As part of Scott Burnham’s exhibition of public infrastructure designed to aid and assist nature at The Boston Society of Architects, introductions were made between BESE Elements from the Netherlands, and
BESE Elements are an innovative line of Biodegradable Ecosystem Engineering Elements – 3D structures made out of potato starch used for habitat improvement and a starting point for ecosystem restoration.
One of the exhibition partners was the Oyster Restoration Project from Nantucket, Massachusetts, who had been doing exceptional work bringing the area’s oyster beds back to life. The exhibition introduced them to BESE Elements, and Nantucket officials realized the biodegradable structures could aid them in their restoration efforts.
A number of the BESE Elements structures were sent to Nantucket and employed in their efforts to restore seagrass and salt marsh areas. As BESE Elements says on their website:
Applying BESE-elements seems a successful way to restore marsh vegetation. BESE-elements stabilize the sediment and provide conditions for settlement and growth of vegetation. Seeds of other species [become] entrapped and it also appears that sediment accumulates rapidly in the BESE.
BESE Elements
We are proud to be the initiators of this restorative relationship.
