SMPDC and the RSRP are the recipients of a recently announced grant award from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s National Coastal Resilience Fund. This award will help make local infrastructure more resilient to flooding and sea level rise. 

Program staff worked with Kittery, the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and other partners to develop the grant application. This project is aligned with local and regional priorities for increasing resilience to coastal flooding and sea level rise and will address vulnerabilities of two roadways in Kittery that are critical for both regional travel and access to the Shipyard. The project will advance past and ongoing regional and local coastal resilience planning efforts, including the Kittery Climate Action Plan and Climate Ready Coast - Southern Maine regional project. Ultimately, this work will result in a site assessment and preliminary design of nature-based solutions to enhance the resilience of critical transportation, sewer, and stormwater infrastructure in the Spruce Creek area of Kittery. The project also offers an exciting opportunity for Program staff to closely collaborate with SMPDC’s Transportation planning staff and state partners.

Project activities include a site assessment to identify conditions, vulnerabilities, and opportunities for nature-based solutions; development of upgrade designs; and robust community and stakeholder engagement. 

To learn more about the project, please contact Abbie Sherwin, asherwin@smpdc.org.

The next round of Community Action Grants (CAGs) was announced by the state at the beginning of December. This next round of grants, with awards up to $50,000 for projects that reduce energy use and costs, transition to clean energy, and make communities in Maine more resilient to climate change, is open now with applications due March 29th, 2024. This round of CAGs is open to communities who are enrolled in the Community Resilience Partnership and who have not yet received a CAG award.

In addition to the regular CAGs, the state is also offering a one-time opportunity to apply for an Energy Efficiency Priorities Grant. This program is designed to distribute federal funds to disadvantaged communities for projects that improve energy efficiency and implement clean energy systems. To be eligible, communities must be enrolled in the partnership and be designated as "disadvantaged" by the federal EPA CJEST tool. Applications for this grant are due February 16th, 2024. For more information, register for the informational webinar on December 20th at 1:30 pm. 

The Climate Ready Coast – Southern Maine grant-funded project has officially come to an end, but the regional work to advance priority coastal resilience initiatives continues. The project, which involved the 10 coastal communities from Kittery north to Scarborough and numerous regional, state, and federal partners, culminated at the end of November with the release of the final Southern Maine Regional Coastal Resilience Plan. The plan serves as a roadmap for scoping priority projects and developing grant applications for coastal adaptation action and outlines needs, opportunities, and possible next steps for advancing local and regional resilience projects.

Check out the final plan here!



To continue the energy and momentum generated by Climate Ready Coast, build off existing partnerships, and implement the regional Plan, RSRP will be working with the Wells Reserve and other partners to establish a sustained regional coastal resilience working group. The group, which will include staff from project towns, will focus on tackling coastal management needs and advancing priority local and regional projects for increasing the resilience of our coastal habitats, infrastructure, and communities. Stay tuned in the new year for more information about the working group. 

R1CC Online Grid Conversations

• January 23 – A Conversation with CMP: On Tuesday, January 23, 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM join a conversation with Andrew Rabbe and Greg Thompson, representatives from Central Maine Power, to learn more about our regional grid. Gain a better understanding of electrical generation, transmission, and distribution; learn about grid resilience; and have an opportunity to ask questions that will benefit your community's transition to electric. Register Here.



• January 30 – A Conversation with the Governor’s Energy Office: On Tuesday, January 30, 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM join a second Conversation with Ethan Tremblay, Policy and Markets Program Manager for the Governor's Energy Office (GEO). During our discussion with Ethan, we'll learn about the GEO; get an overview of the state energy policy landscape, including interactions at the regional and local levels; learn who the ‘players’ are, and what the opportunities are for engagement around grid planning and resilience. Register Here.

R1CC/ Casco Bay Coastal Academy

• January 18 - Climate Change and Drinking Water workshop: Thursday, January 18, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM join R1CC for a discussion of how island communities are taking steps to protect their drinking water. Ryan Gordon, Hydrogeologist with Maine Geological Survey, will share information about climate impacts to drinking water. LEARN MORE