A marsh terrace is an artificially created berm that is built in a wetland to prevent erosion, reduce wave energy, and improve habitat for wildlife. Marsh terracing is most common throughout the upper Gulf Coast of the United States, where it is used to prevent coastal erosion, with 980 linear km (609 mi) having been built in Texas and Louisiana alone in the thirty years to 2020. The terraces catch sediment from rivers which is then colonized by plants to form marshland.