Connecticut River Watershed Partnership Act - Summer

Team Members: Aliza Rozen, William Morrissey, Erica Wu, Jiqiang (Cecilia) Wang, Erica Varon Rodriguez, Alex Li, Josh Kimball, Gowri Kashyap, Aidan Feighery, Alexandra Evangelopoulou, Cheng Chen

This report evaluates H.R. 5216, the Connecticut River Watershed Partnership Act, a federal bill designed to support restoration and conservation efforts across the Connecticut River watershed. Stretching more than 400 miles across five states—Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine—the watershed supports over 2.4 million residents and plays a vital ecological and economic role in the region. However, decades of urbanization, industrial activity, and agricultural expansion have contributed to water pollution, habitat fragmentation, altered river flows, and declining biodiversity throughout the watershed.

The proposed legislation establishes a non-regulatory federal program to coordinate restoration initiatives across state boundaries while providing grants to local governments, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions engaged in watershed protection. The report outlines key priorities of the bill, including improving water quality, restoring fish passage at dams, controlling invasive species, and supporting nature-based solutions that strengthen community resilience to climate change. The program also emphasizes environmental justice by prioritizing projects that benefit underserved communities within the watershed. The authors propose performance metrics to measure the success of restoration activities, including improvements in water quality, biodiversity recovery, and community engagement. By strengthening interstate collaboration and expanding funding for conservation initiatives, the bill aims to restore ecosystem health across the Connecticut River watershed while promoting sustainable economic and recreational opportunities.

Learn more about the MPA-ESP Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management.