Restoration
Friends of the Dunes' Goals of Coastal Dune Restoration
The primary goals of coastal dune restoration are to:
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Restore native biodiversity: This includes both plants and animals that rely on coastal dune habitats.
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Reestablish natural processes: Where feasible, restoration aims to restore natural sand movement, erosion patterns, and plant succession processes that sustain healthy dune ecosystems.
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Adapt restoration methods to site-specific constraints: Some dunes are near infrastructure such as roads or buildings, requiring tailored approaches that prioritize stability while still improving biodiversity.
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Maintain a patchy, open vegetation structure: Dune ecosystems thrive with varied plant cover, creating diverse microhabitats for insects, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
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Friends of the Dunes (FOD) and our partners restore coastal dunes to improve native biodiversity, protect sensitive wildlife habitats, maintain coastal ecosystem function, and increase the shoreline’s resilience to storms and sea-level rise.
How We Restore
Coastal dune restoration often emphasizes the removal of invasive species, particularly European beachgrass.
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Hand-pulling or digging up invasive plants
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Controlled burns of dried grass piles
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Replanting native species in sensitive spots
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Letting native seed bank take over where possible
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Working with community volunteers
Native Planting Day
On January 24, 2026, more than 100 volunteers of all ages came together at the Humboldt Coastal Nature Center to plant native dune species and support ongoing coastal restoration efforts. From high school students to long-time community members, volunteers worked side by side to plant native dune mat species that will help improve habitat, support biodiversity, and strengthen the resilience of our coastal dunes.
This incredible day of restoration was made possible through strong partnerships with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Samara Restoration, American Conservation Experience, and the Redwood Community Action Agency. We are deeply grateful to these partners and to every volunteer who showed up to make a difference.
Future Plans
Stay Tuned! We will be announcing our future plans soon.
Dune Ecosystem Restoration Team (DERT) Work Days
Join our Dune Ecosystem Restoration Team (DERT) in removing non-native, invasive plants from our coastal dunes environments in order to make room for natural diversity. To learn more about common invasive plants in the dunes, visit our Natural History page.
DERT workdays occur twice a month at the following times and locations. Please bring water and wear layers & closed-toed shoes. Plant identification lessons will be provided.
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Every 2nd Saturday of the month from 10 am to 1 pm
Humboldt Coastal Nature Center
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Every 3rd Sunday of the month from 10 am to 1 pm
Ma-le'l Dunes North​
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Please see our Calendar for upcoming scheduled workdays.
Email restoration@friendsofthedunes.org if you have any questions.
Partner Projects
Friends of the Dunes supports the facilitation of the Humboldt Coastal Dunes Cooperative, focusing on collaborative restoration, management, and conservation of local dune environments with interested parties. Through this effort we share tools for strategic conservation planning and best practices for the ecological restoration of coastal ecosystems. ​
The Wadulh Restoration Project
The Wadulh Restoration Project consists of the restoration of 200 of the 300 acres of coastal dunes comprising the Wadulh Unit of Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
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The goal of the project is to restore the ecosystem function of coastal dunes by removing invasive plants and duff consisting of fibrous roots and organic matter, revegetation, and management of erosion and deposition of sand via sand fencing installations.
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The scope of the project was very large, and each process was very involved. It is best illustrated through 3 phases:
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Task 1: Project Management
Task 2: Implementation
Task 3: Monitoring