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2013

Elise Torello, Executive Director

Salt Ponds Coalition

1/1/2014

Annual Report of the Salt Ponds Coalition

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January 2014

Dear Salt Ponds Coalition Member,

The Board of Directors of the Salt Ponds Coalition (SPC) is pleased to present this 2013 Annual Report.

We are happy to report a very busy and productive year! Along with successfully completing our 28th year of water quality monitoring, we have been advocating for our ponds at the state and local level, participating in state-wide policy development, partnering with other groups on stewardship projects, hosting many popular outreach events for adults and children, publishing our informative newsletter, and keeping in touch with you electronically. We will go into more detail on all of these important activities in this report.

We have come through the economically turbulent waters in good financial shape, thanks to the ongoing support of our members. You are all the lifeblood of Salt Ponds Coalition. Nothing we do is possible without your generous support, and we are deeply appreciative of your continued sponsorship.

As always, we value your observations and input, so please keep in touch. Have a great winter, and see you when the warm weather returns!

Art Ganz, President Edward Callender, PhD, Vice President Marshall Mugge, Treasurer David Bailey, Secretary John Crandall, Sarah Dodd, Barbara Engel, Sharon Frost, Martha Hosp, William Lester, Leo Mainelli, Chris Randall, Richard Sartor, Ted See Elise Torello, Executive Director

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Table of Contents

1 Water Quality Monitoring………………………………………………. 3

2 Outreach………………………………………………………………………… 4

3 Advocacy………………………………………………………………………… 5

4 Partners………………………………………………………………………….. 6

5 Policy………………………………………………………………………………. 7

6 Volunteers………………………………………………………………………. 8

7 Membership and Financial Statement…………………………….. 9

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1 Water Quality Monitoring This year marked our 28th year of water quality monitoring in the southern Rhode Island salt ponds. Monitoring was performed by almost 30 dedicated volunteers at 21 sites in the ponds plus one site in the Saugatucket River, which empties into Point Judith Pond. The sampling sites in each pond were chosen in locations which can best represent the waters of the entire pond. Nutrient, bacteria, and chlorophyll-a samples were sent to the University of Rhode Island (URI) Watershed Watch laboratory for analysis.

All of SPC’s water quality monitoring data through 2012 are currently available for viewing on our web site, www.saltpondscoalition.org. We expect to receive our 2013 data from URI Watershed Watch in early spring, 2014; those data will be available online shortly thereafter.

We are currently working on a status and trends report which we plan to release shortly. This report will present a snapshot of current water quality in the ponds, as well as analysis of whether water quality is improving, declining, or staying about the same. This report will be available on our web site, www.saltpondscoalition.org.

Laboratory analysis of SPC’s water samples costs $600 per station. SPC is very grateful for the continuing support of the RI Rivers Council, which has provided generous grant funding to partially support up to 12 monitoring sites. The rest of our sites are funded by fire districts, neighborhood groups, private individuals and businesses, and general SPC operating funds. Without the support of these groups and individuals, we could not continue our monitoring program at this level—thank you all!

2013 Salt Ponds Coalition Water Quality Monitoring Locations

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2 Outreach

Our outreach programs are designed to get people onto and into the ponds. We believe that the best way to foster stewardship of the ponds is to help people experience their beauty and value first hand.

Our Salt Pond Safaris introduce young children to the wonders of the salt ponds. This year we hosted three safaris, with participants as young as 20 months! The kids and their parents/grandparents connected with nature, had a great time, learned a lot, and gained an appreciation of the ponds. Even children who refused to touch anything at the start of a safari were happily handling critters by the end. It was wonderful to see!

SPC led three paddles this summer: daytime paddles in Ninigret and Point Judith Ponds, plus an evening paddle jointly led with the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association. Even after rescheduling the daytime paddles multiple times due to poor weather, we had nice attendance and folks had a wonderful time.

Presentations to the public and community groups, plus at events such as Sea Star Marketplace, are important for sharing the work SPC does on behalf of the ponds. This type of outreach and education encourages stewardship amongst pond neighbors and visitors. Small efforts made by pond-side residents can add up to real improvements to the health of the ponds.

Our other outreach efforts included a complete redesign and rebuilding of our web site. We also kept our members up to date using Constant Contact to send email blasts, and also by building the number of our FaceBook friends. Finally, our newsletter, the Tidal Page, continues to be well-received.

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3 Advocacy Advocacy on behalf of the ponds is an important part of SPC’s mission. SPC promotes stewardship activities from the household level (such as reducing fertilizer use near the ponds) to the state level (breachway maintenance, for example). As other issues arise, the SPC Board of Directors analyzes and discusses them and, when appropriate, advocates for a decision or action which either benefits the ponds or has the least negative impact. SPC advocacy decisions are always made on an ecological and scientific basis using the best available information.

This year, SPC advocated for sound and well-informed decision-making by the Town of Westerly regarding the issue of sewers in Misquamicut. We also offered our opinions on several proposed aquaculture leases in the ponds, and

actively (and successfully!) opposed a proposed lease in the Quonochontaug shellfish spawner sanctuary.

SPC is working to potentially partner with US Fish and Wildlife and other entities to move ahead with dredging and habitat restoration in Quonochontaug, Ninigret, and Winnapaug Ponds. Keeping the breachways clear is important for maintaining adequate exchange of pond waters with clean water from Block Island Sound.

