About the Project

Phragmites australis is an invasive grass species that affects many marshes along the U.S east coast, often displacing native grasses. Removing Phragmites has been a decades-long management goal as managers seek to restore native high marsh habitat and ecosystem functions and services. Phragmites removal and restoration efforts have proven beneficial for habitat and biodiversity. However, its removal has potentially negative impacts on water quality and carbon storage. A potential approach for managing tradeoffs associated with Phragmites removal is to use prescribed fire. While prescribed fire is a common method for vegetation removal, there has been limited research on the biogeochemical benefits provided by burned biomass or “biochar” left behind after these fires. Collaborating with regional coastal managers, this project team compared salt marshes with and without a history of prescribed burns at Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve and nearby marshes to better quantify how prescribed burns and biochar impacts marshes and their ecosystem services.

About this Resource

The workshop provided an opportunity for practitioners and land managers to discuss the use of these best management practices with the intent that these practices will be more widely implemented throughout the state and Mid-Atlantic region. The workshop was successful in sharing the state of Phragmites salt marsh restoration science, common scientific, logistical, and economic challenges experienced by managers, and scoping areas where progress can be made with future research and management efforts. Among the specific outcomes, the workshop led to the recognition that a) not all Phragmites interventions are successful, b) Phragmites does offer some ecosystem services particularly in the areas of water quality, nutrient storage, and coastal resilience, c) regular gatherings of stakeholders is valuable for managers to share information and adopt best practices, and d) there is a need to compile and evaluate monitoring data that can accommodate a shift toward context-driven management of Phragmites. A commentary paper summarizing these outcomes is being prepared to summarize these outcomes for publication in Wetland Science and Practice.