Landowners along New York State’s Great Lakes shoreline who have problems with erosion or damage caused by flooding, storm surge, water pooling or wind-wave action can have their property evaluated without cost by New York Sea Grant (NYSG) Extension. The evaluation is offered both virtually and in-person.

NYSG’s virtual site visit portal for Great Lakes shoreline property evaluation allows landowners to enter a description of their problem and locate their property on a map. New York Sea Grant Coastal Processes and Hazards Specialist Roy Widrig evaluates the options for addressing the issue and contacts the property owner. If needed, an in-person visit is scheduled.

Widrig applies his expertise to identifying nature-based or structural ways to address the erosion of shoreline and waterfront habitats as well as any need to restore the structural integrity of existing coastal structures. He can provide information on state and local shoreline project permitting requirements.

Widrig is the author of informational guides, including Working with Nature: A Guide to Native Plants for New York’s Great Lakes Shorelines, and Erosion Management for New York’s Great Lakes Shorelines, and is co-author of Erosion and Recession of New York’s Coastal Bluffs. The bluffs guide includes an insert for tracking erosion on a property and is freely downloadable at http://www.nyseagrant.org/theblufflet.

New York Sea Grant is a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York and one of 34 university-based programs under the National Sea Grant College Program. Its statewide network integrates research, education, and extension services focused on coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability, and citizen awareness and understanding about New York’s marine and Great Lakes resources. Learn more at www.nyseagrant.org.

The NYSG virtual site visit portal is online at https://www.nyseagrant.org/glcoastal/. For more information, contact New York Sea Grant at 315-312-3042, rlw294@cornell.edu.

TAKING ON SHORELINE EROSION – New York Sea Grant (NYSG) helps landowners deal with shoreline erosion. Pictured is shoreline erosion adjacent to rip-rap installation for erosion management at Mexico Point State Park in Oswego County. Photo by Roy Widrig/NYSG.