By Juliana Barrett

UConn’s Connecticut Sea Grant Program (CTSG) and Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) hosted a discussion of Hurricane Sandy impacts to Connecticut’s beaches and dunes on November 20, 2012. Several municipalities and private beach associations attended and provided insights into local shoreline changes. Many areas along the eastern part of the state experienced shoreline erosion with dunes heavily impacted by the storm surge. Many dunes were flattened with sand pushed landward into marshes, tidal inlets and developed areas. State and federal agency officials from Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Army Corps of Engineers, and FEMA provided information on agency resources and regulations. CTSG and CLEAR will assemble this information, and agency websites so that there will be a protocol in place for the next time a storm hits the Connecticut coast.