MAGGShore

Multifunctional and Adaptive Green-Grey Shorelines 

Coastal urbanisation and climate change are driving ocean sprawl (the global proliferation of manmade structures such as seawalls), leading to losses of biodiversity and ecosystem services in urban coasts. The overarching objective of this project is to provide a comprehensive assessment of the ecological, physical, and engineering requirements for coastal protection systems, and to develop multi-functional, adaptive shoreline designs with ‘green’ element, integrating climate change and land use considerations.

We will test the factors influencing short and long-term colonisation and succession of diverse assemblages, assess green (low-carbon) building materials for eco-engineering solutions, identify suitable habitat-forming fauna and flora for transplanting onto coastal defences as ‘starter’ species, quantify the ecosystem services provided by green-grey coastal infrastructure, develop software for 3D visualisation and printing of habitat enhancements, and create guidelines for future full-scale designs.