Association to Preserve Cape Cod |
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| A Wolf at the Door by Andrew Gottlieb, APCC Executive Director
Let’s start by stating the obvious: We all agree that the Cape needs and benefits from a year-round population with access to stable and affordable housing. Not only does the well-being of our economy rely on the availability of local workers, but a year-round population will also be more invested in preserving the resources of Cape Cod. A second home-dominated visitor population is not as invested in preserving the Cape as those who consider here home. While we will always have both permanent and seasonal residents, the balance is shifting away from a sustainable year-round population and that needs to be corrected.
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From that starting point of agreement, the proposed solutions diverge. The loudest voices have coalesced around some iteration of a “build our way out of it” agenda. Focused on building market-rate housing with some subsidized affordable housing, this approach succeeds only by building enough homes on the Cape to make it no longer the place most of us value. Akin to destroying the place to save it, the policies I hear most about are those that promote enough new market-rate building to satiate the market forces that have distorted the current housing market. No one wants to publicly state, and therefore be attached to, the number of new units that breaks the market but it’s in the tens of thousands. Let that sink in as you sit in traffic trying to take your kids to swim some place where the water quality has not been degraded by existing development.
What I have heard that I find interesting pivots off the intriguing comment made by Paul Neidzweicki of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce last week at the Cape Cod Commission's excellent One Cape Summit. Paul characterized the Cape’s housing issue as not a problem of too few houses but as an occupancy problem. In other words, we have enough single-family houses; what we need is to have more of them occupied on a year-round basis by working families for whom Cape Cod is home. That notion made sense to me and, combined with his statement that the Cape has enough detached single-family homes, I am able to see a path forward.
The answer to our housing problem, and therefor to our environmental protection challenges, lies in integrated strategy that promotes and enables: -
the purchase of deed restrictions on existing houses that ensures long term affordability for working families;
- land use policies that encourage denser development of multi-family and rental housing in already disturbed and underdeveloped properties that have access to wastewater infrastructure;
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zoning changes that break the development patterns that have resulted in poor water quality, traffic and high housing prices;
- a major new open space acquisition effort that preserves the majority of the remaining critical habitat left unprotected; and
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utilization of those portions of JBCC that may no longer be needed to meet critical national defense needs or that protect the sensitive lands of the Upper Cape Water Supply Reserve.
Simply put, more of the same housing and development approaches, no matter how well intentioned, will bring more of our existing problems. Now is the time to break the mold before insatiable market forces consume all the remaining open space and turn the remaining modest sized homes that can suit working families into unattainable palaces that sit empty for much of the year. |
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On the right side of the above aerial image, note the pea green colored waterbody (indicative of a cyanobacteria bloom). This is West Reservoir in Harwich on August 1st. Town officials posted an advisory for users to avoid contact.
We receive a lot of phone calls with questions about the status of a pond. Before calling us about a pond, please first check our interactive cyanobacteria map, which was created for this very purpose. It will give you the most up to date information we have. - RED means a potentially toxic bloom has been detected and it is best to avoid contact.
- YELLOW means we've found sufficient concentration of cyanobacteria to warrant concern—especially for dogs and children who may ingest the water.
- BLUE means the pond is acceptable.
If the pond on the map is not colored, it's because it is not being monitored by APCC for cyanobacteria this season. A list of the ponds monitored, the cyano map, and more information can be found at APCC.org/cyano.
If you have questions about the swimming safety of a particular pond, please contact your local health department. |
CELEBRATE 55 Years with Us! |
APCC's 2023 Annual Meeting
Sunday, August 27, 2023 12:30 p.m. at the Dennis Inn
Keynote speaker: The Honorable Kim Driscoll, Lt. Governor of the Commonwealth AWARDS -
Esther Snyder Award for Environmental Excellence: Michael Lach, Executive Director of the Harwich Conservation Trust
- Paul Tsongas Environmental Recognition Award: DEP Title 5 and Watershed Permit Team
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APCC Special Recognitions: Nancy Horn & Chris Dennis, Friends of Peter’s Pond; Nauset Garden Club & Pollinator Pathway Cape Cod, Carol Alper & Gary Bowden
- APCC Honor Roll: Margo Fenn
Registration required.
CLICK HERE |
HELP DEFEND CAPE COD BAY
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has issued a preliminary denial of Holtec's proposed permit to discharge 1.1 million gallons of radioactive wastewater into Cape Cod Bay. However, the draft denial cannot be finalized until after a 30-day public comment period. The comment period runs through Aug. 28 at 5 p.m. The public can submit comments electronically to: [email protected] or written comments can be submitted to: MassDEP Surface Water Discharge Permitting Program, 100 Cambridge St., Suite 900, Boston, MA 02114.
The draft decision has it right, the Ocean Sanctuaries Act is clear: DEP’s action reflects the law and there is no other basis to do anything other than to finalize this decision. Send your comments to DEP by August 28th. Here’s a sample message.
