FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Anya Grondalski, Science Communicator

agrondalski@longislandsoundstudy.net      

[STAMFORD, CT] ­— On August 26, 2024, the US Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service signed a 3-year $1,172,800 interagency agreement titled: Building a Salt Marsh Monitoring and Analysis Network to Support Restoration and Climate Change Sentinel Monitoring in Long Island. This project will create a collaborative of scientists and managers to provide comparable data on the impact of climate change on Long Island Sound salt marshes, which will help municipalities, NGOs, and other organizations with planning for restoration projects.

Building a salt marsh monitoring network is a long-standing priority of the Long Island Sound Study. This project builds on other successful collaborative monitoring efforts like the Unified Water Study (launched in 2017 by Save the Sound) and the Pathogen Monitoring Network (pilot led by the Interstate Environmental Commission in 2023). The team began design and implementation of the monitoring network on October 1, 2024.

Salt marshes are vital for resilient communities, offering storm protection, supporting cleaner waters, and habitat for many species. However, inconsistent data on marsh health and climate impacts in Long Island Sound can hinder restoration efforts. This project brings together scientists and managers to gather data for better informed management practices.

Project partners include The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, Connecticut National Estuary Research Reserve, University of Connecticut, The Nature Conservancy chapters in Connecticut and New York, the Natural Resource Conservation Service, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Audubon Connecticut, the Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

The Long Island Sound Study is a partnership of federal and state agencies working with local governments, communities, universities and industry to protect and care for the Sound’s health.

The Long Island Sound Eelgrass Management and Restoration Strategy provides guidance for short and long-term actions that should be taken to manage and restore eelgrass meadows in Long Island Sound and act as a resource for other estuaries in the region facing similar issues. The strategy is a living document, meaning that as new research, resources, and information becomes available, the gaps and required actions may change. It was developed by the EPA Long Island Sound Office in collaboration with the Long Island Sound Study and local expert and stakeholder input.

Connecticut Sea Grant is excited to share openings for three extension positions.  The positions are:

• Extension educator—nature-based approaches to resilience. The successful candidate will work in collaboration with federal and state agencies, municipal entities, and communities, along with partner organizations, to foster and improve exchanges of knowledge to better identify the diverse needs of communities, including their response to increasing threats to coastal resources associated with climate change, and to increase the public’s understanding of changing conditions, hazards, and related impacts. See https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/24454.
• Sustainable and resilient communities assistant extension educator. The successful candidate will coordinate and collaborate with the four other Extension professionals in CT and NY to efficiently and effectively achieve the goals of the LISS Sustainable and Resilient Communities five-year work plan. See https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/24455.
• Long Island Sound Study outreach coordinator. The successful candidate will work to increase appreciation, stewardship, awareness, and understanding of Long Island Sound and efforts to restore and protect it. Special emphasis is on educational programs for diverse communities and stakeholders that lead to the protection and restoration of Long Island Sound’s natural resources. See https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/24452.

This entry originally appeared on the Connecticut Sea Grant website.

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The spring 2022 issue of Sound Update focuses on Long Island Sound Study’s Year in Review of 2021. Various clean water, habitat restoration, education, and science projects from Connecticut and New York are highlighted, including the new Long Island Sound Marine Debris Action Plan, Community Science Long Island 2021, and the latest findings on hypoxia in the Sound.

The spring 2021 issue of Sound Update focuses on Long Island Sound Study’s Year in Review of 2020. Various clean water, habitat restoration, education, and science projects from Connecticut and New York are highlighted.