Long Island Sound projects to receive $1.3M in grants

A coalition of state and federal organizations announced $1.3 million in grants Thursday to help government and community groups in New York and Connecticut protect Long Island Sound.

Of the 22 projects, nine are on Long Island and account for more than $407,000 in funding. They include reducing storm-water pollution in Centerport, monitoring water quality in Hempstead Harbor and organizing beach cleanups.

The grants are meant to help fund protection and restoration work that in turn affects local communities and economies, Environmental Protection Agency New England Regional Administrator H. Curtis Spalding said in a statement.

"Long Island Sound is an amazing natural resource, which provides recreation and economic opportunities for millions of people," said Judith Enck, New York's EPA regional administrator. "These projects are smart investments that will improve water quality and build resiliency in shoreline communities."

The projects are paid for through the Long Island Sound Futures Fund, a pool of money supplied by the EPA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and Long Island Sound Funders Collaborative. Grant recipients also contribute money toward the projects.

Huntington Town will receive more than $137,000 to build a rain garden to catch runoff at Centerport Beach so it doesn't enter the watershed, fouling water quality in Northport Bay, maritime services director Ed Carr said.

"This could have a positive influence on the water quality there," Assistant Deputy Supervisor Philip Ingerman said.

Another $45,000 will go to the Village of Sea Cliff to monitor water quality in outer and inner Hempstead Harbor, where a coalition of governments share costs evaluating pollution levels, Village Administrator John Mirando said.

The Long Island Futures Fund was created in 2005 and has invested $14 million in 324 projects in areas surrounding the Sound. Grantees have matched with an additional $28 million in funding.

Collectively, the projects have opened up 157 river miles for fish passage, restored 1,024 acres of open space and fish and wildlife habitat, and treated 100 million gallons of pollution.