Self-Ballasted Wood Structure for Shoreline Protection and Aquatic Habitat Enhancement and Method of Manufacture

摘要

The present invention is a self-ballasted wood timber to be used for shoreline protection and aquatic habitat enhancement. It is made by installing a dense ballast material within an interior cavity of a wood timber. The material is retained within the timber by plugging the open end(s). Two or more self-ballasted timbers may be assembled to form larger structures. Structures composed of the present invention have the advantage of being composed of organic materials ballasted internally by a dense material with specific gravity relative to fresh or salt water greater than one. Thus they can provide all of the aquatic habitat enhancement benefits of natural organic materials without the buoyant instability associated with organic materials in dynamic aquatic environments. Additionally, they can provide stability for shoreline protection without the negative impacts to aquatic habitat, water quality, and natural water body aesthetics associated with inorganic shoreline stabilization structures.