Hampton-Seabrook Estuary

Our Region's Estuaries are bustling places of activity

Explore the page below to learn more about the monitoring PREP coordinates and supports, projects PREP staff are leading or participating in, and recent news from our partners in and around the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary.

Interested in learning about the ecology of the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary? Check out the Our Region tab above.

Explore the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary Map

This interactive map illustrates multiple data points

PREP at Work in the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary

Learn about recent projects

Partner Projects and Stories

From our partners

Monitoring in the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary

PREP and our partners collect over 1 million data points annually to better understand the health of our estuaries. Below is a map showing what we track in and around the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary. Click on the map to see the monitoring sites for water quality, toxic pollutants, fish, beach closures, and salt marsh. All of this data is compiled into the State of Our Estuaries report where we report on the status and trends of indicators of ecological health. Check out the latest State of Our Estuaries report for information on specific indicators.

PREP at Work in the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary

Coordination for the Estuary

PREP is a proud participant of the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary (HSE) Collaborative; a group of local, state, and federal organizations focused on improving the long-term health and vitality of the estuary and its communities. We seek to align our collective resources and activities to more effectively provide the science and data that communities need to understand, manage, and protect the estuary. Additionally, the HSE Collaborative is exploring near-term opportunities for collaboration and aims to ensure our efforts are mutually supportive, contribute to commonly shared goals for the estuary, and set the stage for longer-term more robust monitoring, adaptive management, and restoration. Learn more about the HSE Collaborative here.

Community Protections for Water Quality and Natural Resources

The Piscataqua Region Environmental Planning Assessment (PREPA) provides an analysis of regulatory and non-regulatory approaches to resource management in the 52 municipalities in the Piscataqua Region watershed. As part of the assessment, PREP makes recommendations for actions communities can take to improve water quality and natural resource protections. PREP also provides funding through the PREPA grant program for communities to implement one or more of the recommendations. Find out more about PREPA 2021 Grant Projects.

To gather information, Municipal Master/Comprehensive Plans, zoning ordinances, subdivision and site plan review regulations, and other factors were reviewed. This data is available here and will be updated periodically.

A Plan for the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary

PREP is supporting SHEA’s leadership in developing a Hampton Seabrook Estuary Management Plan, in coordination with local, state, and federal partners. The Plan will support decision-making and natural resource protection in the estuary and the communities surrounding it. The planning process will continue to engage the participants of the Hampton Seabrook Estuary Collaborative for technical information and needs, members of the communities of Seabrook and Hampton, and town-level decision makers to build a management plan that will establish indicators and a data collection plan, as well as policy and management recommendations for improved water quality and habitat protection. Find out more about PREPA 2021 Grant Projects.

Partner Projects and Stories

Protecting the natural resources and water quality in our estuaries is no small feat. Fortunately, we work with partners in our mission to protect and enhance our estuaries of national significance. Below are a few projects and stories from our partners and their work in the Hampton-Seabrook Estuary.

Where We Work