Last updated: September 2024
The D'Olive Creek Restoration project is designed to address the significant environmental challenges facing the D’Olive Creek Watershed and its tributaries (Tiawasee and Joe’s Branch), primarily caused by increased urbanization. Over the last several decades, the area has experienced severe erosion, sedimentation, and habitat degradation due to stormwater runoff from new residential and commercial developments. This runoff has led to stream channel instability, loss of wetlands, and impaired water quality in both D'Olive Creek and Mobile Bay, threatening aquatic and wildlife habitats (Ref 2). The project involves restoring degraded streams and implementing management measures to reduce the downstream impacts within the watershed. Key activities include stormwater retrofits, stream restorations, and continuous monitoring. These efforts aim to stabilize stream segments and significantly reduce sediment loading into the northeast quadrant of Mobile Bay. This is crucial for improving water quality and clarity, which is necessary for re-establishing submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) beds that serve as critical nursery areas for shellfish and finfish (Ref 1). By using natural materials like rock and living plants, the project also seeks to create a sustainable and ecologically balanced watershed system (Ref 3). The anticipated outcomes include enhanced water quality in D'Olive Creek and Mobile Bay, reduced erosion and sedimentation, and the restoration of vital habitats, which will contribute to the region's overall ecological health (Ref 1, 3). This restoration project is part of a broader strategy outlined in the 2002 Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the Mobile Bay Estuary (Ref 1).
Tiawassee Creek in Lake Forest is one of the waterways in the D'Olive Creek watershed restoration project.
https://www.mobilebaynep.com/news/dolive-watershed-model-for-restoration accessed on 26/08/2024
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Blue infrastructure
- Rivers/streams/canals/estuaries
- Coastlines
- Coastal wetland, mangroves and salt marshes
Key challenges
- Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
- Climate change adaptation
- Coastal resilience and marine protection (SDG 14)
- Coastal protection / hazard mitigation
- Marine and coastal biodiversity protection
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Habitat and biodiversity restoration
- Water management (SDG 6)
- Flood protection
- Stormwater and rainfall management and storage
- Improvements to water quality
Principal problems in Functional Urban Area (FUA)
- Environmental Degradation
- Biodiversity loss
- Poor water quality
- Land use and Socio-economic change
- Rapid urbanization
Key priorities
Biodiversity (conservation and/or restoration)
Focus
Management and improved protection of rivers and other blue areas, River rehabilitation/ restoration, Restoration, protecion and sustainable manage floodplains, Upper watershed restoration and management, Restoration of riparian vegetation, Coastal landscape management or protection, Coastal ecosystems restoration and maintenance (mangroves, dunes, saltplains, underwater meadows), Ecological restoration of ecosystems, Restoration of wetlands (other types than peatlands and mangroves, e.g. seagrass), Restoration and protection of ecosystems (including water ecosystems), Protection of natural ecosystems, Protecton and enhancement of wetlands (other types than peatlands and mangroves, e.g. seagrass), Habitat restoration
Project objectives
1) Address excessive erosion and sedimentation caused by increased urbanization, which has led to stream channel instability, wetland degradation, and loss of natural flood plains (Ref 2).
2) Reduce the downstream impacts of stormwater runoff (Ref 1)
3) Restore aquatic and wildlife species and habitats (Ref 1)
4) Improving water quality in Mobile Bay (Ref 1) which supports fisheries and recreational use (Ref 4)
Implementation activities
The project included the following activities (ongoing process):
- Stabilize stream segments to reduce sediment loading in the D'Olive Watershed (Ref 1).
- Implement stormwater retrofits, a series of step pools, and over rocks designed to absorb the energy of the current (Ref 1).
- Use natural materials like rock, wood, and living plants in restoration efforts to create an ecologically sustainable watershed system (Ref 3).
- Re-establish submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) beds which serve as nurseries for fishes (Ref 1)
Climate-focused activities
Climate change adaptation:
- Restore mangroves, marshes, reefs and wetlands to dissipate the effects of storms and floodwaters
- Restore rivers and other fresh water bodies to reduce flood or drought risk
Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts
Yes
Specification of climate or environmentally vulnerable communities
Coastal communities, Riverfront communities, Communities located in floodplains
Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities
Biodiversity restoration:
- Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
- Restore species (native, endangered, or unspecified)
- Restore native species
- Restore valued species
- Restore ecological connectivity
Main beneficiaries
- Local government/Municipality
- Citizens or community groups
- Coastal-dependent communities (e.g. small-scale fishers, coastal farmers, and indigenous peoples)
Governance
Management set-up
- Co-governance with government and non-government actors
Type of initiating organisation
- Local government/municipality
- Non-government organisation/civil society
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Co-management/Joint management
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
Lead the project (Ref 2): The City of Daphne, AL, and the Mobile Bay National Estuary (NGO)
Partnered with (Ref 1):
- Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources – State Lands Division
- Alabama Department of Environmental Management
- Alabama Department of Transportation
- Geological Survey of Alabama (Research Institute)
- Baldwin County, AL
- City of Spanish Fort, AL
Funded by (Ref 4):
- the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (NGO)
- the Alabama Department of Environmental Management’s Clean Water Act (regional government)
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
Yes
(Clean Water Act (regional government))
... a national policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a local policy or strategy?
Yes
(The 2002 Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the Mobile Bay Estuary)
Type of enablers
Capacity-building projects, Governance innovations (such as public private partnerships), Funds, subsidies or investment for GI/NBS in the city (available for the city or provided by the city)
Financing
Total cost
€10,000 - €50,000
Source(s) of funding
- Public regional budget
- Funds provided by non-governmental organization (NGO)
Type of funding
- Earmarked public budget
- Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Water management and blue areas
- Improved water quality
- Expected improved water quality
- Increased protection against flooding
- Expected increased protection against flooding
- Improved stormwater management
- Expected improved stormwater management
- Enhanced protection and restoration of coastal and marine ecosystems
- Expected enhanced protection and restoration of coastal and marine ecosystems
- Green space and habitat
- Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
- Expected increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
- Reduced biodiversity loss
- Expected reduced biodiversity loss
- Increased presence and recovery of wild species
- Expected increased presence and recovery of wild species
- Increased protection of threatened species
- Expected increased protection of threatened species
Economic impacts
- Unknown
Socio-cultural impacts
- Health and wellbeing
- Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
- Expected gain in activities for recreation and exercise
Type of reported impacts
Presence of formal monitoring system
Yes
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Potential risks of implementation and trade-offs
Unknown
References
1.
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (n.d.). Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund -D'Olive Watershed Restoration. National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, p. 1 Accessed on August 26, 2024, [Source link];
2.
Daphneal.com (n.d.). Restoration & Water Quality, The D’Olive Creek Watershed. Daphne: Daphneal.com, p. 1 Accessed on August 26, 2024, [Source link];
3.
Busby, G. (2019). D'Olive Watershed Model for Restoration. Daphne, AL: Mobile Bay National Estuary, p. 1-2 Accessed on August 26, 2024, [Source link];
4.
Mobile Bay National Estuary (2020). Another Big Milestone Reached in the Restoration of Baldwin County's D'Olive Watershed. Mobile Bay National Estuary, p. 1-2 Accessed on August 26, 2024, [Source link];
5.
Data Usa (2022). Demographics Daphne - Datausa. Daphne: Data Usa, Accessed on August 26, 2024, [Source link];
6.
Data USA (2022). Demographics Spanish Fort. Spanish Fort: Data USA, Accessed on August 26, 2024, [Source link];
Information about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the Naturescapes project funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement No 101084341.