Sandusky Bay Initiative
Sandusky Bay Initiative
About the Office of Coastal Management
• Coastal Zone Management Act• Grants• Regulatory Programs• Outreach and Education• Technical Assistance • Coastal Nonpoint Pollution
Control Program• Old Woman Creek – NERR –
Stewardship, Research, Education
About the Ohio Coast• 312 miles of shoreline in Ohio. • 23% of Ohio’s population (2.6
million) live in eight coastal counties. • Receives the drainage of the Lake
Erie Watershed of approximately 7.4 million acres.
Current Conditions and Areas of Focus for the Office of Coastal Management• Water Levels• Shoreline Erosion• Habitat/Coastal Wetlands• Nutrients• Public Access to the Coast• Beneficial Reuse of Dredge Material
Priority Area
Sandusky Bay
Why Sandusky Bay?
• Historical and existing coastal wetlands.
• Unique Bay system in Lake Erie.• Priority watershed for
nutrients – Annex 4• High fish abundance and
diversity. Priority fishery.• High public recreational use.• Bloom conditions start the
earliest and last the longest in Lake Erie – Planktothrix.
Sandusky Bay Initiative
WesternSandusky
Bay
EasternSandusky
Bay
Muddy Creek Bay
BackBay
64 square miles – 1 million acres agricultural landWater flows from west to east through the Bay
Water depth ranges from < 6 to 9 feetFederal navigation channel
Sandusky Bay Initiative- Primary Goals• Improve Sandusky Bay water quality by reducing nutrient
and sediment loads.• Enhance coastal wetland and fisheries habitat.• Where feasible, promote public access.• Work with local restoration partnersFocused Goals:• Coordinate and support innovative wetland and nature-based
shoreline restoration and enhancement projects.• Demonstrate the Beneficial Use of dredge material• Implement a landscape-scale approach to systematically link
projects to maximize nutrient and sediment reduction in the Bay
• A PORTFOLIO OF PROJECTS
Systems Thinking at Scale
Sandusky Bay Initiative - 2017 – Kick-off Phase I • Eight projects- $2 Million investment
(State, Federal, Local)• Initial Engineering & Design for sediment
and dredge beneficial reuse habitat sites in Sandusky Bay.
• Launch of monitoring coordination with partners and Ohio EPA.
• Initialize development of a 3D Eutrophication Model.
• Initiate the development of Strategic Plan to create a portfolio of projects based upon 2017 findings and other work.
• Initiated two coastal wetland implementation projects.
Sandusky Bay Initiative Partners
• Ohio DNR, Coastal Management• Ohio DNR, Division of Wildlife• Ohio EPA• Ohio Lake Erie Commission• City of Sandusky• Local SWCDs• USACE• NOAA• USEPA• Old Woman Creek NERR• Cedar Point• TNC• Ohio Sea Grant
• Bowling Green State University• Heidelberg University• Kent State University• Marsh Management
Associations/Conservancies• Limnotech, Tetra Tech, Biohabitats,
Baird, Foth, KS Associates, GEI• Sandusky County
Sandusky Bay Monitoring
• Bloom biomass is low light adapted.
• Water clarity is a key driver. • Flow , turbidity and wind
events are interlinked and not always driven by river discharge.
• Planktothrix and irradiance responses.
• Bi-weekly sampling throughout the Bay.
• GLOS connected buoys• Sediment samples – 8
locations• ADCP flow velocity meter
Sandusky Bay Model
Modeled TP based on Sandusky River data and Met data for 2 years. Adding year 3P may be trapped within the Bay and not loading Lake. P is not for PlanktothrixInternal Loading may be significant
415 MT 425 MT
240 MT 40 MT
Site Design - Cedar Point Causeway Wetland Restoration-Beneficial Use of Dredge Material• Design and Engineering
completed in 2018.• Phased approach to align
with dredging cycles.• Enhance fishery habitat for
Sandusky Bay• Reduce Sedimentation in
Sandusky Bay.• Maintain boat recreation
access.• Public/Private Partnership
and City of Sandusky and local stakeholders.
• Permitting and final engineering.
• Implementation 2020 (SB-1)
Prioritized soft outer edge where possibleMaximized Emergent Backwater HabitatRecreational Navigation ConsiderationsTolerate some re-suspension/loss of dredged material
Coastal Wetlands – Re-Connection• Great Lakes Restoration Initiative –
Action Plan II – Coastal Wetlands & Habitat Focus Area
• Public-Private Partnerships with local conservation organizations and soil and water district.
• Two Sites: Standing Rush and Pipe Creek
• Hydrological Connections through Nature Based Design and Hybrid adaptations.
• Reconnection of 245 acres of coastal wetlands and nearshore habitat and 1900 LF along Pipe Creek
Strategic Restoration PlanDevelop a Portfolio of Project Investments that meet cumulative benefits and are systemic whereby a series of projects will work together to achieve targets/goals.
• Identified approximately 40 projects.• Developed a site screening matrix for
initial evaluation.• Identifying the focus areas of projects
in conjunction with model and monitoring work to prioritize short-term and long-term investments.
• Focus on in-water coastal wetland designs that can improve habitat for spawning/nursery, manage internal loading and nutrient inputs.
Next Steps• Portfolio of Projects and Priority
Implementation• Model Scenarios to inform Nutrient
Budget, Design Criteria for Restoration.
• Continue to collect data to review episodic events, focus area monitoring and sediment resuspension, internal loading.
• Implementation of a variety of restoration project types both experiential and beneficial on a system-wide approach.
Sandusky Bay Initiative Contacts
• Chief Scudder Mackey – ODNR- OCM• Jim Park – ODNR –OCM• Lynn Garrity – Ohio Lake Erie Commission