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Sustainable Dune Restoration on Martha’s Vineyard Creates Coastal Resilience, and Endangered Species Habitat.

Federal & State Permit Assistance for the Northeastern Beach Tiger Beetle.

The Client: Private landowner consortium, Martha’s Vineyard, MA. Regulatory partners: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (federal ESA) and Massachusetts Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program (state MESA).

The Opportunity. A private landowner group on Martha’s Vineyard is restoring eroding coastal dunes for storm protection and sea-level rise resilience. The project area is core habitat for the Northeastern Beach Tiger Beetle, requiring federal and state permits to proceed. ABC helped all involve understand this “construction project” is actually the first opportunity for active habitat management for this species, and a sustainable method for coastal protection.

What ABC Is Doing.

  • Discussing individual needs with stakeholders, and coordinating communication across federal and state regulatory personnel to meet regulatory, and project needs for landowners, and agencies.
  • Drafting beetle-specific content for federal and state regulatory permits, including the project’s Conservation and Management Plans, and Incidental Take Permits.
  • Mapping NBTB habitat within the project footprint to define the boundaries of regulated activities, and designing translocation protocols to move larvae from the project area.

Outcome. Once complete, the project will be the first active habitat management method ever attempted for the Northeastern Beach Tiger Beetle. The approach offers a reproducible, scalable, nature-based strategy combining coastal resilience with endangered species habitat conservation.

For Projects Like this. ABC helps stakeholders find equitable outcomes involving endangered species. And drafts species-specific content for regulatory requirements. We’re a good first call when a project intersects with ESA or state regulations.