Material from Coconuts Helps Protect Coastal Areas

Coastal¹ communities around the world are using material from coconuts³ to reduce beach erosion.

Long pieces from the outer shell of the coconut², known as coir, are often used with other materials to build barriers. The barriers are used to protect beaches from getting washed away by the force of waves. The coconut material is widely available and costs a lot less than barriers made of other materials, such as wood, steel or concrete.

Coir material is processed and put together to form larger pieces. It is often held together with netting. In developing areas, old fishing nets can also be used.

Some projects create "living shorelines" made from natural elements rather than hard materials. One is being built along part of an eroded⁵ riverbank in Neptune⁶, New Jersey⁷. The $1.3 million project is being financed by a mix of federal and local money by the American Littoral⁸ Society, a coastal environmental group.

The effort has already greatly improved areas that suffered major erosion damage during Superstorm Sandy in 2012. "We're always trying to reduce wave energy while shielding the shoreline," said Tim Dillingham, the group's director. "And whenever we can, we like to employ nature-based solutions."

The coconut-based material is designed to biodegrade, or break down, over time. But before it does, it is sometimes pre-seeded with shoreline plants and grasses. Those plants can also be placed in holes that can be punched into the coir material.

One project is happening in Boston. That is where Julia Hopkins, an assistant professor at Northeastern University, is using coir, wood chips and other material to create floating barriers to slow the force of waves.

A test project has four coconut-based barriers in waterways around Boston. Hopkins imagines a network of hundreds or even thousands of mats linked together to protect wider areas.

Hopkins is pleased with the results she has seen so far. She said the coconut material is not costly⁹ and is actually being recycled rather than being thrown away.

Two projects in East Providence¹⁰, Rhode Island, used coconut material in 2020. The next year, 731 meters of damaged shoreline in New York's Jamaica Bay were treated through a project that also included coconut coir material.

Similar projects have been carried out in the states of Delaware and Texas.

Indonesia is the world's largest coconut producer, with more than 17 million metric tons in 2021. Scientists from the Oceanography Program of Bandung Institute of Technology used coconut material to help build a sea wall in a village in West Java in 2018.

In southern Senegal, people on Diogue Island are using wooden structures and coconut material to reclaim¹¹ eroded beaches.

The method does not always work, however. In 2016, the Felix Neck Wildlife Refuge in Edgartown, Massachusetts, built barriers around a salt marsh¹² that had eroded in the past. While the effort did help reduce erosion for a while, the material did not last long because of strong waves.

Suzan Bellincampi is the refuge's director. "The project was really interesting in terms of what we wanted to do and how we adapted it," she said. "It's not for every site; it has to be site-specific. It works in some places; it doesn't work in all places."

In a similar way, coconut-based structures were recently used on Chapel¹³ Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. But they were damaged by bad weather.

Lac des Battures is a lake on Montreal's Nuns¹⁴' Island in Canada. People there use coconut material to control the growth of invasive plants along the shoreline.

Words in This Story

erode⁴ – v. to be gradually removed from a place by water, wind

concrete – n. a hard substance used in many building projects

net – n. something made with a piece of net, such as a tool to catch fish

shoreline – n. the edge of a sea, lake or wide river

biodegrade – v. to decay naturally and in a way that is not harmful

refuge – n. a place that provides protection or shelter from harmful things

adapt – v. to change something to suit different conditions

invasive – adj. moving into all areas of something and very difficult to stop

1 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

2 coconut   

n.椰子

参考例句：

• The husk of this coconut is particularly strong.椰子的外壳很明显非常坚固。
• The falling coconut gave him a terrific bang on the head.那只掉下的椰子砰地击中他的脑袋。

3 coconuts   

n.椰子( coconut的名词复数 )；椰肉，椰果

参考例句：

• We found a bountiful supply of coconuts on the island. 我们发现岛上有充足的椰子供应。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Coconuts provide "meat", drink, oil, soap and fiber for fishing line. 椰子提供“肉类”，饮料、油脂、肥皂和做钓（鱼）丝的纤维。 来自百科语句

4 erode   

v.侵蚀，腐蚀，使...减少、减弱或消失

参考例句：

• Once exposed,soil is quickly eroded by wind and rain.一旦暴露在外，土壤很快就会被风雨侵蚀。
• Competition in the financial marketplace has eroded profits.金融市场的竞争降低了利润。

5 eroded   

adj. 被侵蚀的，有蚀痕的 动词erode的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The cliff face has been steadily eroded by the sea. 峭壁表面逐渐被海水侵蚀。
• The stream eroded a channel in the solid rock. 小溪在硬石中侵蚀成一条水道。

6 Neptune   

n.海王星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun.海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Neptune turned out to be a dynamic,stormy world.海王星原来是个有生气、多风暴的世界。

7 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

8 littoral   

adj.海岸的；湖岸的；n.沿（海）岸地区

参考例句：

• We should produce the littoral advantage well.我们应该把海滨的优势很好地发挥出来。
• The reservoir sandstone was believed to have been deposited in a littoral environment.储集层砂岩就被认为是近海环境的沉积。

9 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

10 providence   

n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝

参考例句：

• It is tempting Providence to go in that old boat.乘那艘旧船前往是冒大险。
• To act as you have done is to fly in the face of Providence.照你的所作所为那样去行事，是违背上帝的意志的。

11 reclaim   

v.要求归还，收回；开垦

参考例句：

• I have tried to reclaim my money without success.我没能把钱取回来。
• You must present this ticket when you reclaim your luggage.当你要取回行李时，必须出示这张票子。

12 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

13 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

14 nuns   

n.（通常指基督教的）修女， （佛教的）尼姑( nun的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Ah Q had always had the greatest contempt for such people as little nuns. 小尼姑之流是阿Q本来视如草芥的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Nuns are under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. 修女须立誓保持清贫、贞洁、顺从。 来自辞典例句