NOAA is recommending nearly $25 million in funding for 35 new projects that will advance the coastal habitat restoration priorities of underserved communities.
NOAA is recommending nearly $25 million in funding for 35 new projects that will advance the coastal habitat restoration priorities of underserved communities. The investment is provided through the Biden-Harris Administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law with funding leveraged from the Inflation Reduction Act.
These projects were selected through the Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities funding opportunity. They will support community-driven habitat restoration and help build the capacity of underserved communities to more fully participate in restoration activities.
View NOAA’s announcement about these projects recommended for funding
The Levelock Village Council will conduct a Climate Impact Statement for the Native Village of Levelock, Alaska. The Climate Impact Statement will assess how future climate scenarios could affect Levelock and provide strategies to improve their resilience to hazards like sea level rise and flooding. In particular, it will focus on how climate change could impact erosion of the Kvichak River, which the community relies on for supply services and sockeye salmon fishing. ($380,000)
The Kashia Band of Pomo Indians of the Stewarts Point Rancheria will build their capacity to participate in and lead abalone restoration on their ancestral lands. They will take steps toward establishing a tribal breeding program for red abalone and will train and employ tribal divers to conduct ecological monitoring. They will also pilot experimental removals of purple sea urchins to help reduce pressure on bull kelp, which provides important habitat for red abalone. ($1.6 million)
The Mid Klamath Watershed Council will partner with the Karuk Tribe to restore habitat in Red Cap Creek, a tributary of the Klamath River located on Karuk Tribal ancestral lands. They will implement high-priority restoration to recover coho salmon, a species central to the diet and culture of local Indigenous communities. Hands-on opportunities for young people, such as internships, will help engage the next generation in environmental stewardship. ($519,000)
Nature Nexus Institute will engage community members in South Los Angeles in habitat restoration through nature hikes, field trips, workshops, and hands-on restoration activities. They will restore habitat at two parks in the Baldwin Hills—Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook State Park and Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area—that are the closest no-cost, open space recreational areas available to local residents. ($928,000)
The Pinoleville Pomo Nation will develop a plan for reconnecting Ackerman Creek, a tributary of California’s Russian River, to its floodplain. Funding will support tribal staff positions to collaborate with partners and lead the planning effort. A series of collaborative workshops will provide opportunities for tribal members and other community members to provide feedback and share cultural and traditional ecological knowledge throughout the process. ($739,000)
The Salmon River Restoration Council will advance habitat restoration planning efforts in three tributaries of the South Fork and Mainstem Salmon River in the Klamath Basin, near to the remote rural communities of Sawyers Bar, Forks of Salmon, Cecilville, and Somes Bar, California. The restoration sites are located in the ancestral territory of the Karuk Tribe, who will provide direct input throughout all levels of the project. ($457,000)
The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde will restore habitat for salmon, steelhead, and other species on the tribally owned Chankawan Wildlife Area property near Stayton, Oregon. They will remove culverts and other barriers to improve fish passage, reconnect the North Santiam River to its floodplain, and increase the amount of large wood to provide more habitat complexity. ($695,000)
Edmonds College, in partnership with the Latino Educational Training Institute and Snohomish Conservation District, will create a bilingual workforce development program to educate and train members of the Latino community in the restoration field. The program will include paid internship opportunities, providing participants with hands-on experience restoring salmon habitat in the Stillaguamish and Snohomish watersheds. ($817,000)
Long Live the Kings will build capacity for the Nisqually Indian Tribe to incorporate their vision and voice into restoration in the Nisqually River Delta. They will integrate the tribe’s priorities for habitat restoration and nature-based solutions to reduce flooding, increase climate resilience, and support salmon. The increased capacity will help ensure the tribe’s Traditional Ecological Knowledge and vision for habitat restoration is reflected in the replacement of an Interstate 5 bridge. ($502,000)
The Lummi Nation will conduct an assessment to help determine the potential risk that invasive European green crabs pose to eelgrass beds on Lummi Reservation tidelands. They will build staff capacity, acquire the necessary equipment and training, and engage indigenous high school and college students to conduct an inventory and establish baselines of the current status of eelgrass habitat and European green crabs. ($868,000)
The Skagit River System Cooperative, which provides fisheries and environmental services for the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community and the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, will restore estuary habitat to support the recovery of tribal fisheries in the Skagit River. Tribal members will engage in the development of several projects in the Skagit River watershed, in areas that are a priority for Chinook salmon recovery. ($649,000)
