Back in 2021, APCC proposed that the Barnstable County Commissioners move forward on two critical water quality initiatives. Fast forward to 2023 and those two proposals, the Freshwater Initiative and a sliding scale loan program (AquiFund) for septic upgrades and sewer connections, are now a reality. APCC has always prided itself in being able to work on current problems, while also helping to set the agenda for what is ripe for discussion to address the long term needs of the Cape.
So then, the question is less about what we have most recently achieved, but rather what is next on the agenda. There is no lack of complex and difficult issues that require creative problem solving and we have many of them in our sights. There are plenty of issues raised in our recently updated State of the Waters: Cape Cod report as well as our newest natural resource assessment report detailing the impact of development pressures on the landscape and habitat of Cape Cod, called Hanging in the Balance. APCC will be outlining creative and thoughtful proposals on how to extend and improve financing options to help towns and homeowners manage the costs of water quality initiatives, how to rise above petty rancor and bridge differences of opinion on much needed regulations governing watershed permits and septic installations, how to provide major new protections of remaining critical open spaces and priority habitat while addressing the need for certain types of housing, utilizing existing statutory authority to prevent the use of Cape Cod Bay as a nuclear waste dump and to accelerate the pace of wetland restoration projects as a response to declining water quality and climate change.
That’s a full agenda but setting the table with the issues that shape our environmental future is why APCC exists and what we do especially well. Keep your eyes on this space.
