Funding Awarded to Enhance Maidford River for Hurricane Resiliency

A $4 million project submitted by the Rhode Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex that will enhance the the Maidford River in Middletown, along with the Narrow River in North Kingstown, South Kingstown and Narragansett has been approved.  .

On the Maidford River, the project will examine the hydrologic functioning of the river, saltmarsh and coastal habitat conditions, water quality, and will address the flooding issues including the persistent “plugging” of the Maidford outlet channel with sand moving along the beach. Restoration needs will be identified and pursued, in partnership with a wide variety of State and local governments, private landowners, and several conservation organizations.

These habitats are especially important to a wide range of wildlife, and salt marshes provide important buffers for storm events, aide in water quality enhancement, and provide open space for communities. These estuaries are vital as a “nursery” for saltwater fish and provide for abundant recreational and commercial fishing opportunities.

The funding is part of a $162 million investment in 45 restoration and research projects that will better protect Atlantic Coast communities from future powerful storms, by restoring marshes, wetlands and beaches, rebuilding shorelines, and researching the impacts and modeling mitigation of storm surge impacts such as Hurricane Sandy.

The investments are consistent with President Obama’s Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force Strategy Report and the Administration’s commitment laid out in the Climate Action Plan to build resilience by restoring natural features along shorelines to help better protect communities from future storms.

Two projects submitted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Rhode Island were among those approved for funding.

The Coastal Program received $2 million to support evaluation and removal of three dams on the lower Pawcatuck River and the Fisheries office received $80,000 for removal of the Shady Lea Mill Dam on the Mettatuxet River and creation of a new riparian corridor.

Both of these projects will improve fish passage, aquatic habitats and river connectivity as well as reducing river flow elevations during storm events. Ultimately this will provide flood resilience for local communities, improve sediment transport to downstream estuaries, and improve fresh and marine fisheries stocks.

These projects will involve collaboration among a diverse assemblage of State, Federal and local governments as well as local conservation organizations and private landowners.

Efforts on the Narrow River and Pettaquamscutt Cove will also focus on determining the current health and condition of saltmarsh habitats and coastal shrub communities as influenced by flow regimes, invasive species, erosive forces working on saltmarsh shorelines, and how best to improve their productivity and restore them.

The project will also identify opportunities for the use of dredging to restore estuarine aquatic habitats, provide for the restoration and protection of saltmarsh habitats, and to identify the beneficial use of dredge materials for saltmarsh restoration, and beach sand replacement over time.

Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell also announced that the department would issue a request for proposals on October 29 for an additional $100 million in grant funding under the Hurricane Sandy Coastal Resiliency Competitive Grant Program announced in August.

States, local communities, non-profit organizations and other partners can compete for funding for innovative projects under the program, which is being administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Information on the competition can be found at http://www.doi.gov/hurricanesandy.

"The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will use its networks of partners to promote the grant opportunity, aid potential grant applicants in shaping proposals that meet our objectives and to identify opportunities to leverage the $100 million with other funding sources to rebuild, restore, and research natural defenses that protect communities," Jewell said. "I am certain that we will see innovative ideas and projects that will help us be much better prepared the next time a super storm rolls up the Atlantic coast."