Association to Preserve Cape Cod |
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| State of the Waters: Cape Cod 2023 Report by Andrew Gottlieb, APCC Executive Director |
Our fifth annual State of the Waters: Cape Cod report went live this morning. Check it out at CapeCodWaters.org and see what the latest data tells us about water quality. Cape Cod continues to experience a significant number of coastal embayments and freshwater ponds with unacceptable water quality, while the quality of the Cape’s public water supplies, for the most part, remains excellent.
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The Cape’s water quality woes are primarily due to excessive nutrients that adversely impact groundwater, freshwater ponds, and coastal embayments. The greatest source of nutrients comes from inadequately treated wastewater from septic systems. Stormwater runoff and fertilizers are additional sources of nutrients impacting the Cape’s waterbodies. This year’s report card shows that, despite a recent ramping up of efforts by some towns to reverse the impacts from decades of nutrient pollution in water bodies across the Cape, it’s still too early in most instances to see signs of improvement.
The number of embayments this year with acceptable water quality remained the same as last year at five embayments—only 10 percent of those graded. No embayments graded as unacceptable in the previous year improved to having acceptable water quality this year.
All embayments on Nantucket Sound had unacceptable water quality, as did all embayments in Buzzards Bay with the exception of Quissett Harbor. Pleasant Bay and Nauset Estuary received unacceptable grades. Cape Cod Bay continued to have the largest number of embayments—four—with acceptable water quality.
Over one-third—37 percent—of all graded ponds were determined to have unacceptable water quality, which amounted to 52 of the 139 graded ponds. The percentage of ponds with unacceptable water quality has remained fairly consistent over the past five years.
Nineteen public water supplies received an “Excellent” water quality grade, meaning that they met all state and federal drinking water standards. Two public water suppliers, the Buzzards Bay Water District and the Sandwich Water District, were graded as having “Good” water quality,
Although the report shows that Cape Cod’s coastal embayments and freshwater ponds continue to have significant water quality problems, the report indicates there is reason to have some optimism about the future. The financial resources, regulatory requirements and local politics are all now, at long last, aligned and most towns are bringing water quality improvement projects to town voters very eager and ready to support investments in cleaner water. The unprecedented number of projects coming before spring town meetings is a good sign that we will soon begin to see improving water quality. It is up to all of us to keep our towns focused on moving forward with water quality improvement projects and to show up at spring town meetings to vote yes on all the projects proposed for financing.
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For more information, and to see all of the report and more, go to CapeCodWaters.org. |
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WaterWORKS 2024 was held on Tuesday, January 16th at Cape Cod Community College. Despite the snowy weather, almost 400 high school juniors and seniors from schools across Barnstable, Dukes, Nantucket, and Plymouth counties attended this economy career fair focused on our collective blue economy—jobs dependent on water. APCC was there to share with students about the work we do.
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APCC science staff members, Sophia Feuerhake, JT Percy, and Lynn Francis, spent the day engaging students as they demonstrated the tools that are used in APCC's Freshwater Pond and Cyanobacteria Monitoring programs, for which APCC offers paid seasonal internships for students 18 years and older. The students enjoyed hearing about how the data we collect better informs us about our ponds as we seek to preserve and protect them.
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Dr. Julie Hambrook Berkman and Lynn Francis participated in panel discussions where students were able to ask questions and hear about personal education and career pathways and opportunities in the blue economy field. |
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This time of year with the leaves off, they are clearly visible—the green stuff coating the trees. These are lichens (pronounced ‘ly-kins’). Personally, I find the lush pale green textures attractive (it’s my favorite color) and lichens are a very interesting and diverse life form. There's a misconception that lichens are something bad, and social media posts abound with questions about what should be done to get rid of this "stuff." So, let's try to set the record straight, because there is a lot to like about lichens.
Lichens are more than one organism. They have been regularly used as an example of symbiosis, which is a relationship in which organisms have a cooperative and co-beneficial arrangement. For lichens, this mutual advantageous association is between a fungus and algae. The fungus provides the structure, the algae provide the food. Fungi cannot make food in the way that other plants do. Instead, they are decomposers that obtain nutrients from decaying matter. Algae, on the other hand, are able to capture the sun’s energy and convert it to carbohydrates via photosynthesis. And within this relationship with the algae, the fungus is able to reap the benefits. Sometimes there is a third party involved, like cyanobacteria (also called blue-green algae), also capable of photosynthesizing.
