Wood Pawcatuck Watershed Association gets $350,000 state grant

DEM Awards Over $2M in Climate Resilience Grants

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) has awarded $2,022,146 in matching Climate Resilience Fund (CRF) grants to five municipalities and three community organizations for statewide climate resilience projects. 

The grants will fund eight projects to restore and improve the climate resilience of local communities, infrastructure, and coastal habitats. The CRF is funded through 2024 Green Bond.

“Rhode Island continues to face increasing challenges from more frequent and intense weather events from climate change.  In 2026, we experienced record snowfall in February, drought conditions throughout the Spring, and then higher than average rainfalls in July.  Additionally, NOAA declared this July as the hottest July on record in our country. Our state’s communities face significant stresses and diverse risks from rising seas to severe storm events, flooding, and erosion,” said DEM Director Terry Gray. 

“These grants provide vital support for projects that strengthen the resilience of our communities, underscoring the importance of the voter-approved Green Bonds that make them possible. We urge Rhode Island voters to approve the 2026 Green Bond in November.” 

“Rhode Island’s communities, infrastructure, and natural systems are put at risk by the increasing impacts of climate change,” said RI Chief Resilience Officer Kimberly Korioth. “By working collaboratively with municipalities and community organizations, we continue to reduce climate change impacts by advancing resilience projects across the Ocean State.” 

Climate change is causing extreme weather, inland and coastal flooding, and sea level rise, resulting in environmental and economic challenges for Rhode Island’s 39 cities and towns and around the world. Scientific modeling predicts that these impacts will accelerate. 

The CRF grants awarded today continue the state's efforts to assist and advance the resilience of Rhode Island’s communities. The grants awarded include:

Bristol County Water Authority, $350,000: To remove and safely dispose of an asbestos-coated pipeline from the salt marsh in Warren. Once removed, restoration of salt marsh hydrology will be conducted by project partner Save the Bay.

Town of Cumberland, $275,000: To work with Save the Bay to restore aquatic connectivity and enhance flood resilience on West Sneech Brook by replacing an undersized and failing culvert on Westwood Drive. The Town will construct a natural-bottom, wildlife-friendly culvert to reconnect 1.3 miles of stream habitat and 138 acres of upstream wetlands while improving climate resilience in a cold-water tributary of the Blackstone River.

Town of North Kingstown, $32,146: To plant 39 trees in the northern segment of the Post Road/Route 1 corridor to enhance tree canopy, reduce impervious area, and build resilience on both the eastern and western side of the corridor.

Town of North Smithfield, $350,000: To address vulnerabilities in municipal stormwater infrastructure at Pacheco Park and the adjacent North Smithfield Public Library. To mitigate ongoing stormwater issues, this project will design and implement updated stormwater management systems across both sites that include localized green infrastructure elements to protect vital public infrastructure and the surrounding watershed environment.

Town of Warren, $95,000: For a long-term multiphase strategy to address climate change impacts along Warren’s coastlines. The Warren Town Beach Resilience Project phase will design nature-based infrastructure to stabilize the eroding shoreline, adapt to sea-level rise, and improve public access to the waterfront.

City of Warwick, $220,000: To support a voluntary property buyout for a project to improve stream/wetland floodplain restoration and increase stormwater storage capacity in the tributaries of Hardig Brook. The project will include returning the property to a more natural state and the construction of a stormwater retention system to reduce the frequency and severity of future storm related flooding events.

Wood Pawcatuck Watershed Association, $350,000: To replace the undersized culvert at Hillsdale Road with a new design rated for 100-year flows and featuring an open bottom culvert, wildlife abutment benches, and instream boulder weirs to attenuate flow velocity for native fish.

Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, $350,000: To advance green infrastructure improvements within Esmond Park as part of the larger Esmond Village Linear Natural Infrastructure Park project in partnership with the Town of Smithfield and RIDOT. Nature based stormwater management practices will help reduce flooding impacts, improve water quality, and increase climate resilience within Esmond Village and downstream communities throughout the Woonasquatucket River Watershed.

 Grant applications were evaluated and scored by a review committee consisting of members of DEM, the RI Infrastructure Bank (RIIB), the RI Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC), the RI Department of Health (RIDOH), and the RI Division of Statewide Planning (RIDSP). Seventeen CRF proposals were received, spanning 12 municipalities and five non-governmental organizations. The total grant request across all proposals was $4,451,171.

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