Pacific Coastal Research & Planning will collaborate with partners and communities to restore habitat in the Achugao and Laolao Bay watersheds on the island of Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The project will serve as a demonstration of how habitat restoration and nature-based solutions can address community resilience. Local resource managers and stakeholders will play a key role, so they can apply these practices to projects in other CNMI communities. ($1 million)
Hawaiian Islands Land Trust and Native Hawaiians from the Waihee and Waiehu communities will work together to restore the flow of water to the taro fields and fish pond at the Waihee Coastal Dunes and Wetlands Refuge on Maui. They plan to build a ridge-to-reef model for collaborative land and ocean stewardship by engaging the community through outreach meetings, workshops, volunteer workdays, and educational activities. ($804,000)
Kuleana Coral Reefs will launch a program to engage community members on West O’ahu in coral reef conservation and reduce barriers to environmental work for Native Hawaiians. The Community Dive Program will provide professional certifications and training in coral restoration to local residents, and conduct on-the-ground coral restoration at community-selected sites to help build coastal resilience. ($465,000)
The City of Port St. Joe, Florida, will gather critical data needed to finalize the design for nature-based solutions to address frequent flooding impacting homes and infrastructure in the North Port St. Joe neighborhood. They will engage community members and partners in understanding the study’s findings and their implications for designing future restoration projects. ($280,000)
The City of New Orleans will work toward restoring the Bayou Bienvenue Wetland Triangle, a large and complex wetland next to the Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood. They will work closely with partners to collaborate with the local community in creating a restoration prioritization plan. Based on the results of that plan, they will develop designs to restore a portion of the wetlands. ($490,000)
The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana will restore habitat in the Central Wetlands Unit, a nearly 30,000-acre marsh bordering communities in the Ninth Ward of Orleans Parish and St. Bernard Parish. They will engage local community members in hands-on project work to provide a new generation of coastal stewards with the skills and experience needed to build capacity for coastal restoration. ($715,000)
Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government will restore coastal wetlands in areas near to where the Grand Caillou/Dulac Band of Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw Tribe, the Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe, and the Jean Charles Choctaw Nation are located or have sacred and culturally significant sites. Using local and indigenous knowledge, they will work to refill canals that were previously dug for oil and gas exploration to help reestablish the wetlands. ($1 million)
The Water Institute of the Gulf will partner with community liaisons to directly engage southeast Louisiana’s Asian American shrimpers and processors and co-develop a climate change adaptation plan to protect their communities and fishing infrastructure. Through interviews, workshops, and interactive modeling activities, they will work to develop a comprehensive plan that takes into account the specific needs and experiences of Asian American fishing communities. ($822,000)
The Chitimacha Tribe, through its business Wayti Services, LLC, will design a living shoreline to restore and protect areas of Caad Kuujaamnix (Bayou Sale) that are home to tribal cultural sites. Funding will support staff and technical experts in their work to conduct a study and plan a construction method for creating marsh habitat, protecting the shoreline, and supporting traditional fisheries. ($737,000)
The Matagorda Bay Foundation will conduct restoration and resilience planning for Matagorda Bay, one of the largest estuaries on the Texas coast, with the support of new and current staff. The staff members will help connect with and empower local communities in Calhoun and Matagorda Counties, collect information for use in strategic conservation planning, and identify priorities for future restoration projects. ($534,000)
The University of Puerto Rico at Aguadilla will restore mangroves and dunes in Loiza, Puerto Rico. These habitats have been significantly damaged by past hurricanes and winter storms, which has made local communities more vulnerable to flooding from storm surge and sea level rise. They will build their capacity to lead restoration, community outreach, and environmental education activities. ($1 million)
Franklin’s Promise Coalition will expand BoriCorps, their environmental restoration and workforce training program that engages local young adults in coastal restoration and resilience. BoriCorps participants will use a ridge-to-reef approach to restore habitat—from upland forests to coral reefs—across the Guanica, Cabo Rojo, and Jobos Bay watersheds in southern Puerto Rico. They will receive on-the-job training, industry certifications, and leadership skills to become environmental stewards. ($1.3 million)
