Maine will receive $492,000 for projects concerning severe storms, climate change, lobsters, and more

Today Congresswoman Chellie Pingree announced that Maine would receive over $492,000 from the federal National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Sea Grant Program for projects to help coastal communities confront today’s challenges.

“Coastal communities are dealing with a number of questions right now, among them, how to deal with climate change and its many impacts on our marine resources. In Maine, these questions are especially difficult because we rely so heavily on our coastal economy,” said Pingree. “I’m glad Maine will receive funding to research these challenges and plan for how best to address them.”

Maine Sea Grant, a program at the University of Maine, will use the money to fund several projects, including:

• Revisiting Age Determination in the American Lobster: Validating Growth Estimates in Contrasting Thermal Regimes;
• Coastal Flooding and Erosion from Severe Storms in a Changing Climate; and
• Social and Ecological Factors Influencing Shoreline Hardening in the Northeast: Implications for Vulnerability, Resilience, and Informed Decision Making.

Sea Grant is a federal-private partnership of 33 programs based at research universities in every coastal and Great Lakes state as well as Puerto Rico and Guam. Sea Grant leverages federal, academic, and industry partners to support communities impacted by coastal hazards. Sea Grant invests in coastal resiliency research and engages communities through its integrated outreach program, bringing together the collective expertise of on-the-ground extension agents, educators, and communicators to support the development of resilient coastal communities.