Grant to fund Stony Brook coastal projects

Stony Brook University researchers will receive a share of a $2.4 million award from the New York Sea Grant program for the 2012-13 fiscal year.

Nine research projects pertaining to coastal issues in New York will be funded with five of those projects being spearheaded by Stony Brook researchers. The researchers are a part of Stony Brook’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences and the Department of Ecology and Evolution.

The funds will contribute to education and research about issues in coastal areas of New York. Issues include seafood safety, water quality, storm surges and habitat restoration.

Robert Cerrato, an associate professor, will be focusing on red tide blooms and their impact on commercial species of clams. Research at Northport Bay-Huntington Bay found a red bloom toxin in hard- and soft-shell clams. The findings in Cerrato’s research will aid in decision-making for the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Distinguished Service Professor Malcolm Bowman will continue to work with the Stony Brook Storm Surge Research Group. The group has been funded by the program since 2002. The study will combine models from the National Weather Service and other university research. “Since each storm has its own peculiar characteristics and behavior,” Bowman said in a news release, “no one model is always the most accurate at predicting surge events.”

Assistant professor Michael Frisk will be evaluating the success of fish passage restoration and studying migratory fish species.

Stephen Baines, an assistant professor, will be focusing on changes in wetland plant communities and the ability of the ecosystem to remove nitrate from the environment.

All funds come from the New York Sea Grant program’s parent organization, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.