The Guilford Foundation (TGF) has announced a grant of more than $19,000 to the Menunkatuck Audubon Society (MAS) to begin participation in the Save the Sound’s United Water Study Program. The grant will allow the MAS to monitor water quality in Guilford Harbor and the East River watersheds beginning this year.

TGF Executive Director Liza Petra said the study supported by this grant is just one of several ongoing research projects that are monitoring sea level rise and its effect on marsh ecology and marsh migration in the East River watershed.

According to Petra, MAS was organized in 1982 to protect and preserve the 800 acres of marshland that Anne and Woolsey Conover had donated to the National Audubon Society. The current mission of MAS is to educate citizens about how sea level rise and marsh migration are going to impact their property as well as the community economic, utility, and emergency infrastructure, Petra said.

According to TGF, coastal Guilford and Madison are being affected by climate change and sea-level rise. These events could cause changes in the water chemistry in the rivers, marshes and harbor, adversely impacting the ecological systems and marine organisms that live in or pass through these habitats.

Petra said TGF’s mission is to connect donors with projects and causes in need of funding and to support a diverse range of requests. Founded in 1975, the organization is unique, according to Petra, in that it is a permanent resource for Guilford rather than just a fundraising platform for specific projects.

TGF uses funds and donations that in some cases are geared solely toward specific causes or projects, while others are non-restricted and can be used for any project that improves the quality of life in Guilford, according to Petra.

“The MAS came to us with this request that was specific for a very unique and one-time opportunity to make a real difference on studying the effects of climate warming in our little town. We approached some of our donors and asked that we make a more significant investment this year through your funds; they all said, ‘Great,’” said Petra. “This was an opportunity where a need arose, it was a one-time deal, a great opportunity, and had funds available and we were able to make it work. It feels great because the donors are really getting to have that impact that they originally intended when they established their funds.”

The results of these studies will assist town, region, and state officials and agencies in the development of policies that will help to restore and maintain Long Island Sound watershed and its aquatic ecosystems to protect human health, support economic and recreational activities, and provide healthy habitat for fish, plants, and wildlife, according to the TGF.

“The MAS is now able to secure a grant that will enable them to undertake a long-term study that will not only help inform about the local flora and fauna, but really help with policy discussions and decisions. This opportunity is just a profoundly meaningful thing when we are able to hit this sweet spot, where an intent of a donor really matches the need of the community,” Petra said.

MAS requested $19,200 to purchase the water monitoring equipment that will allow the organization to institute a permanent testing program, Petra said. The major contributors to this project via TGF were the Jared Eliot Fund and the Michael B. & Maryann Bracken Family Fund.

MAS is partnering with Save the Sound to carry out the field studies specified in the organization’s Standard Operating Procedures/Quality Assurance Project Plan. For more detailed information about the project, visit the www.savethesound.org/water- monitoring-ecological-health.

TGF can be reached via its website www.guilfordfoundation.org or phone at 203-640-4049.