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Nauset Marsh Steve Koppel

For over 55 years, APCC has helped restore natural resources in every town, procured better environmental policy at the county, state and federal level, and brought in millions of dollars to improve, protect and preserve the Cape.

Founded in 1968 by a group of concerned citizens to oppose an Army Corps of Engineers’ proposal to turn Nauset Marsh into a deep-water port, APCC’s birth occurred at the dawning of the nation’s environmental movement—the same awakening of environmental concern that produced Earth Day, the EPA, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act.

First APCC Office

From its grassroots beginnings to the present, APCC’s landmark achievements have resulted in cleaner drinking water, preserved open spaces and restored natural habitats on Cape Cod. Its efforts have fostered a greater awareness of the Cape’s natural environment and its integral relationship to our economy, our health and our everyday lives.

APCC is Cape Cod’s ever-vigilant caretaker, ready to call out environmental threats to our communities. It is also an important educator, training citizen scientists in environmental monitoring, helping the public connect with and understand the Cape’s ecology, and organizing volunteer initiatives such as the Cape’s springtime herring counting program.

APCC works in every Cape town, and at every level, from helping to organize neighborhood volunteer groups to providing towns with technical assistance on natural resource improvement projects. It has worked closely with elected officials and policy makers from our region and beyond, forged effective partnerships with the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce and local business leaders, and has been a close collaborator with its fellow environmental organizations such as the Compact of Cape Cod Conservation Trusts and the Center for Coastal Studies.

The vision of APCC’s founders for a regional environmental advocate, wise to science, politics and regulatory framework, and adept at building effective partnerships, is just as important today as it was 50 years ago.