Lower Kingman Island Habitat Restoration

Project Description

In the 1920s, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers created Kingman and Heritage Islands as part of the Anacostia Tidal Flats Reclamation project. Management of the 45-acre Lower Kingman Island and five-acre Heritage Island was transferred to the District of Columbia Government in 1996. In an effort to enhance existing ecosystem processes and functionality while providing well-designed, usable open space for passive recreation and environmental education, the Corps and the District of Columbia Parks and Recreation turned to Biohabitats for help.

Through an Indefinite Delivery contract with the Corps’ New York District, the Corps’ Baltimore District retained Biohabitats to evaluate an existing master plan, conduct environmental assessment and monitoring studies and develop a full set of construction documents for the implementation of ecological restoration initiatives and passive recreation features for the islands.

Biohabitats performed environmental inventories, biological resource surveys and habitat evaluations. Data was synthesized through a series of environmental analysis and assessment exercises to develop an ecosystem restoration design that focused on habitat restoration. Working with the Corps to direct engineering investigations, hydrologic and hydraulic engineering, surveying & integration of typographic/bathymetric surveys and geotechnical engineering, Biohabitats formulated a full set of construction plans.

The plans, prepared in accordance with Corps regulations, guidelines and procedures, included habitat restoration along with shoreline stabilization and erosion control. Biohabitats prepared construction cost estimates using Micro-Computer Aided Cost Estimating System (MCACES). Biohabitats also prepared a Natural Resource Management Manual detailing an adaptive management regime for the long-term management of the specified restoration initiatives.