A salt marsh archipelago

BlueBlocks Gardens are a unique floating phytoremediation ecosystem and platform for education, exploring how plants and biophilic structures can support marine life within the waterways of the Hudson River Estuary. Initial design phases included close collaboration with various marine experts and biophilic concrete specialist Evelyn Tickle. Production design is underway following a successful prototype launch, with an 18-month pilot in several New York Harbor locations beginning Summer 2021.

BlueBlocks Gardens are floating, semi-submersible structures planted with salt-tolerant bio-beneficial ecosystems. These landscapes support multiple environmental benefits: they increase habitat for a broad range of marine life, introduce plants and habitat at engineered urban edges, and improve water quality.

The design of the BlueBlocks Garden is multi-layered, mimicking an integrated ecological system that supports life along a deep sectional column. Elements include: bio-beneficial concrete as the anchor on the seafloor and as undulations and indentations integrated into the underside of the garden flotation ring to facilitate sub-aquatic growth; mussel single-drop stocking for varied marine life; and planted beds suspended in and above the water, providing habitat for mammals, birds and insects. Every level of the floating garden is designed to actively support life.

The BlueBlocks Garden system is sustainable, modular, and multipurpose. Production will reduce the carbon impact and serve as a model for sustainable, local manufacturing and resilience for industrial coastlines. The modular design allows for serial production, and the expansion into archipelagos for multiple site conditions and uses. Garden modules can function as a walkways, coastline buffers, gathering spaces, oyster nurseries, kelp gardens, renewable energy platforms in addition salt marsh ecosystems.

Through the generous support of the Pratt Taconic Fellowship, the team successfully launched a prototype in early 2021. Over the course of an 18-month pilot study, a strict scientific method of observation, data gathering, monitoring, and assessment will be conducted with youth and graduate students to document the challenges and successes of the Gardens as a pilot. The research will demonstrate the value of the Gardens and provide critical information for improving future iterations, with a product launch including expanded and new sites in late 2022. 

The team has locations throughout the Hudson River Estuary, each with a unique set of aquatic conditions such as tidal flows, contamination, marine access, and water depth. These range from the Gowanus Canal, a highly-polluted narrow waterway; GBX Terminal, a bay condition facing the Buttermilk Channel; Bushwick Inlet Park; as well as sites north of the NYC metropolitan area. 

As a model of installation, maintenance and education programs for  future deployments, the team is currently in the process of building the first iteration of the Gardens at Governors Island in NY Harbor. The Trust for Governors Island’s support for experimentation, public engagement, and tangible solutions to the climate crisis, the Island’s growth as a destination for visitors both local and global, along with new ferry service from Red Hook, make the site a perfect fit as the first launch for the project. The Gardens are in direct alignment with the goals of the new Center for Climate Solutions; its ambitious mission focused on climate adaptation and technological innovation is a philosophy shared by RETI Center and partners thread collective and Black & Veatch.