During bouts of severe weather, including tropical storms and hurricanes, coastal dune systems provide crucial protection for coastal communities, but these dunes can be torn apart by high winds and strong surf. However, the very surf that at times causes damage is also delivering natural materials that may prove to be the key to a more resilient dune system. Researchers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), along with partners at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Mobile District and The University of Southern Mississippi (USM), are developing methods to use this natural material – known as wrack – to build coastal dunes crucial to protecting the coastline during hazardous weather events like hurricanes.