This resource is a companion to The Nature Conservancy’s Coastal Resilience tool and the related Restoration Explorer, a web-based application that allows users to visualize which living shoreline techniques are most appropriate for reducing erosion at specific sites along New Jersey’s coastline.

The guide provides summary information and additional resources on the benefits of incorporating living shorelines into community planning processes and key steps in identifying, planning, and implementing living shorelines in a community. Topics covered include:

• Information on the role and benefits of living shorelines;
• How to incorporate living shorelines and other nature-based solutions into community planning efforts;
• Tools for selecting living shoreline techniques;
• Steps in planning and constructing living shoreline projects;
• Major project costs and potential funding sources;
• Permitting considerations;
• The importance of project monitoring; and
• Partner resources.

The Community Resource Guide was developed as part of the New Jersey Resilient Coastlines Initiative, a network of conservation, academic, state, and federal partners supported by funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The goal of the Initiative is to facilitate the use of living shorelines by communities when responding to coastal hazards.