New York Sea Grant (NYSG) has announced a significant investment of $6.8 million in research funding, supplemented by an additional $3.6 million in matched dollars. This funding will support 13 projects across five institutions in New York and Connecticut: Stony Brook University (SBU), City University of New York (CUNY), Cornell University, University of Connecticut, and The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk. These projects aim to address key aspects of the Long Island Sound ecosystem.
Chris Gobler, a distinguished professor at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS), has been awarded over $325,000 for one of five projects focusing on water quality issues. The two-year study aims to assess the effects of excess nutrients on phytoplankton proliferation, harmful algal blooms (HABs), hypoxia, and carbon sinking under climate change scenarios. Gobler's team will identify nutrient reduction levels needed to mitigate these effects and communicate findings with management agencies in New York and Connecticut.
Giovanna McClenachan, assistant professor at SoMAS, is involved in five other research projects examining salt marsh dynamics and restoration challenges. She has received over $332,000 for a two-year study at specific salt marshes in New York and Connecticut. The study will calculate rates of elevation gain, quantify landscape conditions influencing elevation change, and measure plant decay rates to aid restoration managers in maximizing tidal marsh resilience against sea level rise.
Dianne I. Greenfield from CUNY has been awarded nearly $600,000 for another project exploring water quality issues. Collaborating with Craig Tobias and Julie Granger from the University of Connecticut, Greenfield's two-year study evaluates water quality downstream from wastewater treatment plants during dry and wet periods. The goal is to assess nitrogen inputs' relationship with HABs and identify tipping points that trigger their proliferation.
Matt Hare from Cornell University has received over $242,000 for a one-year study titled “Restorative Aquaculture: Measuring the Extent of Ecosystem Services from Aquaculture Farms.” Hare's research investigates oyster farms' contributions to wild populations through larvae migration and assesses genetic mixing consequences between wild and farmed oysters.
These projects represent the largest award for Long Island Sound research history through collaboration between the Connecticut Sea Grant (CTSG), NYSG programs, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Long Island Sound Study (LISS). Lane Smith from NYSG emphasized that "this research will benefit the Sound community" by providing new information on managing the ecosystem effectively.
Rebecca Shuford added that with topics ranging from water quality improvement to population dynamics having societal benefits "we are certain this body of work will make a tangible impact."
For more details about these initiatives, refer to the complete NYSG press release.
New York Sea Grant operates as part of Cornell University and SUNY under NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program.