Living Shoreline: Preliminary Observations on Nature-Based Solution for Toe-Line Protection of Estuarine Embankments and Mangrove Regeneration

Paromit Chatterjee, Sugata Hazra, Anamitra Anurag Danda (), Punyasloke Bhadury, Punarbasu Chaudhuri and Sampurna Sarkar
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Paromit Chatterjee: Sundarbans Delta Programme, World Wide Fund for Nature-India, 1641 Madurdaha, Kolkata 700107, West Bengal, India
Sugata Hazra: Sundarbans Delta Programme, World Wide Fund for Nature-India, 1641 Madurdaha, Kolkata 700107, West Bengal, India
Anamitra Anurag Danda: Sundarbans Delta Programme, World Wide Fund for Nature-India, 1641 Madurdaha, Kolkata 700107, West Bengal, India
Punyasloke Bhadury: Centre for Climate and Environmental Studies, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata, Mohanpur 741246, West Bengal, India
Punarbasu Chaudhuri: Department of Environmental Science, University of Calcutta, 35, Ballygunge Circular Rd, Kolkata 700019, West Bengal, India
Sampurna Sarkar: Sundarbans Delta Programme, World Wide Fund for Nature-India, 1641 Madurdaha, Kolkata 700107, West Bengal, India

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 7, 1-14

Abstract: Here, we discuss the results of an experiment in toe-line protection of estuarine embankments from frequent slope failure using silt traps. We test the feasibility of terracotta rings to trap silt and promote natural mangrove regeneration in barren patches in front of embankments around human settlements in the Indian Sundarban region, designated as the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve. The initial results of the first sixteen months of observations, between May 2023 and August 2024, are encouraging. Sediment accumulation in the silt traps across sites ranges between 4 and 42 cm. Periodic granulometric analyses of sediments indicate that while the middle estuarine sites accumulate more clay/silt, the lower estuarine sites accumulate more sand. During the late and post-monsoon seasons, all sites except one, on the eastern coast of the lower estuarine island, exhibit natural mangrove regeneration, the main species being Porteresia coarctata , Sueda maritima and Avicennia marina . Additionally, oysters Saccostrea cuculata and occasionally Crassostrea cuttakensis are found attached to the terracotta silt traps. The results highlight the potential of the nature-based Living Shoreline strategy to support mangrove regeneration and toe-line protection cost-effectively. The study also successfully opens up new possibilities for sustainable elevation management in the sinking and shrinking mangrove region of the Sundarbans, a significant development in the face of climate change and accelerated sea level rise.

Keywords: toe-line protection; coastal erosion; nature-based solution; Sundarbans; mangrove regeneration; oyster colonization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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