Allouez Bay in Superior, Wisconsin hosts one of the highest-quality remaining Lake Superior coastal wetlands in the St. Louis River Estuary including large beds of restored manoomin (wild rice), fostering many recreation interests including fishing and hunting. The second phase of a large-scale restoration of Allouez Bay that fits into the broader Headwaters Vision Plan, phase 2 of the restoration work prioritizes wave attenuation to protect the coastal wetland from wave energy and directly provide favorable conditions to allow submergent and aquatic vegetation to re-establish in areas where historical vast hemi-marsh was documented. Another priority is for features to directly provide fish and wildlife habitat leading to improved conditions for recreation activities. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) and Audubon Great Lakes (AGL) lead a team of a dozen partners to review alternatives of wave attenuation structures modeled by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Each of the three alternatives, informed by bathymetry, historical aerials, and other data represents a further refined series of barchan dune and other island and peninsula features, incorporating feedback from the partner team and the community. USACE also modeled circulation behind features for each alternative to avoid stagnation. The poster displays the alternatives that led to the selected alternative that provides the basis for design for phase 2 of the Allouez Bay restoration project.
