Coastal Habitats

Native Plants for Riparian Corridors in CT Guide Available

The Native Plants for Riparian Corridors in CT guide from Connecticut Sea Grant is now available! The guide includes native trees, shrubs, ferns, grasses, sedges, reeds and herbaceous plants that can grow and thrive along bodies of water. Download the guide at seagrant.uconn.edu/?p=10305  

Shell recycling initiative being introduced in Connecticut

Article by Connecticut Sea Grant Empty oyster and clam shells from Long Island Sound shouldn’t be treated like trash. They are vital components of healthy habitat for shellfish and other marine life, and need to be returned to their watery home instead of being hauled away with other garbage. That’s the message shell recycling advocates […]

Fall-Winter 2022-2023 Wrack Lines

The Fall-Winter 2022-2023 issue of Wrack Lines is filled with articles and images telling stories around the theme of “Looking Ahead: people and projects shaping the future.” The magazine leads with the first in what will be a series of articles about offshore wind development impacting Connecticut, followed by the inspiring story of how a dying forest was […]

2022 Long Island Sound Research Conference Announced

The 2022 Long Island Sound Research Conference will take place in Bridgeport on May 25, 2022. Oral presentations and posters across disciplines in natural and social sciences that contribute to the four themes of the Long Island Sound Study CCMP are welcome. These are: Clean waters and healthy watershed Thriving habitats and abundant wildlife Sustainable […]

#DoOneThing theme of 2021 #DontTrashLISound campaign

The Connecticut Sea Grant program, joined by volunteers from Save the Sound, the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk and other groups, will launch the fifth annual #DontTrashLISound campaign with a cleanup at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport on Aug. 16. This year’s campaign, run by the Connecticut and New York Sea Grant programs with support […]

Teacher Webinar Offered on Long Island Sound Habitats

A new educational tool for teachers will be showcased in an Aug. 19 webinar sponsored by the Long Island Sound Study national estuary program and its partners Connecticut Sea Grant (CTSG) and New York Sea Grant (NYSG). Titled “A Spotlight on Long Island Sound Habitats,” the webinar will showcase a Next Generation Science Standards-based StoryMap […]

1st marine economics fellow to focus on natural coastal resources

By Judy Benson Oversimplified, shoreline beaches are where the sand meets the sea. Too often, this two-dimensional view has become the foundation of efforts to restore storm and erosion-battered beaches on Long Island Sound and other coastal areas. These projects mainly seek to widen the flat open sand swathe to maintain maximum recreational worth and […]

Sen. Blumenthal Seeks Funding for CT River Hydrilla Control

Sen. Richard Blumenthal announced on June 3 that he is leading an effort to secure $100 million over four years in federal funding for a multistate effort to control hydrilla in the Connecticut River watershed. In an event at Harbor Park in Middletown, Blumenthal said he is seeking an urgent fiscal year 2022 appropriation for […]

Healthy Soils to be Focus of 2021 Coastal Certificate Program

This year’s Coastal Certificate Program will take place virtually over four days in mid-May. Led by Judy Preston, CT Sea Grant’s Long Island Sound outreach coordinator, this year’s classes will emphasize healthy soils at the root of healthy gardens, landscapes, and ultimately the watersheds that are essential to clean waters and a healthy Sound. The […]

LIS Blue Plan now in hands of CT Legislature

The Long Island Sound Blue Plan, a marine spatial plan for what many consider the state’s most valuable natural resource, has been voted out of the state Legislature’s Environment Committee and awaits a vote in the full House and Senate. Read about the plan and why many believe it should be approved in articles by […]

‘Right Trees for the Right Time’ series begins March 10

Connecticut Sea Grant is joining with the Avalonia Land Conservancy and UConn CLEAR in presenting, “Finding the Right Trees for the Right Time,” a series of four talks about planning and planting for a resilient coastal forest in southeastern Connecticut. The series begins March 10, culminating in a June 9 presentation by Juliana Barrett, coastal […]

Connecticut Sea Grant’s Fiscal Year 2020 Annual Report

Connecticut Sea Grant’s Fiscal Year 2020 Annual Report is now available. With photos, graphics, and summaries of many  projects and initiatives, it’s a great way to get a quick overview of Connecticut Sea Grant‘s programs. It is available here. Original Post

25th season of Coastal Perspective Lectures Announced

Skip Finley The 25th season of the Coastal Perspectives Lectures will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 9 with a presentation by author and historian Skip Finley titled, “A Voyage of Discovery with Skip Finley.” This annual lecture series spans the breadth of human interactions with coastal waters, including speakers from the natural and social […]

CTSG, Avalonia project looks to prepare forest for the future

By Judy Benson Stonington – Battered by coastal storms and infestations of wooly adelgids, gypsy moth, winter moth and emerald ash borer, sections of the 200-acre Hoffman Evergreen Preserve will now serve as a living lab and demonstration site for how land managers can help forests adapt to climate change. “We want to increase the resilience […]

Marsh migration research paved way for new NOAA fellow

Most visitors to Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, Conn., probably drive by the small stand of cedar trees along the main road without noticing the stark differences. One group presents healthy deep green funnels pointing skyward. Adjacent is another group partially bare of needles. A few feet away is a clump of standing dead […]

Project Expands Support for CT Shellfish Industry

Connecticut shellfish farmers who endured severe sales losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic are being offered the chance to earn income by working on a unique project to rehabilitate the state’s natural shellfish beds. The project, developed by Connecticut Sea Grant and the Connecticut Department of Agriculture, will employ shellfish farmers with vessels normally used […]

‘Gardening for Good’ show features Sea Grant’s Preston

Listen and learn about sustainable gardening in “Gardening for Good,” the new monthly radio show hosted by Judy Preston, the Long Island Sound outreach coordinator for Connecticut Sea Grant. It airs at 10 a.m. on Fridays on iWCRV Internet radio: http://icrvradio.com/programs/program/298 The common theme is sustainable gardening, with emphasis on water quality and connecting the watershed […]