The tide is turning for Long Island Sound’s coastal communities with over $1 million in grant money set to progress their climate resilience efforts. New York and Connecticut’s Sea Grant funded this year’s awards to support projects like climate vulnerability assessments, restoration and conservation efforts and flooding mitigation plans. “This effort is really focused on seeing where communities are at and having a dialogue on how we can help you solve your local problems, help you be more resilient,” said Mark Tedesco, director of the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at the Long Island Sound Office. “It starts with listening and then starts with trying to make funds available to implement projects and there has to be an earlier step in planning and development.” The funding is part of the larger Long Island Sound Resilience Planning Support Program that was created in 2021 with the EPA. The initiative aims to collaborate with local communities to combat climate erosion in the Sound and build resilience. This is the first round of funding in the program’s history and Tedesco said there will be more money coming. There will also be no match required from the communities receiving these awards due to the program’s partnerships with other organizations that have already provided matches for federal grants. “It reflects this larger partnership effort,” Tedesco said. “We felt that this was so important that we needed to make funds available without that match to generate the interest and support and launch the program. It’s also to take advantage of the funding that’s available both in the federal and the state governments while it’s here.” The $1 million will be allocated across 15 different communities — 10 in New York and five in Connecticut. Some of the projects it will fund include Connecticut’s Mystic River Watershed climate assessments, plan developments for the Town of Madison and Long Island’s conservation and restoration initiative for St. John’s Church marsh and pond. “This [program] was done with the recognition of the growing need to work with the local Long Island Sound communities to enhance available resources and tools and also capacity within communities to support coastal resilience,” said Rebecca Shuford, director of New York Sea Grant. “The projects that are supported through this program are going to equip communities with actionable plans and innovative solutions through transformative resilience initiatives that address climate vulnerabilities while promoting long-term sustainability.” In addition to the funding, the program offers grant writing assistance and development planning support. Both additional support initiatives are free of monetary cost to the communities. “We are not going anywhere. We’re staying here,” said Sylvain De Guise, director of the Connecticut Sea Grant. “We want to keep working with you not only to develop plans but also keep acting on those plans and get bigger awards to continue the implementations. De Guise also said the Grant Writing Assistance Program aims to help the communities and contractors develop more thorough grant applications and improve conceptual designs. Mamaroneck Town Supervisor Jaine Elkind Eney said she is grateful. “As a coastal community, flooding is one of our highest priorities and serious problems that we face,” she said. “This money will enable us to study three identified locations in the town that are particularly prone to flooding and develop strategies to reduce the severity and frequency of flooding.” Tedesco underscored the importance of collaboration between EPA and both New York and Connecticut Sea Grants with local communities. “It’s all about building from the ground up, working with local communities who know the issues they have to solve and then finding ways to work collaboratively to help them solve it,” he said. “The better their communities, the better Long Island Sound.” This story was first published Dec. 9, 2024 by WSHU.