Sediment Management to Support Restoration and Resilience

About the Sediment Management Project

The Sediment Management to Support Restoration and Resilience project explores pressing issues related to Great Lakes sediment management, including its role in restoration, coastal resilience, and maritime transportation efforts, with a focus on the Eastern Lake Erie basin, Lake Ontario, and the upper St. Lawrence River. Through this project, the Great Lakes Commission (GLC) will gather information on needs, challenges, and opportunities for collaboration, and foster communication between parties to consider efforts related to the full lifecycle of sediment in the Great Lakes basin, from natural and anthropogenic sources to sinks.

Project activities will include facilitation of workshops, webinars and other convenings; support for on-the-ground work to incorporate nature-based solutions around a small harbor and production of policy comparisons and geospatial products to support sediment management efforts. The GLC plans to prioritize convening stakeholders and subject matter experts with different perspectives across sediment management sectors to ensure new viewpoints are shared and promote a systems thinking approach when possible. The project builds upon past and current GLC efforts, including a 2021 environmental dredging windows workshop convened by the GLC, a 2023 GLC Ad Hoc Committee on Small Harbors and Coastal Communities report, and the GLC’s Standing Committee on Climate Resilience.

This project, funded through an appropriation by New York state, will work toward the GLC’s strategic plan goals of safe and reliable waterways, resilient Great Lakes, and healthy aquatic ecosystems. Partners will include The Nature Conservancy, the Water Resources Institute at Cornell University, and the Institute for Conservation Leadership. This effort will be guided by collaborations with Great Lakes sediment management leaders across the basin.

Main Project Components

A communications/engagement strategy that identifies key messages and promotes discussions and coordination across topics, sectors, and jurisdictions, and effectively shares project outcomes;
A cornerstone event and associated activities focused on environmental dredging windows and related issues in Eastern Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and the St. Lawrence River;
A second cornerstone event focused on small harbor infrastructure and sediment needs as well as a series of convenings that bridge gaps in conversations and promote knowledge sharing among groups involved in sediment management;
On-the-ground sediment management implementation project(s) to improve sediment transport issues in one or more small harbors through the use of nature-based solutions;
A culminating event synthesizing lessons learned and project findings from the full suite of project activities across the three-year timeline, to share and communicate findings with key stakeholders and set the stage for future work.

Webinars

Sediment in motion: Exploring challenges, opportunities, and connections across the lifecycle of sediment This webinar features panelists from the Lake Ontario basin who present a suite of efforts related to sediment management challenges prevalent across the region, including upstream agricultural streambank erosion, longshore sediment transport as it feeds nearshore sediment structures, coarse sediment movement, and harbor sediment management.
Webinar 2: Coming in 2027

Upcoming Events

GLSNRP Dialogues – Green Bay, WI (August 4-5,2026) Session Title: Flowing downriver: exploring sediment and nutrient downstream impacts and solutions through innovative beneficial reuse The Great Lakes Commission’s Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program is celebrating its 35th anniversary of supporting the installation of erosion and sediment control practices in the Great Lakes basin. As part of this event, the project team will host a session featuring two speakers from the Wisconsin DNR and Bowling Green State University to present their work and the connection between upstream sediment management practices and downstream management of sediment accumulation and placement.
Healing Our Waters Great Lakes Conference – Detroit, MI (September 24-25, 2026) Session Title: Sediment in Motion: A Discussion of Nature-Based Solutions and Impacts on Sediment Transport This event, hosted by the Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition, brings advocates, professionals, and community members from around the region to a Great Lakes city to learn, share, and network around Great Lakes issues. The project team will host a session featuring three speakers from Michigan and New York who will present on their respective research and expertise on the use of various coastal resilience and restoration techniques.
Great Lakes Coastal Symposium – Huron, OH (October 26-28, 2026) Session Title: Exploring Restoration Practices and Partnerships for Beneficially Using Dredged Material in Coastal Communities This event, hosted by the Great Lakes Coastal Assembly, occurs every other year and brings together coastal stakeholders to share and discuss current research and coastal issues. This year, the event’s theme is Building Partnerships, Measuring Progress – The Future of Great Lakes Coasts. The project team will host a session focused on the issue of dredging in the Great Lakes basin, particularly in Lake Erie, and to highlight projects that are addressing this issue through coordinated habitat restoration work that fosters a systems approach to sediment management. The session will feature five speakers who will provide regional, state, and local perspectives on beneficial use practices in Ohio and Toronto, ON.
Advancing Practical and Science-based Strategies for Dredging Windows in eastern Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and the Upper St. Lawrence River – Buffalo, NY (November 17-18, 2026) This workshop, hosted by the Great Lakes Commission, follows the 2021 Lake Michigan Environmental Dredging Windows Symposium. The event will convene stakeholders representing local, state, provincial, and federal government perspectives as well as private and NGO perspectives to explore environmental dredging windows within the geographic focus. Sessions will dive into dredging windows policies and practices, current research, and opportunities for improved collaboration.

Project Partners

Funding

Funding for this project is provided by a direct appropriation from the New York State legislature administered by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

For More Information

Jill Estrada
Project Manager
[email protected]

Samantha Miller
Project Manager
[email protected]

Mary Sabuda
Maritime Transportation Policy Advisor
[email protected]