DURHAM, N.H. -- U.S. Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH) today joined with officials from the University of New Hampshire and the UNH Stormwater Center to formally release the first round of data in a study to find better ways to deal with large volumes of water and prevent pollution. The Stormwater Center is part of the Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology. As former Chairman, and still a member, of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Senator Gregg secured the federal funding for CICEET to create and operate the Center. Senator Gregg, along with UNH President Ann Hart, co-director of CICEET Dr. Richard Langan, and Stormwater Center Director Dr. Thomas Ballestero, lauded the site and its ability to manage and test the twelve different systems for managing stormwater.

Senator Gregg stated, “Over the past week, areas of southwestern New Hampshire have been devastated by torrential flooding. After the homes and buildings are rebuilt, and the roads and bridges are repaired, the environmental effects will still affect the region. The water from storms and flooding like New Hampshire experienced has the potential to be contaminated with a variety of pollutants. The UNH Stormwater Center is working to solve that problem. By testing different methods of cleaning polluted stormwater and reducing runoff, and then making this information available, the UNH researchers will help communities who are affected by similar storms and floods in the future. This will greatly improve our natural environment, and I commend those from UNH, CICEET and the Stormwater Center for their significant work.”

Richard Langan, Co-director of the UNH/NOAA Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology, which sponsors the UNH Stormwater Center, stated, “We are so pleased that Senator Gregg will be here to formally launch the UNH Stormwater Center; it was through his efforts that funding was secured for the Center, and the very important work it does in addressing the problems associated with stormwater runoff. The Center’s research will not only inform decisions that reduce the amount of stormwater runoff, but also address the nonpoint source pollution that it carries. We are grateful for the Senator’s support in helping us find solutions for one of the biggest threats to water quality nationwide.”

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