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James Island in Dorchester County, Maryland

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Formerly inhabited, James Island has shrunk over the centuries due to erosion, land subsidence and sea-level rise in the Chesapeake Bay. Now home only to terns, osprey, herons and other wildlife, the island first broke into three sections, but those have since broken up into even smaller fragments.

With a new project on the horizon, James Island’s disappearing act will soon come to an end. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Maryland Port Administration created a plan to restore the shrinking island, starting in 2024. The project will create wildlife habitat using sediment that needs to be dredged anyway by the Port of Baltimore in order to keep shipping channels open.

Once spanning over 1,300 acres when it was settled in the early 1660s, James Island will be restored to nearly 2,100 acres.

(Photos by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program)
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Chesapeake Bay Program
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www.chesapeakebay.net
Formerly inhabited, James Island has shrunk over the centuries due to erosion, land subsidence and sea-level rise in the Chesapeake Bay. Now home only to terns, osprey, herons and other wildlife, the island first broke into three sections, but those have since broken up into even smaller fragments.<br /> <br /> With a new project on the horizon, James Island’s disappearing act will soon come to an end. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Maryland Port Administration created a plan to restore the shrinking island, starting in 2024. The project will create wildlife habitat using sediment that needs to be dredged anyway by the Port of Baltimore in order to keep shipping channels open.<br /> <br /> Once spanning over 1,300 acres when it was settled in the early 1660s, James Island will be restored to nearly 2,100 acres.<br /> <br /> (Photos by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program)