Fairhill Saltmarsh Collaborative Restoration Project

Rockingham County Conservation District (RCCD) worked with several partners after a NH Department of Environmental Services, Coastal Program driven NH Saltmarsh Task Force meeting (held in 2022) to review resiliency of the Fairhill saltmarsh.  Fairhill saltmarsh was deemed important to initiate a restoration planning exercise due to the following: 

• Saltmarshes were highly valued between the 1600-1800s and due to the push for agriculture expansion, were historically farmed, and heavily manipulated (often drained and ditched) to allow for favorable  crops most often by excluding tidal waters from saltmarshes.

• Recent restoration and monitoring efforts have shown a decline in vegetation, expansion of pools, and loss of favorable wildlife habitats.

• Development of the NH Saltmarsh Plan (2023) which ranked current conditions and vulnerability to sea level rise of all saltmarshes in NH - highlights that Fairhill marsh has highly favorable conditions for marsh migration – the highest in the State.

Over the last 18 months, RCCD and NH Department of Environmental Services (DES) through the Coastal Program, met with a variety of professional saltmarsh experts, and the Rye Conservation Commission, and worked with a design team on learning about and reviewing the historic impairments found in the saltmarsh.

We are now gathering interested individuals and folks living in or near the saltmarsh to provide us with some local input on changes that you have seen over time, issues or impacts you have witnessed, and what you see as a priority for natural resources in the area. 

So far, we have a preliminary restoration design, suggesting mostly low-impact modifications using existing drainage structures in the marsh, which is focused on increasing the waterflow off the marsh, as it is currently being impounded, and not able to drain properly.  We also have additional conservation practices suggested to benefit the health of the saltmarsh (i.e., invasive species removal, wildlife habitat enhancements).

We’ve completed our initial outreach efforts, but as the preliminary plans are developed, we are hoping to have additional outreach sessions with neighbors of Fairhill saltmarsh.  Please look for updates coming via RCCD’s social media and website in the future.