SNEP
Middletown, RI: Kate McPherson, Narragansett Bay Riverkeeper for Save The Bay, explains to a homeowner the benefits of allowing the natural area along the Maidford River to revegetate with trees and shrubs. This effort was part of a neighborhood campaign to encourage property owners to rewild the portions of their property closest to the river for water quality improvement purposes. Photo credit: Save the Bay
Have a photo you want to submit? Submit your photos with a short caption and photo credit with permission of the photo owner to Reilly.Adam@epa.gov with the subject “SNEP Photo Submission.” Photos will be posted to the SNEP Photo Gallery on our website. Our favorite photo of the month will be featured in our next newsletter, so keep those submissions coming! Click to view the complete SNEP Media Gallery
Program Updates
Join Us for the 2023 SNEP Forum! On June 13, the SNEP community is invited to join us in-person or virtually at the Bristol Community College in Fall River, MA. Registration is now open. The goal of the SNEP Forum is to engage with our community members and program partners to get their input on the future of SNEP and its funding priorities. We will share an in-depth look at the work that our Program has completed, the work ongoing, and the work still to be done. The Forum is designed to solicit community feedback on how SNEP, its partners, and program affiliates can most effectively reduce the environmental, social, and economic impacts of water pollution, lost or degraded habitat, and climate change through community-based action.
Submit Your Poster Abstracts for the SNEP Forum. If you are a current or former grant recipient of the Southeast New England Program, SNEP Network, SNEP Watershed Implementation Grants program, or a SNEP-supported award from the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program or the Buzzards Bay National Estuary Program, please consider submitting a poster abstract to present at the SNEP Forum on June 13. For more information, please visit the Forum website.
EPA-SNEP Announces $2.3M for Nature-based Solutions. We are excited to announce a new funding opportunity, the “SNEP 2023 Stormwater and Natural Infrastructure Grant” (EPA-I-R1-SNEP-2023B). Please see the Grant Opportunity Link for full opportunity details. Funding for this opportunity is being made available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. SNEP anticipates awarding up to six (6) awards of $400,000-$600,000 each. Priority project topics can be found in Section I.C of the Request for Applications and include: stormwater infrastructure and roadway runoff; salt marsh; riparian areas, floodplain, and inland wetlands; habitat connectivity and aquatic organism passage; urban area resilience and habitat restoration; habitat monitoring; and municipal and tribal planning.
Important Dates:
06/01/23 (12:30-2:00PM EST): Informational Webinar/Q&A (Webinar Details)
06/23/23: Deadline to submit questions to SECoastalNE@EPA.GOV
06/30/23: Deadline to submit applications
Regional Updates
University of Connecticut Selected as a Technical Assistance Center to Help Communities Across New England Access Historic Investments to Advance Environmental Justice. EPA’s Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers include a network of over 160 partners to provide resources to unlock access to President Biden’s historic investments in America. Read the press release here.
Innovative/Alternative (I/A) Septic Systems Presentation – During the New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) Annual Conference in January, Brian Baumgaertel, Scott Horsley, and Bruce Walton presented an update on the status of nitrogen-reducing I/A septic systems. The posted presentation includes speaker notes and Q&A.
NEWEA Journal Article on I/A System Collaboration – Published in January, the article covers task force activities and delves into the funding and financing required to bring I/A septic systems successfully to market as a “tool in the toolbox”.