PRJNA798089
Next generation sequencing of 16S rRNA genes in marine biofilm from Living Seawalls panels
The Living Seawalls project combines innovative design with ecological and engineering knowledge to bring life back to marine built structures. The project addresses the growing but underappreciated contribution of marine built structures to biodiversity loss in our oceans. These structures are built to protect shorelines, to support recreation and the blue economy. Collectively, these structures modify an area of seafloor that is greater than the global area of mangrove forests and seagrass beds. The ecological impacts of these structures arise both from their destruction and degradation of natural habitats, but also their flat and often featureless surfaces, which provide little protection to marine life from predation and environmental stressors. The net effect is loss of native biodiversity, and spread of pest species.Living Seawalls comprise panels, mimicking the habitat features of natural shorelines that are fitted in scalable mosaics onto built structures. The complex panel surfaces increase the habitat area for growth of microbes, seaweeds, shellfish and other marine life. They also provide protection to marine life from high temperatures and predators. The panels are modular, can be fitted to built structures of varying size, can be planted with native species, and can be fabricated from upcycled materials.