Wanchese Marsh Section 204

The Corps of Engineers and the non-Federal sponsor, the State of North Carolina, worked together to design and construct the Wanchese Marsh project, which completed construction in 2009. The project is located within the Roanoke Sound at Wanchese Harbor adjacent to the channel from Oregon Inlet, Dare County, North Carolina.  The project site is north of the entrance of Wanchese Harbor, located on the southeastern corner of Roanoke Island, North Carolina. The project involved construction of approximately 12 acres of estuarine creek and marsh habitat using dredge material from the maintenance of the Manteo-Oregon Inlet Channel and Side Channel to Wanchese, a portion of the Manteo (Shallowbag) Bay project. The project includes construction of approximately 8 acres of estuarine creek and marsh habitat with a protective stone dike, located immediately north of the Wanchese harbor entrance.  The dike runs parallel to the existing harbor entrance channel for approximately 500 feet and then turns north and parallels the shoreline for approximately 700 feet. Enhancement measures also include the construction of an oyster reef (1 acre) and chemical control of the invasive species Phragmites and replanting with native marsh vegetation (1 acre). This project also protects about 2 acres of wetlands previously threatened by erosion.