Kinsey, an associate professor of chemistry, was awarded a $16,000 grant. Her project aims to monitor pharmaceuticals, personal care products (PPCPs) and water quality in the Quinnipiac River.

The foundation’s Quinnipiac River Fund was created “to improve the environmental quality of the Quinnipiac River and the New Haven Harbor.”

“This project is being conducted to gain information about the water quality of the Quinnipiac River and to identify low concentrations of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) that enter the river through human activities,” she said, adding that field sampling and analysis will be conducted this summer and next winter with the help of two senior research students.

The water quality monitoring needs were determined by considering past study results, as well as the classification of the Quinnipiac River as an impaired water body, she said.