From left to right: Suzanne Biemiller, Vice President and Executive Director of Audubon Mid-Atlantic; Matt Heim, Director of Lower Shore Land Trust; Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain; Maryland Department of Natural Resources Secretary Josh Kurtz; and Dr. Mike Sieracki, Director of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. Photo by Anthony Burrows, Maryland DNR
Maryland Department of Natural Resources Launches “Roots for Resilience” Initiative To Strengthen Climate Adaptation on the Eastern Shore; New initiative will invest grant funding toward wetland restoration, living shorelines, other nature-based projects through collaboration with local and regional partners
Maryland 2026 - The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has launched a new initiative called Roots for Resilience: Strong Roots for a Changing Landscape to help Maryland’s Eastern Shore adapt to the growing impacts of climate change.
Through this initiative, which is supported by $42.5 million in federal grant funding, DNR will invest in nature-based climate solutions including tree planting, sustainable forest management, coastal wetland restoration, and living shoreline projects.
The initiative was officially launched Wednesday at an event with DNR staff and partners at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s Horn Point Campus, overlooking the Choptank River in the Eastern Shore’s Dorchester County.
“Roots for Resilience will be a major initiative for the environment and people of Maryland,” DNR Secretary Josh Kurtz said. “This work will focus on the Eastern Shore, where vulnerable rural areas are already managing the effects of rising sea levels and more intense storms. The new investments will make ecosystems and communities more resilient by protecting people, homes, and infrastructure while also improving wildlife habitat.”
The key goals of Roots for Resilience include protecting and restoring high-carbon forest and coastal habitats to maximize climate and community benefits; advancing sustainable forest management to increase carbon capture and preserve biodiversity; and building community resilience through outreach, education, and local partnerships.
A low marsh in Dorchester County. DNR photo
Adaptation efforts through the initiative will help facilitate change and build resilience to strong storms, flooding, and high temperatures in areas expected to face increasing impacts of climate change and sea level rise. Models project that sea level rise could lead to the loss of a third of the Eastern Shore’s high marsh by 2050. The region has already seen saltwater intrusion onto previously productive agricultural land.
These efforts are funded through a Climate Pollution Reduction Grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, awarded to the Atlantic Conservation Coalition, made up of agencies in four coastal states, including the Maryland Department of the Environment.
“Maryland’s climate plan recognizes that nature is one of our strongest allies. These investments under Maryland’s Atlantic Conservation Coalition Climate Pollution Reduction Grant will help us restore our coastlines, reduce climate risks like flooding and erosion, and deliver real benefits to the communities that live there.” said Maryland Secretary of Environment Serena McIlwain. “Nature-based solutions help us cut pollution, protect people, and strengthen resilience all at once—and that’s exactly the kind of integrated climate action Maryland is committed to delivering.”
