Northeast Region

Connecticut Sea Grant
Project Sea Urchin helps kids learn about the shore

• Project Sea Urchin, a partnership coordinated by Connecticut Sea Grant and the Women's Center of Southeastern Connecticut, introduces children who are residents of shelters for domestic violence victims and homeless youth to the shore.
• The project's second session was held in late July for 29 children (ages 5-17) who visited the University of Connecticut's Avery Point campus.
• Activities included a walk inside the Avery Point lighthouse, a visit to the touch tank in the Rankin seawater laboratory, a seine on the beach for estuary creatures and seaweed, arts and crafts, ice cream, and "gyotaku," fish painting on T-shirts.
• The children are usually confined indoors, so the outing is a natural complement to Connecticut's "No Child Left Inside" education program.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sea Grant
Scientists search for marine aliens

• Researchers have been cataloging native and non-native species as part of a $25,000 multi-state, weeklong survey, coordinated by the Massachusetts Bays Program and the MIT Sea Grant program.
• When surveying was last done in 2003, 34 non-native organisms were revealed, including some identified for the first time.
• In August 2007, many of the same researchers catalogued marine organisms, collecting samples from ports where both large and small foreign vessels dock. Along with the sampling, researchers also recorded water temperature and other environmental conditions.
• While they take note of new arrivals, researchers also hope to educate the public about consequences of non-native species arriving on our shores, and what boaters and others can do to help prevent it.

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sea Grant
Right whale biopsies provide clues to genetic response to the environment

• A WHOI Sea Grant researcher is investigating the susceptibility to right whales to contaminants such as PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), dioxins and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons).
• The North American right whale is one of the most endangered whale species in the world, now numbering roughly 350.
• A threat to the whales, not easily detected, is the uptake and accumulation of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and the effects these contaminants have on the physiology of the North Atlantic right whale, especially on reproductive biology.
• The results provide insight into how different chemical contaminants may activate toxic responses in different ways. These findings, although preliminary, could be important for understanding the relative contributions of PCBs versus PAHs to effects on North Atlantic right whale health.

Maine Sea Grant
Sea Grant and partners tap into Maine's global market for green tourism

• Thanks to the new Resource Guide for Sustainable Tourism in Down East Maine and Southwest New Brunswick, a guidebook by Sea Grant and partners, businesses can tap into hundreds of local, regional, and national resources to become more environmentally friendly, help protect the region's abundant assets, and help distinguish the region as a top global destination for visitors looking for an environmentally sustainable, culturally sensitive, and enjoyable experience.
• Natalie Springuel, project coordinator and Maine Sea Grant marine extension associate says, "The goal is to help businesses become increasingly attractive to visitors who seek quality experiences in places where tourism contributes to the well-being of local communities and environments, while providing an opportunity for local economic development."
• The resource guide covers the marine environment, water conservation, building design, energy conservation, air pollution prevention, ecological landscaping, waste management and recycling, green purchasing and information on certification and membership programs.
• The sustainable tourism resource guide is available on the Maine Sea Grant website at: www.seagrant.umaine.edu/extension/coastcom/sustour.htm

New Hampshire Sea Grant
Divers train to protect local waters

• A new program developed by New Hampshire Sea Grant/University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension is training volunteer divers to identify and track invasive marine species.
• Introduced species often become invasive, driving out native species and threatening ecosystems. Once these unwanted species have become established in a new habitat, they're practically impossible to eradicate.
• To prevent uninvited guests from becoming established, early detection is key.
• Now, divers can help to find and track introduced marine species.
• Divers are trained to identify the top 10 "Most Wanted" invasive species in New England waters. They'll report on the presence and location of those species, helping scientists by tracking the spread of recent introductions and keeping an eye out for new invaders.

New York Sea Grant
Entergy volunteers team up with Sea Grant to protect sand dunes

• Entergy employees, New York Sea Grant and partners joined together in an effort to protect the natural sand dunes of Lake Ontario.
• Entergy Nuclear provided $10,000 to the Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District to help develop a dune trail interpretive guide to the Deer Creek Wildlife Management Area and to hold a Habitat Restoration Day.
• According to Mary Penny, steward coordinator for Sea Grant, "The 17-mile stretch of dunes located along Eastern Lake Ontario hosts numerous rare and endangered plants."
• The dunes help to protect the fragile wetlands and creeks lying directly behind the sand barriers from harsh Lake Ontario storms.
• Members of the group also planted beach grass, a fragile but crucial plant that holds onto the sand and slows the erosion process.

Rhode Island Sea Grant
Rhode Island Sea Grant hosted NOAA open forum

• High-level NOAA leaders chose Rhode Island as the site for a recent open forum to solicit input on such topics as aquaculture, coastal hazard resilience and ocean observing technologies.
• The forums are being held at select sites across the nation as a way to learn more about how stakeholders use NOAA information and products, and to share new developments in NOAA programming.
• NOAA Chief of Staff Scott Rayder led the forum discussion.
• Topics ranged from the importance of the Agency's regional approach to hazard resilient coastal communities and ecosystem-based management, to the need to develop consistent messages about seafood safety and to support innovations in aquaculture (to make it more environmentally sustainable and reduce seafood imports).
• Input received at the forum will be synthesized and used in developing NOAA's new Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution System (PPBES).
• "We have to build programs," said Rayder. "We never used to think beyond one year, so we're now trying to plan five years out with PPBES."