2024 Grants in Connecticut

CLEAN WATERS AND HEALTHY WATERSHEDS

Developing a Mystic River Watershed Resilience Action Plan using Community Engagement

Grantee: Alliance for the Mystic River Watershed

Grant Amount: $419,900
Matching Funds: $234,900
Total Project Amount: $654,800

Launch a robust engagement effort and planning process throughout four municipalities and two Tribal Nations within Mystic, Connecticut in order to initiate efforts to improve the watershed health along the Mystic River Watershed. Project will develop a community and stakeholder supported EPA Nine Element watershed-based plan, which will strive to address water quality impairments and resilience challenges in the watershed.

Implementation of the Brookfield Sewer Extension

Grantee: Brookfield Water Pollution Control Authority

Grant Amount: $1,500,000
Matching Funds: $750,000
Total Project Amount: $2,250,000

Construct a sewer extension to 91 parcels located on low-lying lots along the Still River in Brookfield, Connecticut, which are not conducive to the use of On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems. Project will reduce 34 pounds of nitrogen, reduce 24 pounds of phosphorus, and reduce potential risks to public health and wildlife habitats due to water quality issues.

Improving Water Quality in Long Island Sound by Managing Farm Waste on Laurelbrook Farm

Grantee: Northwest Conservation District, Inc.

Grant Amount: $390,300
Matching Funds: $226,600
Total Project Amount: $616,900

Expand the manure storage capacity on Laurelbrook Farm in East Canaan, Connecticut through the installation of a 3,997,800-gallon storage tank. Project will reduce 138,205 pounds of nitrogen, reduce 110,710 pounds of phosphorus and enhance outreach opportunities for the public, students and the farming community to learn about sustainable manure management.

Managing Silage Leachate in a Local Dairy Farm to Reduce Nitrogen in Long Island Sound

Grantee: Eastern Connecticut Conservation District, Inc.

Grant Amount: $1,500,000
Matching Funds: $750,000
Total Project Amount: $2,250,000

Construct a 3.8-acre concrete sileage bunker with a sileage leachate collection system at the Speilman Farm in Sprague, Connecticut. Project will remove the risks associated with leachate, reduce 2,873 pounds of nitrogen and reduce 439 pounds of phosphorus from the dairy farm.

Piloting an Innovative Wastewater Denitrifying Process at the Mystic Aquarium

Grantee: Sea Research Foundation, Inc.

Grant Amount: $172,100
Matching Funds: $134,200
Total Project Amount: $306,300

Implement an innovative wastewater denitrifying process to replace the industry-standard water filtration systems at the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut. Project will reduce 375 pounds of nitrogen from the aquarium’s nitrate-nitrogen output, educate the public on how to reduce their own nitrogen footprint through concurrent workshops, signage and field trips, and produce five plans to share with other zoos and aquariums whose discharge water also impact the Long Island Sound.

THRIVING HABITATS AND ABUNDANT WILDLIFE

Building a Coastal Crossings Inventory to Evaluate and Prioritize Fish Passage Efforts

Grantee: The Nature Conservancy

Grant Amount: $384,200
Matching Funds: $192,500
Total Project Amount: $576,700

Build an inventory of the locations of crossings within the Long Island Sound Coastal Watershed Boundary in Connecticut, train practitioners in North Atlantic Aquatic Connectivity Collaborative protocols and begin evaluating crossings for aquatic connectivity in southeastern Connecticut. Project will establish a joint effort between eight community organizations and agencies to adopt a coordinated approach to assessing fish passage in Connecticut.

Constructing a Park with a Living Shoreline Using Nature-based Solutions Along the Mystic River

Grantee: Town of Stonington

Grant Amount: $1,255,000
Matching Funds: $3,454,000
Total Project Amount: $4,709,000

Employ nature-based solutions to repurpose a brownfield site in Mystic, Connecticut into a park with a living shoreline through the engagement of local community leaders and organizations to implement a transformative living shoreline model. Project will construct a 0.2 acre living shoreline that restores the coastal habitats and protects the coastal community of the Mystic River shoreline.