This morphing of two organisms into the lichen structure results in something that looks very different from either of the partners and, in reality, together they create a mini-ecosystem. As you can imagine, the complexity of what’s really going on is much more involved than can be described here. And the deeper one investigates, the more questions arise. Some biologists think this is not a symbiotic relationship at all, rather an example of domination and exploitation wherein the fungus really controls and uses the algae for its own benefit and essentially the algae are imprisoned by the fungus. But I see no need to take sides and pass judgement! Regardless of who is in charge in the relationship and because of this mutualism, lichens are able to inhabit areas of the world neither organism could perhaps successfully do on its own.
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Lichens are found in the most extreme environments, from the arctic tundra to arid deserts, to the highest mountains on the planet, to the rocky shoreline subject to the fury of the sea. Lichens are made up of colonies of literally hundreds of thousands of algae and fungi individuals. Lichens can reproduce through spore production, however successful reproduction relies on the fungal spore meeting up with the appropriate algae. As this might not always be successful, the lichen has a backup plan. The lichen population can expand vegetatively, which means that if a piece of the lichen breaks off, it (they) can start another colony.
Lichens cover about 7 percent of the Earth’s surface, and there are well over 15,000 species of lichens in the world. There are three basic types of lichens: crusty, leafy and shrubby. Each is amazing in its own way. They come in all colors of the rainbow and diversity of appearance, as well as the ecological roles they serve. One lichen function is the capture the moisture-laden air, condensing the fog so that if falls to the ground around them, preventing the soil from drying out and which is beneficial to other plants and organisms. Lichens play a role in nutrient cycling. In northern forests, lichens help trees grow because they accumulate and then release nitrogen and phosphorus for uptake by the trees.
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Lichens physically and chemically break down rocks. One broad example is a crusty-type lichen that by just being there, covering the bare rock, creates the conditions for moisture to collect beneath the lichen. With freezing temperatures, the moisture turns to ice and fractures the rock, ever so slightly. These bits of mineral rock particles, together with whatever organic materials may be accumulated by the lichen, combine to form soil. This creates an opportunity for some other plant, maybe moss or fern, to colonize the location. Now granted, this is not an overnight activity. It is a long process. But nature is all about the process and the journey, not just getting to the end point.
Lichens have an important connection to wildlife. Hummingbirds, along with 49 other species of North American birds, use lichens in their nest construction. Turkeys and grouse eat lichens. Mountain goats in Alaska eat lichens. Black tailed deer eat lichens when other forage is buried in snow. Caribou depend on lichens for 90 percent of their winter diet. Many small invertebrates have evolved to use lichens as habitat and consequently have developed coloration that camouflages them to be hidden in plain sight—a safe haven.
Lichens were used by Native Americans to dye textiles. Some lichens have medicinal use, and others are toxic and were used as poison for hunter’s arrows. The ancient Egyptians used lichens in the embalming of their dead.
The presence of lichens is generally an indicator of good air quality as most species are intolerant of air pollution. And lichens are carbon sinks because they capture carbon dioxide from the air and hold on to it in their structure, keeping it from contributing to the atmospheric carbon—something we need more of.
For all these reasons, I am likin’ lichens and hopin’ you do, too. This article by Kristin Andres, APCC Associate Director for Education, appeared in a 2022 edition of the Cape Cod Chronicle. |
A Shout Out to Putnam Farm, Orleans! |
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APCC Accepting Applications for Seasonal Positions |
Pond monitoring technician will conduct pond water quality monitoring as part of APCC’s Cape Cod Regional Pond Monitoring Program funded through the Cape Cod Commission’s Freshwater Initiative. More information on this position and how to apply can be found here.
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Guidelines for Cape-friendly Landscapes - an APCC publication |
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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. |
Thank you for this important book! Hopefully everyone of us with a yard will read it and put it to use! - Vicky Titcomb of Titcomb Bookshop |
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 are grateful for the several retail shops that are partnering with us to make this publication more widely available: Brewster Book Store, Birdwatchers General Store, Crocker Nurseries, Wellfleet Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary, Cape Abilities Farm, Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, the Cape Cod Lavender Farm, Heritage Museums and Gardens, Titcomb's Bookshop, and Sea Howl Bookshop.
If you are a retailer and would like to sell this publication at your store, contact Kristin 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.
Spearheaded by the Nauset Garden Club in 2021, the pathway has grown to 44 organizations and 277 residential properties across Cape Cod that are dedicated to supporting pollinators.
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. Please get on the map to show your support of pollinators on Cape Cod!
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| 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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| Cutleaf Coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata |
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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 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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APCC is rated four stars by Charity Navigator and 2023 Platinum by Candid (formerly Guidestar). |
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