Sandy Hook NOAA Lab Will Receive $480K To Study Climate Change

HIGHLANDS, NJ — Last week, a federally-run marine biology lab at the tip of Sandy Hook received an additional $480,000 in federal funding.

The $480,000 grant will be used to fund federal research on the effects of climate change on marine habitats and fisheries off Sandy Hook Bay and Raritan Bay. The funding will be used to hire additional researchers. Also, the funding will also be used to bring more teens and young people from New Jersey's poor areas and inner cities to do marine biology research at the lab.

The lab is the James J. Howard Marine Sciences Laboratory at Sandy Hook and it is part of the Northeastern Fisheries Science Center.

The lab is owned by the federal government and is operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The money was requested by Congressman Frank Pallone, the Democrat who represents the Raritan Bayshore and Sandy Hook in Congress. Pallone requested the federal funding and it was approved in the 2022 federal spending bill President Biden signed into law.

This November, Pallone will seek re-election and he will be challenged by former Hazlet mayor Sue Kiley, a Republican, in the midterms. Related: NJ 6 Midterm Watch: Kiley Comes Out Swinging Against Pallone

NOAA staff approached a grant organization called New Jersey Sea Grant to set up one- to two-year educational research grant that supports "diversity, equity and inclusion." NOAA is currently putting together a request for proposals for a September 2022 competition that specifically targets underserved colleges and universities in New Jersey.

These "sea grants" will pay stipends to students, purchase some supplies for their teachers/professors and provide assistance to conduct their research. The proposals must address the impacts of environmental change on marine habitats and fisheries in the Sandy Hook area.