Protecting the Environment and Building Community

One Quinnipiac River expert is helping continue critical grant-supported research and cleanups.

May 10, 2025
A group of people wearing yellow safety vests and gloves pose with filled garbage bags after a cleanup in a forested area, standing and sitting near the roadside.
Quinnipiac University students cleared garbage from the riverbanks during a volunteer day. Contributed photo.

As it travels south from Meriden’s Hannover Pond to New Haven, the Quinnipiac River flows through one of the most industrialized areas of our region. Quinnipiac University Professor Courtney McGinnis has been testing the water quality along this section for more than a decade, supported by grants from The Quinnipiac River Fund. In 2024, she received additional funding to lead community cleanups of bulk trash illegally dumped near one of her 14 monitoring sites.

“What’s more community-building than picking up trash in a beautiful, forested area?"

Courtney McGinnis / Quinnipiac University Professor of Biology and Medical Sciences

“We know the impact that tires and plastics can have on our environment, and they are sitting adjacent to the river,” McGinnis said. Partnerships with Quinnipiac, Hopkins School and the town of North Haven resulted in three cleanups that removed several dumpsters-worth of trash. “What’s more community-building than picking up trash in a beautiful, forested area,” she added. 

To date, the Fund has granted more than $3.2 million to local researchers and organizations working to keep the river clean, identify pollutants and make it more accessible for residents to enjoy.

Two people work together to lift a worn blue armchair outdoors; one wears a blue cap and black shirt, and the other wears an orange safety vest, gloves, and glasses. There is dirt and tree roots in the background.

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