June 2023 SNEP Updates
Providence, RI: Senator Jack Reed, speaking at lectern during Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council (WRWC) and Farm Fresh RI press event in May. Other speakers at the event included Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, R.I. Lt. Governor Sabina Matos, RI DEM Director Terry Gray, FFRI Executive Director Jesse Rye, and WRWC Executive Director Alicia Lehrer, and SWIG Director Tom Ardito.
For more information, see SWIG Highlight section below. Photo courtesy of the Office of Senator Jack Reed.
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
There’s Still Time to Register for the 2023 SNEP Forum; and/or Submit a Poster Abstract! On June 13, the SNEP community is invited to join us in-person or virtually at the Bristol Community College in Fall River, MA. For those additionally interested, the opportunity is still available to submit a poster abstract to present during the Forum. Abstract submissions will be accepted until 5:30p on Wednesday, June 7.
For more information, please visit the SNEP Forum website.
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.
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.
This webinar was recorded and will be posted to the SNEP website
06/23/23: Deadline to submit questions to SECoastalNE@EPA.GOV
06/30/23: Deadline to submit applications
EPA-SNEP Announces $800k for Regional Research: the “2023 SNEP Priority Research Grants” (EPA-R1-SNEP-2023R). SNEP anticipates awarding up to six (6) awards of $100,000-$300,000 each.
Priority research areas can be found in Section I.B of the Request for Applications and include: modeling and assessing coastal lake and pond health; lessons learned from implementing permeable reactive barriers; and eelgrass viability: flowering and seeding, impacts of climate change, and long-term prognosis.
Please navigate to the Grant Opportunity Link to find full opportunity details
Important Dates:
06/22/23 (12:30-2:00PM EST):
Informational Webinar/Q&A
07/24/23:
Deadline to submit questions to SECoastalNE@EPA.GOV
07/28/23: Deadline to submit applications
SNEP to Release an Environmental Justice-specific Funding Opportunity Later This Summer
The Southeast New England Program plans to release a $5 Million EJ-specific funding opportunity later this summer.
More information will be announced during the SNEP Forum on June 13.
Monitoring Framework Under Development
The SNEP Team continues work to develop a regional monitoring framework to assess regional habitat and water quality monitoring in support of the first State of the Region report, set to be released in 2025. On May 24, EPA met with program partners to solicit feedback on progress being made to date. For more information, please contact
SWIG Grantee Collects Nearly Eight Tons of Marine Debris; Featured by WBZ-Channel 13 WBZ-Channel 13, Martha’s Vineyard Times and the New Bedford Standard-Times
The Cuttyhunk Ghost Gear Removal project, funded by the SNEP Watershed Implementation Grants Program (SWIG) has resulted in the collection of over 5,900 items including pieces of rope and net, an assortment of intact and mangled lobster traps, and other marine debris.
In total, this project resulted in the collection of nearly eight tons (15,750 pounds) of marine debris collected from the Cuttyhunk shoreline!
A portion of this debris will be converted into student-designed art pieces to be presented and displayed to the public both on island and in the Whaling History National Park in New Bedford, MA.