Roger Williams University has been named the new home of the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program. The estuary program’s steering committee selected Roger Williams to serve as the host institution for the program, one of 28 in the country that are part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Estuaries Program, for its leadership in research and community-engaged work on coastal resiliency and the blue economy,

The estuary program is dedicated to the protection and improvement of Narragansett Bay, Little Narragansett Bay and the Rhode Island Coastal Ponds, and their vast watersheds. The university was chosen as the the organization’s home through an extensive selection process. EPA’s National Estuary Program will provide the university with annual grant funding to administer the program.

Roger Williams has long been a member of the estuary program’s Science Advisory Committee, but the estuary program will now reside at the university, effective Oct. 1.

“Being home to the Narraganset Bay Estuary Program is one more way that Roger Williams University is creating a more resilient coastal environment and helping the Ocean State and southeastern Massachusetts lead the way in the blue economy,” said university President Ioannis Miaoulis.

“Both RWU and the estuary program are forward-looking. We are focused on creating a better future for the region’s environment and its people,” said Mike Gerel, director of the estuary program. “I view the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program as a small organization that seeks to deliver big impact, and our partnership with RWU can help us achieve that ambitious vision.”

“Roger Williams University will be a terrific community partner for the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a longtime champion for the National Estuaries Program, which is the major funding source for the Narragansett Bay program. “Working with Roger Williams, the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program will continue its stewardship of the estuaries and watersheds at the heart of Rhode Island’s economy and way of life.”

The estuary program is a channel for federal funding for watershed projects that help address the consequences of water pollution and climate change. Some of the organization’s recent work includes creating a long-term plan to improve the Blackstone River, the second largest tributary to Narragansett Bay that runs from Worcester, Mass., to Pawtucket; a study of new ways to restore coastal salt marshes by Save The Bay in Rhode Island’s coastal ponds; a stormwater master plan for Mt. Hope High School; and documenting the positive impact recent reductions in the discharge of nutrient pollution from wastewater treatment facilities is having on the bay.