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When Hurricane Irene hit North Carolina's coast in 2011, waves 2 meters high began pounding the shore. Two properties on a barrier island, provided a study in contrasts. On one property waves overtopped and ultimately toppled a concrete bulkhead wall, washing away tons of sediment and leaving a denuded mud flat. Less than 200 meters away, a property with a "living shoreline"-a planted carpet of marsh grass that gently sloped into the water, held in place by a rock sill weathered the storm largely intact. The onrushing water bent the marsh grasses almost flat, but after the hurricane passed, the grasses sprang back to normal. [Source: Science / AAAS]
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