The Ocean Foundation will contribute to the largest mangrove habitat restoration project ever undertaken in Puerto Rico. Members from the local communities of Salinas, Aguirre, and Guayama will work alongside technical experts to gain experience in restoration and monitoring in the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The loss of healthy mangroves in this area has exposed important infrastructure—such as a power plant, solar farm, and evacuation route—to damage from hurricane-related winds and flooding. ($450,000)
The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources will help residents of the territory address stormwater runoff and soil erosion issues on their property. Through the Virgin Islands Clean Coasts Program, the department previously conducted property evaluations and proposed recommendations for managing runoff and erosion. Through this project, they will work to implement these recommendations and fix issues that were identified. ($878,000)
The Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science will restore coastal habitat in northern Miami-Dade County while providing high school students with paid, immersive opportunities in the restoration field. Students will receive training and hands-on experience in restoring coral reefs, mangroves, and beach dunes in Haulover Park, one of the longest remaining stretches of undeveloped beachfront in the county. ($497,000)
The Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor will create new staff positions to expand their work creating a plan for restoration and resilience across the Corridor, which stretches from North Carolina through Florida. The new positions will help build relationships between restoration organizations and Gullah Geechee communities, identify the resilience priorities of community members, and form local advisory committees to support future restoration efforts. ($536,000)
The National Audubon Society will work with coastal communities to identify and propose nature-based solutions that increase resilience to extreme weather and climate change. They will collaboratively create a suite of proposed projects that address the goals and challenges of Awendan and McClellanville, South Carolina, and Columbia and Tyrrell County, North Carolina. They will also hire community planners to support the process and help coordinate future restoration. ($499,000)
The National Audubon Society will conduct a community-driven planning effort and begin work to restore degraded wetland habitat along the West Branch of the Little Calumet River in Gary, Indiana. They will gather community members’ current perspectives and future visions to inform a plan for restoration at Marshalltown Marsh and Hatcher Park. They will also begin initial on-the-ground restoration at Hatcher Park. ($307,000)
The City of Chelsea, Massachusetts, will gather community input and remove Slade Mill Dam on Mill Creek. They will work to actively engage the local community throughout all phases of planning and construction, including through community meetings, site walks, and educational signage. This project will work in tandem with an ongoing effort to create a park and riverwalk that will increase public access to Mill Creek. ($428,000)
The Southwest Michigan Planning Commission will coordinate with the City of Benton Harbor, Michigan, to hire an administrator to manage an effort to revitalize the area surrounding Ox Creek. The new project administrator will help build a coalition of residents and local organizations, conduct community outreach and engagement, develop a habitat restoration plan that incorporates public input, and implement two pilot habitat restoration projects. ($975,000)
Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper will work toward restoring habitat in the highly-impaired Scajaquada Creek watershed in New York, collaborating closely with community members in the Black Rock, Riverside, East Side of Buffalo, and western Cheektowaga neighborhoods. They will build a coalition to engage community members, conduct stakeholder outreach to inform the creation of a restoration and resilience plan, and advance efforts to restore habitat along the creek. ($901,000)
The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation will establish a paid internship and training program for economically disadvantaged and minority high school and college students. The program will implement habitat restoration projects on parklands in southeastern Queens near Jamaica Bay, which contains the largest remaining extent of marshes in New York City. It will also provide free and accessible programming to the local community, such as volunteer opportunities and environmental education events. ($629,000)
The City of Providence, Rhode Island, will conduct an analysis of the Port of Providence’s coastline, which borders the South Providence and Washington Park neighborhoods. The assessment will identify current shoreline conditions and potential opportunities for future habitat restoration. The city will also partner with Groundwork Rhode Island and Save the Bay to conduct outreach and provide educational opportunities for local community members. ($492,000)
The Mattaponi Indian Tribe and Reservation will work to restore shorelines on tribal reservation lands along the Mattaponi River. They will also increase their capacity to lead and participate in habitat restoration activities by hiring additional staff and providing training and opportunities for tribal members. This project is located within the area of Virginia known as the Middle Peninsula, which has been recognized as a NOAA Habitat Focus Area. ($235,000 in first year; up to $999,000 total over 3 years)
Klamath River. Credit: Shane Anderson.
Woman holds a red drum while sitting in a kayak on the water. Credit: Sandra Lewis.
Chinook salmon jump in frothy white water. Credit: Laura Mahoney/USFWS
NOAA Fisheries staff in the field at a restoration project site in Louisiana. Credit: NOAA Fisheries.