11-1SG Earthplace, The Nature Discovery Center
Grant Round:
2011 February
Grant Program:
Small Grants
Grant Type:
Other Grants
Grant amount requested:
2,500.00
Please provide a brief description of the project for which you seek funding.
Harbor Watch/River Watch (HW/RW) seeks to help protect and restore the biological integrity of the Long Island Sound and its watershed. We are requesting $2500 to provide water quality monitoring of New Creek, in Westport, CT. Past studies by HW/RW volunteers clearly show moderate to substantial input of E. coli bacteria in New Creek. Due to funding restrictions, Earthplace has not been able to study New Creek and has identified this area for a new project. Primary sources of pollution from New Creek are septic infiltration, storm water runoff from impervious surfaces and lawns, as well as increased bacterial, nutrient and prescription drug medication inputs entering local waterways.
The New Creek Project will begin in March and will utilize local high school volunteers. Under the direction of the Director of HW/RW, Associate Director of HW/RW and two interns, the youth will go outside the classroom and be introduced to real world problems and use science to analyze issues of water impairment and declining habitat. From March-June, youth will learn how to collect samples and test potential ‘hot spots’ for pollutants. Young individuals will receive firsthand knowledge about the water conditions and level of bacteria in New Creek, as well as analyze, compile and report on their findings to their school and the towns affected in Fairfield County.
The program began in 1986 initially as a citizen’s monitoring program which gathered data on hypoxic conditions in our local harbors. The HW/RW program was formally incorporated into the Earthplace programs in 1993. Since then, HW/RW has greatly expanded its water quality testing and monitoring services to include local rivers, harbors and the Long Island Sound. HW/RW has a CT state certified bacteria laboratory to support its testing and monitoring efforts as well as EPA approved quality assurance project plans to guide and to assure high quality data. The HW/RW objective is to increase watershed literacy and encourage environmental stewardship for both students and community volunteers who participate in the program.
Primary Issue Area:
Land & Water
Please break-down/categorize the program expenses:
| Proposed Item | Estimated $ Amount | Would grant funds be used for this item? | Type Of Expense |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monitoring supplies | $2,500.00 | Yes | Materials |
Whom does your group need to make this project happen?
Please explain how your group will engage members from your community in this project.
Members will be engaged in this project via various methods of marketing including social
networking through facebook, our website, newsletter and email blasts.
If your group receives a NEGEF Grow grant, how do you plan to pay for remaining expenses?
| $ Amount | Source |
|---|---|
| $2,500.00 | NNEGEF Grant |
| $2,900.00 | Patagonia Grant |
| $2,800.00 | Jeniam Foundation |
Please list these materials or services
| $ Amount | Item |
|---|---|
| $1,500.00 | Personnel |
| $500.00 | Travel Fees |
| $4,800.00 | Laboratory Costs |
| $2,000.00 | Lab Certification |
| $2,800.00 | Laboratory Supplies |
Please describe what changes will occur in your community and its environment when your group's project is successful.
HW/RW has trained staff, extensive scientific equipment, and a water quality laboratory certified by Connecticut’s Department of Public Health to take young people out of the classroom and introduce them to real water quality problems. Young grassroots individuals’ minds need to be stimulated and trained to deal with these issues at a young age. Their future will depend on it. The overall goal of the New Creek Project is to begin water quality monitoring and research in an area that has had little done to it before. The New Creek Project goals with measurable objectives include: 1)Identifying point and non-point sources of pollution in New Creek; 2)The team will sample various areas of New Creek to determine point and non-point sources of pollution. Using specially designed tools, youth will take samples of New Creek, checking the quality and measuring the changes that have occurred; 3)Building public support for further testing of waterways; 4)The HW/RW team will test, analyze and report results to schools, the town and local politicians. The program allows young people an opportunity to be environmental stewards in local streams, rivers and harbors. Additionally the New Creek Project will engage youth in the grassroots movement. Students will also recruit more young people in their activism efforts; 5) Increasing youth awareness of environmental problems including the connection between use of land and water quality. The HW/RW will rally support around the importance of long-term health of waterways and promote action to improve water quality in Westport and globally. With time and the accumulation of data, these young grassroots volunteers will be able to scientifically
identify pollution sources. The whole community will benefit when pollution sources are identified and eliminated. The project will train young people to become future scientists by exposing them to real critical environmental problems. The project will also encourage themto respect the environment and to develop their analytical skills as they scientifically investigate real water related pollution problems, which are growing in scope and magnitude. The project will spark enthusiasm for young individuals who will hopefully someday continue their work in environmental activism, and recruit more young people to follow in their footsteps. As part of the HW/RW Program, this project will spread the word to local town residents about the real conditions of their waterways.
Please list how many people in your community your group expects to actively engage in this project.
1 000
What relevant skills does the group need (but does not currently have access to) to help move the initiative forward?
The HW/RW group is 80% grant funded, it is critical that we receive grant funds in order to build public support for clean, unpolluted water; to establish and maintain a seasonal information baseline to help evaluate the long-term environmental health of rivers and estuaries and to promote action to improve water quality whenever possible; to provide practical experience for junior and senior high school students in the field of water quality monitoring as part of the larger education program; to increase public awareness of the connection between man’s use of land and water quality; and to identify point and non-point sources and make enforcement agencies aware of pollution problems. HW/RW activities not only allow Earthplace to have a role in collecting and disseminating valuable scientific data, they also support our mission by teaching participants about aquatic and marine resources and the need for wise use and conservation of these critical and fragile habitats.
What relevant skills do current members of the group have to help move the initiative forward?
The Harbor Watch/River Watch program has over 20 years of experience identifying pollution sources of all types on waterways in Fairfield County. As a result of testing & monitoring of these waterways; many contaminated sites have been remediated with the help of local health, conservation and public works departments. One year, a team of HW/RW interns identified a failed sewage transfer station at Keeler Brook on the Post Road. This was reported to Norwalk’s Public Works and action was quickly taken to repair the pump. The HW/RW program seeks to help protect and restore the biological integrity of the Long Island Sound and its watershed. The program began in 1986 initially as a citizen’s monitoring program which gathered data on hypoxic conditions in our local harbors. The HW/RW program was formally incorporated into the Earthplace programs in 1993. Since then, HW/RW has greatly expanded its water quality testing and monitoring services to include local rivers, harbors and LIS.