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4 Partners SPC is pleased to work with many partners in the environmental community. We are very fortunate to have our office in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (US FWS) Kettle Pond Visitor Center, and value the US FWS as an important partner. We toured Ninigret

Pond and salt marsh with the US FWS Northeast Regional Director last summer—a great connection for us as we pursue potential cooperative projects. SPC has worked with various partners on restoration and stewardship projects in the

ponds. Last spring we joined the town of Charlestown and US FWS humanely oiling goose eggs to start gaining control of the resident Canada goose population. Resident geese are not natural inhabitants of Rhode Island and cause significant habitat damage (nutrients and bacteria) with their abundant droppings. The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has been working on oyster reef restoration projects in the ponds and has wisely tapped SPC President Art Ganz’s extensive knowledge of shellfish biology and management. We provided TNC with our water quality data to help them decide where to focus their efforts.

Since extra-tropical storm Sandy blasted through the northeast, much more attention has been paid to habitat resiliency. Salt marshes and coastal barriers are important in mitigating the severity of storm waves and surges. SPC participated in Save the Bay’s salt marsh restoration efforts in Winnapaug Pond, digging channels to drain flooded, vegetation-free areas and allow salt marsh grasses to recolonize them.

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5 Policy SPC is an active participant in the RI environmental community. SPC Executive Director Elise Torello was appointed by the Governor to serve on the RI Rivers Council, a great opportunity to keep visibility at the state level and network with other watershed groups. RI Rivers Council supports our water quality monitoring program with a grant every year, for which we are very grateful. SPC was designated as the official watershed council of the southern RI salt ponds, which gives us a seat at the regulatory table for any policies that could potentially affect the salt ponds.

SPC President Art Ganz has been an active participant and valuable resource in the development of a statewide Shellfish Management Plan by University of RI Sea Grant, RI Department of Environmental Management, and RI Coastal Resources Management Council. He is on the Technical Advisory Committee which will develop the management chapter in the plan.

SPC is also participating in the development of the Shoreline Change Special Area Management Plan (aka “Beach SAMP”). This is a multi-year effort by RI Sea Grant to create a state management plan to guide coastal communities in developing strategies and policies to adapt to sea level rise. SPC is part of the Coalition of

Community Leaders (CCL)—a coalition of stakeholders adding insight and input to the project. CCL members oversee the dissemination of Beach SAMP information to coastal communities, listen to what constituents have to say, and pass the information up to the project leaders. SPC is also participating in the marsh migration research component of the SAMP, which includes all south coast towns.

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6 Volunteers

SPC is very grateful for the dedication and energy of all of our volunteers. We are so fortunate to have them--without their enthusiasm and love for the ponds, we could not fulfill our mission.

2013 was SPC’s 28th year of monitoring—the oldest volunteer marine water quality monitoring program in the nation. We have almost 30 volunteer water quality monitors sampling in the six major salt ponds. Every year in late April we have a training (or refresher) session, and then the Pondwatchers start sampling in early- to mid-May. Every two weeks through the middle of October, they go out by boat or boot early in the morning to collect

observations (such as temperature and dissolved oxygen) and samples (nutrients, chlorophyll-a, and bacteria, once per month). Their dedication is truly inspiring—several volunteers have been monitoring for over a decade. If you are interested in joining the ranks of the Pondwatchers, please let us know at saltpondscoalition@gmail.com.

SPC volunteers who come in for a few hours every week or two to work at the Kettle Pond Visitor Center (KPVC) front desk literally keep the roof over SPC. As part of our lease, we must provide the US FWS refuges with 36 hours of volunteer hours per month. Our KPVC volunteers provide the bulk of those hours, and we truly appreciate their time and efforts. Having our office in KPVC not only provides us with office space, but also with meeting space and convenient access to our important partners at US FWS. If you are interested in volunteering at KPVC, again, please let us know.

We also appreciate our volunteers who help out with events, such as paddles and safaris. Our kayak excursions often draw a large number of paddlers, and our volunteers who assist as “sweeps” (the last paddler, keeping track of stragglers) and safety boat captains are a huge help. We will be looking for SPC members with specific skills and/or interests that they are willing to share to serve on committees, so please stay tuned!

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7 Membership and Financial Statement

SPC’s members are the lifeblood of our organization. Without the ongoing support of our members, we cannot fulfill our mission and programs. SPC currently has just over 500 members, a membership level that has stayed relatively stable over the last few years. This is quite an accomplishment, considering the volatility of the economy. Truly, this speaks to the dedication and enthusiasm of our members, and of their love of these wonderful salt ponds. SPC’s budget has also remained stable over the past several years. We run a tight ship and accomplish a great deal on a modest budget. Fundraising and keeping our membership numbers stable are ongoing efforts.

INCOME AND EXPENSES for Fiscal Year 2013 (1/1/13 - 12/31/13)

INCOME

EXPENSES GRANT $2,400.00

SALARIES AND PAYROLL TAX $57,934.00

CONTRIBUTION $36,249.00

RENT $1,844.00 MEMBERSHIP $49,769.00

PRINTING / MAILING $6,459.00

FUND RAISING AND OTHER $6,539.00

POSTAGE $1,068.00

TRAVEL $293.00

LAB FEES $14,400.00

SUPPLIES (OFFICE) $2,772.00

WEB / EMAIL HOSTS $618.00

SUPPLIES (GENERAL) $4,426.00

PUBLICITY / ADVERTISING $331.00

INSURANCE / PROFESSIONAL FEES $2,724.00

TELEPHONE $1,049.00 $94,957.00

$93,918.00