Program Committees of the Southeast New England Coastal Watershed Restoration Program

Senior Executive Council: This group is comprised of state leaders and government officials that work together to provide oversight, make final decisions and assist in identifying top priorities for the Southeast New England region.

Organizations represented include: EPA Region 1, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, and Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection

Steering Committee: This group includes staff level representatives of government agencies, non-profit organizations, and non-governmental organizations.

Organizations participating on the Steering Committee include:

  • Army Corp of Engineers
  • Association to Preserve Cape Cod
  • Buzzards Bay Coalition
  • Buzzards Bay National Estuary Program (NEP)
  • Cape Cod Commission
  • Cape Cod Conservation District
  • EPA, Region 1
  • EPA, Atlantic Ecology Division
  • Fish and Wildlife Service
  • Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management
  • Massachusetts Department of Ecological Restoration
  • Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection
  • Massachusetts Natural Resources Conservation Service
  • Narragansett Bay National Estuary Program (NEP)
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
  • Rhode Island National Resource Conservation Service
  • Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council
  • Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management
  • Save the Bay
  • The Nature Conservancy – Massachusetts
  • The Nature Conservancy – Rhode Island
  • United States Geological Survey

Sub-Committees: These subcommittees are topic-based and represented by relevant expertise and local knowledge Representatives from the Steering Committee and other experts participate in each subcommittee.

Policy Subcommittee (Margherita Pryor, EPA Lead):

  • Interact with Senior Leadership to define and establish program goals, partners, and procedures to best implement the SNEP vision and inform decision-making
  • Explore common issues related to program implementation such as fiscal and management capacity, develop and recommend solutions to the Steering Committee for implementation.
  • Work with the full Steering Committee and Senior Leadership to assess needs and identify viable approaches to enable SNEP to better understand and address priority issues.

Monitoring Subcommittee (Bryan Dore, EPA Lead):

  • Investigate prospects to align and connect efforts for regional long term monitoring capability in areas such as technology/BMP performance, ecosystem response, real-time data capture, standardized protocols and indicators, and data management.
  • Identify common monitoring gaps and needs within the Region, including filling data gaps, applying new technology, standardizing methods and data management protocols, and ensuring user accessibility;
  • Contribute to long-term monitoring capacity throughout region by sharing data, developing common indicators, and working with funded projects and recipients to design and implement robust, scientifically sound monitoring of environmental results.

Ecosystem Subcommittee (Karen Simpson Baird, EPA Lead):

  • Enable and implement restoration and conservation efforts that integrate habitat and water quality at the ecosystem or watershed scale and incorporate ecosystem services valuation into all levels of decision-making with particular attention to nutrient sources impacting coastal ecosystems
  • Explore ways to build management and science infrastructure that supports ecosystem-based approaches to:
    • Restore and maintain ecological resilience through effective, sustainable partnerships across institutional, state, and jurisdictional boundaries
    • Integrate programs for maximum environmental and public benefit, especially with respect to climate change
    • Encourage, pilot, and apply innovations in technology and policy.