2026 Saco Bay Symposium

The 2026 Saco Bay Symposium, hosted by the City of Saco on March 23, 2026, focused extensively on coastal resilience, shoreline management, and dune restoration efforts in the Saco Bay area and surrounding communities. Key presentations covered recent shoreline changes, dune restoration projects, and the deployment of monitoring technologies such as wave gauges and drone imaging. Significant discussion centered on the county-led dredge program, which has been instrumental in emergency dune replenishment and is now moving toward long-term engineered beach projects designed to provide 100-year storm protection. The symposium highlighted the need for coordinated regional efforts, sustainable funding mechanisms, and streamlined permitting processes, including updates on permit by rule options and the Coastal Sand Dune Restoration and Protection Fund, which has allocated approximately $550,000 for restoration projects with $450,000 remaining. A $50 million bond for engineered beach projects was also discussed, emphasizing the scale and cost of such infrastructure. The event underscored collaboration among municipal, county, state, and federal partners to support coastal resilience, with ongoing grant opportunities and technical assistance available through the State Resilience Office and regional planning organizations. No specific contract awards or vendor selections were detailed, but the meeting emphasized procurement-related topics such as grant funding, capital improvement projects, and regulatory updates affecting future coastal infrastructure work.