URI Ocean Engineers Receive Federal Grant

University of Rhode Island ocean engineers have been studying for decades how rising sea levels and destructive storms are threatening the state’s coastline, and now, thanks to a federal grant, they can continue to explore ways to protect shorelines.

Rhode Island, through URI and the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council, is among five New England states that have received funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Coastal Management to study ways to improve storm prediction and protection.

URI and CRMC received $110,000 of the $890,000 awarded.

“We look forward to using high-resolution models that provide predictions of water levels and waves for the coastal communities,” said Malcolm Spaulding, professor emeritus of ocean engineering at URI and founder of Spaulding Environmental Associates.

The results, he added, will help emergency staff and community and statewide planners respond to storms and make coasts more resilient.

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