Between Swamp and Sea: Agroforestry as Wetland Restoration in Southeast Virginia

Abstract

This paper examines the migration potential of two ecosystems characteristic to the coastal plain - the salt marsh and the bottomland hardwood forest. Set in an agricultural field in Chesapeake, Virginia, adjacent to the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, this applied research design project investigates how adaptive landscape strategies can facilitate marsh migration without sacrificing forested wetland or productive value. Observational studies of marsh migration into coastal forests are well documented, though the mechanisms and determinants behind this conversion are complex and have only recently been given attention. I synthesize empirical studies on the topographic factors that determine marsh migration to derive and apply design guidelines for a loblolly pine production system. Drawing on regional geomorphology, this work proposes a phased microtopography-driven approach to enact long-term transformation where silviculture is the strategy to make the transition operational. Through speculative design, this thesis reframes salt-impacted agricultural landscapes not as zones of loss, but as emergent ecologies capable of provoking novel possibilities in the face of accelerating sea level rise.