Sea Grant scientists brace for budget cuts

The Trump administration's initial budget proposal has researchers at the Delaware Sea Grant College Program bracing for steep cuts.

Representatives from the University of Delaware’s College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, Southern Delaware Tourism and local leaders joined U.S. Sen. Tom Carper in Lewes April 13 to highlight the program's research efforts, which could be jeopardized by proposed federal funding cuts.

“Sea Grant has provided an avenue for my colleagues and me to pursue research that is difficult to fund elsewhere,” said research scientist Tye Pettay, who is currently studying toxic algal blooms in the Inland Bays. Sea Grant often funds smaller, localized projects that can be practically applied to serve the public, he said.

President Donald Trump's initial budget, the America First Budget Blueprint, proposes complete elimination of funding for the National Sea Grant College Program as part of more than $250 million in cuts to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration grants and programs. Delaware Sea Grant is one of 33 university-based programs in coastal states, Puerto Rico, Lake Champlain and Guam that leverages federal and local funding for research based in coastal communities.

In Delaware, nearly 80 student researchers are supported by the 40-year-old program, which has studied the state's fledgling Inland Bays aquaculture program, flood risks, surf-zone injuries, water quality and myriad other projects specific to the coastal area.

Mohsen Badiey, acting dean of the university's College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, said Delaware Sea Grant has played a vital role in helping Delaware communities understand the science behind topics such as coastal ecosystems to make more informed management decisions.

“We are a Sea Grant College, and this is affecting us tremendously,” he said.

For Southern Delaware Tourism Executive Director Scott Thomas, Delaware Sea Grant research extends far beyond the scientific community.

“Early on, I realized the Sea Grant Program was our main research partner,” Thomas said.

Delaware Sea Grant helped develop Southern Delaware Tourism's visitor surveys, which collect data about people visiting Delaware's beaches to find out where they come from, what they do while they're here and in turn help the organization more efficiently market Delaware's coastal tourism offerings, he said.

“We need programs like Delaware Sea Grant to be a partner in providing that,” Thomas said. “I can't imagine not working with a program like that.”

Delaware Sea Grant studies have helped quantify the economic impact of coastal tourism in the First State, an industry that attracts more than 8 million people annually to the First State.

Sea Grant studies have found more than 40,000 people are employed in tourism, which is expected to face additional challenges as sea level rises 1 to 1.5 meters in the next century – an increase that some research indicates could inundate Route 1. A new study released in April 2017 also explores coastal resiliency options and offers tools and suggestions for dealing with extreme coastal storms and preparing for future impacts of climate change, including sea level rise.

“There are a variety of different scientific areas we fund every year, and the reports that come up are all toward the application of science into the communities and how this really helps the local people,” Badiey said. That research also can benefit other coastal communities, he said.

Carper, who has been heavily criticizing the Trump administration's take on all things environmental, denigrated the proposed budget, calling it the “skinny budget” and the “brochure budget.”

“It's not a real budget. It's like a budget on the back of an envelope,” Carper said. “They have proposed cuts to anything that has anything to do with solar, wind, sea level rise, a lot of our science projects and programs – zeroed out. It's sad, and it's disappointing.”

But it's also energizing, he said, pointing to a sense of solidarity among scientists that was demonstrated at the March for Science in Washington, D.C., on Earth Day, Saturday, April 22.

“People all over this country are waking up,” he said. “This is the planet we live on. It's very special, and we have an obligation to take care of it.”

While the proposed federal budget is far from final, Delaware Sea Grant's Marine Advisory Service acting Director Edward Lewandowski said he's concerned about the proposed cuts and what they could mean for local communities that benefit from Sea Grant research. Each year presents funding challenges, he said, and while he's seen funding reductions approved and money later restored, he's a bit more concerned than usual.

“I've been through this before,” he said. “But this is a different environment, a different atmosphere with this administration. It's worrisome.”

For more about Delaware Sea Grant, go to www.deseagrant.org.