MILFORD — U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said that a subcommittee’s appropriations bill approved Thursday includes more than $20 million in federal funds for Long Island Sound programs, and $200 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which has a research lab in Milford.

Murphy is a member of the appropriations subcommittee of the U.S. Senate committee on Commerce, Science, Justice, and Related Agencies. The funding, in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, “would support critical aquaculture research and improve regulatory permitting that supports over 700 local jobs and helps to improve the health of Long Island Sound,’’ Murphy said.

The Milford Lab is one of just two NOAA labs nationwide supporting aquaculture research, he said. The subcommittee bill “includes language addressing concerns around staffing changes and funding cuts at Milford Lab,’’ Murphy said in a prepared statement.

The Rogers Avenue lab, officially known as the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center, opened in 1931 and conducts research into fish and shellfish habitat, commercial use and restoration. Visit the Milford lab’s web site.

Staff scientist Gary Wikfors was recently named one of the top 20 most productive oyster researchers in the world, in an article in Aquaculture International, a trade journal. The publication used bibliometrics to trace authorship, collaborations, research subjects, and other characteristics for oyster research since 1991.
“As changes in the environment batter Long Island Sound and deplete our stocks of shellfish, we need to invest in groundbreaking research more than ever before,’’ Murphy said. “It isn’t just the right thing to do environmentally, it’s also the right thing to do for our economy.

“The bill we passed today sends a strong message about Congress’ commitment to the $30 million aquaculture industry in Connecticut,’’ the senator said. “The men and women at the Milford Lab are at the forefront of creating jobs, growing our knowledge base about ocean health and climate change, and developing sustained populations of shellfish - which grows our economy and creates jobs.”