Dear Commissioner Heiple,
I strongly agree with DEP’s draft determination to deny Holtec International’s permit application to discharge wastewater from Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station into Cape Cod Bay. DEP’s permit denial correctly interprets the Ocean Sanctuaries Act, which explicitly states that discharges such as the one pursued by Holtec are prohibited under state law. I urge DEP to move forward in finalizing its draft decision based on state law requirements and issue a permit denial to Holtec that prevents Pilgrim’s wastewater from being released into the Cape Cod Bay Ocean Sanctuary.
Thank you, [Your Name] [Your Address] |
The Guidelines gives homeowners steps they can take in the design and maintenance of their properties that will support pollinators and birds, manage stormwater, conserve water, and protect the Cape's water quality. This 40-page booklet is beautifully illustrated by Marcy Ford with content that is easily digestible and supported by numerous resources for additional learning. We've enjoyed creating it and hope it will help you with ideas to help you steward your piece of Cape Cod and maybe foster an environmental ethic in the decisions we all make in our own managed landscapes. Get your copy here—and maybe one for a friend?
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We'll be at the Brewster Ladies Library next Wednesday, August 16th at 1 p.m. to give a short presentation, answer your questions about eco-landscape design and best practices, have some time for networking and enjoy some light refreshments. No registration is required. |
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| APCC is Hiring: A Year-round Position and Seasonal Paid Internship Available |
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Cyanobacteria Science Coordinator: APCC seeks an experienced project manager to manage the sample analysis, interpretation, and reporting of results for APCC’s Cyanobacteria Monitoring Program. The Cyanobacteria Science Coordinator is responsible for ensuring the overall scientific quality of the program through oversight of sample collection, analyses, interpretation, and reporting of monitoring results, and communicating results and other information to municipal officials, agencies, organizations, and the public in an accurate clear manner. The position is fulltime, year-round, salaried with benefits. For the full description, click here. To apply, email a cover letter and resume to Dr. Julie Hambrook at: [email protected]
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Internship for State of the Waters: Cape Cod: APCC seeks a college- or graduate-level intern to assist with our “State of the Waters: Cape Cod” project. The internship provides a paid salary but does not provide benefits. Work involves scoring and grading water quality data for coastal embayments, ponds, and drinking water. Applicants must be proficient in the use of Microsoft Excel for data entry, calculations, and data analysis and possess a high degree of attention to detail and accuracy. The internship will run from August 1 through October or potentially into November 2023. For more information, visit APCC’s website: https://apcc.org/employment/. To apply, email a cover letter and resume to Dr. Jo Ann Muramoto at: [email protected]
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The Pollinator Pathway Cape Cod is a group of organizations promoting native plants and pollinator-friendly land care practices to create a boat load of safe oases for our native bees, butterflies and a whole host of other pollinators that are crucial to the health of our ecosystems. Join us! It's easy. There are no fees. You just need to pledge to ADD native plants, SUBTRACT a little lawn, AVOID yard chemicals, especially pesticides, and LEAVE the leaves. And, help us spread the word. If you wish, please get on the map to show your support of pollinators!
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The Jewels of Cape Cod ~ Our Freshwater Ponds |
Coonamessett Pond. Photos by Diane Weisman |
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Pond Stories is a collection of writings and other media from Cape Codders and visitors who love the 890 local ponds that dot the Cape. We hope this collection of stories awakens your inner environmentalist to think deeper about our human impacts to these unique bodies of water. |
Send us your favorite pond photo, story, poem, video, artwork—we want to share with everyone why the Cape's ponds and lakes are so special! Email your pond connection to [email protected] |
Have a favorite pond? Want to connect with others who are active in protecting their ponds?
Join the Cape Cod Ponds Network. For more information about past meetings of the Pond Network and to sign up, CLICK HERE.
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APCC has QR code stickers that link to our cyanobacteria webpage. If you'd like one or more to post on or around your pond, request by email to [email protected] |
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| By popular request...
APCC Caps are available for purchase! $25 includes shipping & handling Click here for more information and to order. ~ This is one great way to show your support for APCC's work. |
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A Cape Cod Native Plant-selector ~ to help you choose the perfect native plant for your garden location. |
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| Coastal Plain Joe Pye Weed, Eupatorium dubium |
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Sally Baer's rain barrel! |
| Rain Barrels for Cape Cod Order online from Upcycle Products $99 each includes FedEx shipping to your door APCC receives a portion of the proceeds.
For more information, click here. |
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| APCC Enewsletters. Our weekly newsletters are archived on our website and easily shared.
You can find past newsletters and share with your friends to sign up for future enewsletters HERE. |
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Are you thinking of going solar? We hope so! In partnership with SUNPOWER BY E2 SOLAR in Dennis, APCC receives $500 for every solar installation when APCC is named as referral.
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| Thank you to the homeowners who just contracted to install solar panels through E2 Solar. May the sun always shine for you! |
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Expressions Gallery, 578 Main Street, Chatham
CLICK HERE |
Expressions Gallery donates 20 percent of its profits to APCC's work.
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Thank you to our business sponsors |
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