Camp Wilkes replaced a failed 150-foot wooden bulkhead with a living shoreline; a 60-year analysis found the switch would save the Biloxi camp about $73,000

A wooden bulkhead used to protect the waterfront at a Mississippi camp failed shortly after installation. Rather than rebuilding a similar structure, Camp Wilkes on Biloxi Bay decided to experiment with a living shoreline built from vegetation and sand instead of wood. According to a cost-benefit analysis published by the EPA, switching to the more ecologically friendly solution could save the camp roughly $73,000 over 60 years, about the cost of repeatedly rebuilding a wooden bulkhead. This is one of the few instances where such savings are based on a detailed, project-specific analysis rather than a broad, generic estimate.

Why the original wall gave out

Camp Wilkes had a 150-foot bulkhead installed in 2016. The structure failed shortly thereafter, according to the analysis. Instead of putting in another hard structure, the camp worked with Mississippi State University's Coastal Research and Extension Center and the Nature Conservancy to create a living shoreline. The project is now a case study on a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency web page about coastal protection. The problem with a bulkhead is that it does not adapt as the shoreline around it changes. Every storm and every slight rise in sea level adds up until bulkheads fail. Then someone has to remove the old bulkhead, pay for a new one, and repeat the process every two decades or so.


Why the original wall gave out

Camp Wilkes had a 150-foot bulkhead installed in 2016, and the structure failed shortly after, per the EPA case study. Instead of putting in another hard structure, the camp worked with Mississippi State University's Coastal Research and Extension Center and the Nature Conservancy to build a living shoreline. The project is now featured as a case study on the EPA's coastal-protection webpage. Storms and gradual sea-level rise can add up over time until bulkheads fail. When that happens, the old structure has to be removed and a new one installed; researchers modeled bulkhead replacement roughly every 25 years, the typical lifespan cited for a wooden bulkhead.

What a living shoreline actually is

A living shoreline uses plants, sand, and sometimes shells or small rocks to absorb wave energy and anchor the bank, rather than blocking waves the way a wall does, according to NOAA Fisheries. The living shoreline at Camp Wilkes cost $14,514: $12,000 for materials and $2,514 for volunteer labor, per the EPA-published figures.

The 60-year math behind the switch

Researchers compared the benefits of the living shoreline to a scenario in which a wooden bulkhead is replaced every 25 years, over 60 years between 2018 and 2078. The simulated living shoreline had a net present value of roughly $73,000 and a benefit-cost ratio of 6.03, meaning the benefits were roughly six times the project's cost. That value is more than five times the shoreline's initial $14,514 price tag, and the researchers found a positive return within the first year.

Most of the savings come from avoided maintenance and replacement, not storms: the bulkhead scenario carries an avoided cost of about $30,000 every 25 years for full replacement and roughly $1,417 a year in routine upkeep. Storm damage plays a smaller role; the study found hurricane repairs cost about $219 more for a bulkhead than a living shoreline. According to the study, this figure only covers Category 1 and 2 hurricanes, since researchers found insufficient data on how each shoreline type holds up in stronger storms. According to the study's assumptions, the estimated savings are conservative rather than a maximum estimate.

Why this matters for coastal homeowners

While Camp Wilkes sits on Biloxi Bay, similar living shoreline projects have spread across Mississippi and beyond. NOAA has supported more than 150 living shoreline projects nationwide since 1998, according to its project map. Yet many private waterfront homeowners still default to bulkheads or seawalls, an approach that can prove costly as seas rise and storms intensify.

Final takeaway

The $14,514 project is projected to save roughly $73,000 over 60 years compared with repeatedly rebuilding a wooden bulkhead. In this project, the living shoreline was also the less expensive option. A living shoreline won't suit every site, wave energy and local regulations can rule it out, but researchers involved in the analysis note it can serve as a model for evaluating similar shoreline-stabilization decisions elsewhere, per the NIST-published success story.