Resilient Intelligence in Biomimetic Design of Coastal Green Infrastructure: Evaluating Habitat Complexity in Econcrete Modules for Adaptive Reef Patches

Coastal ecosystems face escalating threats from climate change and urbanisation, necessitating green infrastructure that balances structural resilience with ecological biomimetic design. This study investigates the habitat complexity of seven ECOncrete® coastal protection modules designed as building units for reef patches to evaluate their potential to enhance biodiversity and coastal resilience. A semi-quantitative framework integrated visual scoring by a multidisciplinary expert panel with quantitative volumetric analysis across six ecological features: surface topology, edge complexity, internal void architecture, vertical complexity, shelter provision, and organic form factor. Habitat potential ratios (void-to-solid volume) were calculated as geometric proxies for niche availability. Classic Tidal Pools and Bio Active Pocket emerged as top performers with visual scores of 89.0 and 71.7 and habitat ratios of 0.760 and 1.540, while Sea Wall Panels and Bio Active Standard scored lowest. Resilient intelligence — defined as the integration of expert perceptual judgement with exploratory computational sensitivity analysis — was incorporated through Random Forest modelling, identifying Surface Topology and Edge Complexity as dominant design attributes. Ranking mismatches highlight the complementary nature of perceptual and geometric metrics. The study underscores the potential of void-rich, nature-inspired modules to support marine biodiversity, with field validation recommended as a necessary next step.