located in the Con- 

 necticut River, about 11 km (7 mi) from 

 its confluence with Long Island Sound. 

 Upland disposal of sandy dredged mate- 

 rial from the navigation channel is a 

 historic problem in this area. A 3.2-ha 

 (8-acre) site was established on Nott 

 Island last year. The area is confined 

 by a 2.1-m (7-acre)sand dike and we have 

 filled the site with 22,950 m 3 (30,000 

 yd 3) of coarse-grained material from the 

 navigation channel. To improve the 

 agronomic characteristics of this sub- 

 strate, we have top dressed the area 

 with 3,825 m3 (5,000 yd 3 ) of fine-grain- 

 ed material from a nearby recreation 

 channel. The area will be planted in the 

 spring and fall with plant species that 

 will provide highly desirable pasture 

 for Canada geese (Branta canadensis ). 



Another study at the Nott Island 

 site is the stabilization of this sandy 

 dredged material and its eventual con- 

 version to desirable wildlife habitat. 

 A third effort at Nott Island involves 

 the development of techniques for con- 

 trol of reed grass ( Phragmites communis ). 

 This species has little wildlife value 

 in that area and is a vigorous invader 

 on upland disposal sites. 



In addition to the marsh develop- 

 ment site near Galveston, Texas, a part 

 of the research there also involves the 

 reclamation of this upland disposal 

 site. Our studies there are evaluating 

 the success of several desirable wild- 

 life plant species under a series of 

 fertilizer regimes. Upland plants will 

 include pine, honey locust ( Gleditsia 

 triacanthos ), smooth sumac ( Rhus glabra ), 

 and bluestem and panic grasses. 



We have a 20-ha (50-acre) upland 

 habitat site in conjunction with our 

 marsh development at Miller Sands in 

 Oregon. This site will be developed as 

 nesting habitat for Canada geese. 



The objective of the aquatic habi- 

 tat development project is to establish 

 tidal flats and seagrass beds on dredged 

 material and to evaluate the bottom so 

 that it is in the photic, but subtidal 

 zone. In many cases, elevating the 

 bottom with dredged material would 

 significantly increase the biological 



productivity of a site. The planning 

 phase of aquatic habitat development has 

 been completed and it appears that re- 

 search will take the form of a state- 

 of-the-art survey of the potential for 

 dredged material stabilization by sea- 

 grasses. It is too late in the DMRP to 

 undertake a major field research effort 

 in this area. However, if our initial 

 studies indicate that dredged material 

 stabilization is a promising disposal 

 alternative, it will receive increased 

 attention before the completion of this 

 project. 



Our island habitat development task 

 is designed to assess the importance of 

 dredged material island habitat to wild- 

 life, particularly shore birds. There is 

 evidence indicating that dredged materi- 

 al islands provide exceptionally impor- 

 tant nesting habitat for some species of 

 gulls, terns and herons along the Atlan- 

 tic and Gulf coasts. The island develop- 

 ment task, like the aquatic habitat task, 

 is a new research area and the planning 

 phase has just been completed. The ap- 

 proach will be to quantify on a regional 

 basis the importance of existing dredged 

 material islands to wildlife. These will 

 include data on breeding bird concentra- 

 tions, habitat preferences, and nesting 

 periods that will permit decisions on 

 the optimum size and shape of dredged 

 material islands, and recommendations 

 about the management and continued dis- 

 posal on these areas. The first of our 

 regional studies of bird use of dredged 

 material is being conducted in the Great 

 Lakes. Additional research in Texas, 

 Florida, New Jersey, and Oregon should 

 be underway this summer. 



SUMMARY 



We have found that habitat develop- 

 ment using dredged material offers an 

 alternative disposal method that is 

 often feasible from a biological, engi- 

 neering, and economic standpoint. Care- 

 ful implementation of this alternative 

 could significantly increase the extent 

 of our wetland resources in parts of the 

 United States. 



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