The Mathews County Wetlands Board, meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 1, unanimously approved an application to place a rock groin and a rock sill with nourishment and plantings along the Milford Haven shoreline at 522 Old Ferry Road, Gwynn.

The project was requested by property owners Joseph and Arleen Allen and was opposed by Mark Thompson, an adjacent neighbor, who questioned whether a living shoreline would be adequate for the location if there were a major storm with large waves. He said he and other property owners used rock for their shorelines, and that it had proved effective for over 40 years.

Wetlands board chair Katy Jo Walden explained that an extensive report had been provided by the Shoreline Erosion Advisory Service of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation detailing their recommendation for a living shoreline, that the board must pay due attention to the advice of experts on the matter, and that board members would have to provide a rationale for not app...