Managing Invasive Plant Species and Restoring Coastal Habitat at Ocean Beach Park, New London

Grantee: University of Connecticut

Grant Amount: $82,900
Matching Funds: $41,500
Total Project Amount: $124,400

Remove invasive plant species and replant native coastal vegetation to restore the riparian habitat along the nature trail at the Ocean Beach Park in New London, Connecticut. Project will restore and reopen public access to 3.5 acres of critical coastal habitat bordering the Alewife Cove and Long Island Sound estuaries.

Planning to Restore Chalker and Chapman Beach Marshes and Mitigate Marsh-associated Flooding

Grantee: Town of Old Saybrook

Grant Amount: $323,400
Matching Funds: $191,500
Total Project Amount: $514,900

Conduct a feasibility analysis for restoring the degraded Chalker Beach Marsh and mitigate erosion of Cold Spring Brook marsh, examine potential residential neighborhood flood mitigation strategies and evaluate alternative concepts to restore the Cold Spring Brook marsh. Project will provide Chalker Beach marsh restoration plan and design alternatives, concept-level neighborhood-scale flood mitigation strategies and a concept-level Cold Spring Brook marsh erosion control/restoration practices.

SUSTAINABLE AND RESILIENT COMMUNITIES

Cultivating the Next Generation of Long Island Sound Stewards through Environmental Education

Grantee: Sea Research Foundation, Inc.

Grant Amount: $165,100
Matching Funds: $103,000
Total Project Amount: $268,100

Engage 120 high school students from Stonington, Connecticut in both classroom-based and field trip-based environmental education programs geared toward environmental issues impacting the water quality of the Long Island Sound. Project will provide students with conservation-based STEM skills, understanding of community-level solutions and empower the next generation of environmental stewards for a more resilient Long Island Sound.

Deploying the MyCoast Coastal Monitoring Tool to Improve Community Awareness of Flooding Events

Grantee: University of Connecticut

Grant Amount: $162,000
Matching Funds: $81,400
Total Project Amount: $243,400

Implement the MyCoast coastal monitoring, community science tool in New London, Groton, and Stonington to capture photos of flooding and high tide events through submissions by community members. Project will provide a means to capture photo locations and compare water level measurements using local tide gauges, offer evidence of flooding in the area and provide the community with the most accurate information about where to prioritize resilience actions.

Delivering an Oyster Conservation Education Program in the Long Island Sound

Grantee: New England Science & Sailing Foundation

Grant Amount: $79,400
Matching Funds: $40,300
Total Project Amount: $119,700

Provide hands-on experiential learning activities for 760 secondary school students, professional development activities that will bolster local capacity and deliver enhanced Long Island Sound oyster lessons through various community and school-based events within coastal Connecticut. Project will educate students and communities on the ecological significance of oysters on the water quality of the Long Island Sound.

Engaging Farmington Communities in River Smart Stormwater Management and Nature-based Solutions

Grantee: Farmington River Watershed Association, Inc.

Grant Amount: $75,000
Matching Funds: $54,700
Total Project Amount: $129,700

Introduce the River Smart environmental education program to the Farmington River Watershed, which educates communities on stormwater pollution and provides hands-on engagement through the implementation of nature-based solutions, including green infrastructure. Project will construct 4,500 square feet of green infrastructure through the installation of a rain garden/riparian buffer and a bioswale and engage 25,000 people through workshops, volunteer days, field trips, cleanups and social media.

Marine Debris Prevention Education in the Long Island Sound II

Grantee: Connecticut Audubon Society

Grant Amount: $247,100
Matching Funds: $174,900
Total Project Amount: $422,000

Educate and engage 1,600 students and their teachers from 15 elementary and middle schools in Connecticut through hands-on marine debris prevention activities. Project will educate students on marine debris prevention, coastal ecology and the Long Island Sound in the classroom, conduct a coastal cleanup at a location within their community as well as design and implement a schoolwide debris prevention awareness and action campaign.