Four homeowners associations and community groups will work to transform thousands of feet of Chesapeake Bay shoreline from bulkheads to natural habitats for aquatic life.

Through a grant program administered by the Chesapeake Bay Trust, the Anne Arundel groups were among 10 organizations to receive $540,000 for the creation of living shorelines.

“Through this initiative, we have been able to lead the way in showing it’s not only feasible, but also cost-effective,” Allen Hance, Chesapeake Bay Trust executive director, said of living shorelines.

The nonprofit Chesapeake Bay Trust awarded the grants in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

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The grantees include:

n London Towne Property Owners Association: $50,000;

n Selby Community Association: $49,862;

n West River Center: $59,280;

n Fishing Creek Farm Homeowners Association: $62,000.

The London Towne Property Owners Association owns three miles of shoreline and has restored a half-mile where waves were nibbling away at the land, said Steve Hult, association spokesman.

“Living shorelines are something people don’t necessarily understand, so we started out slowly” he said.

 Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Md., called shorelines restoration “key” in restoration efforts, adding “it needs to be carried out with ... appreciation for the entire ecosystem.”

Living shorelines replace the more common bulkheads along the water’s edge with marshes that reduce erosion and provide a habitat for Bay grasses and oysters, said Rob Schnabel, a restoration scientist with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, which provides support and training for building living shorelines.

smichael@baltimoreexaminer.com