The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) moved to protect herring on Nov. 19 when it approved a new rule restricting the operation of trawlers. Amendment 8 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan, developed by the New England Fishery Management Council over the past several years, prohibits the use of mid-water trawl gear year-round […]
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CIVICS
Consultants Will Help Decide Who Is on Walsh Land Panel
Housing and environmental preservation are seen as competing interests
TRURO — Town officials have hired a Cambridge consulting firm to help figure out what to do with the 70-acre Walsh property, whose purchase for $5.1 million was approved by town meeting in May. The Consensus Building Institute (CBI) of Cambridge will set up a process to guide the Walsh property plan. Stacie Nicole Smith, […]
FOWL PLAY
Hunters Take Aim at Phaseout of Pheasant Stocking
National Seashore may halt practice within five years
As upland game season wraps up on Nov. 30, many local hunters worry that a longstanding tradition of pheasant hunting will soon be ending. Following a 2002 court challenge by animal rights groups, the National Park Service is expected to begin phasing out the state’s practice of pheasant stocking, in which non-native ring-necked pheasants are […]
SPECIAL TOWN MEETING
New Station or Housing? The VFW Parcel’s Long, Winding Road
Six years of town meeting votes led to the current moment
PROVINCETOWN — The 1.3-acre parcel of town-owned land that was the former VFW post is once again the subject of debate. A petitioned article from Fire Chief Mike Trovato and 203 voters has triggered a special town meeting in the town hall auditorium at 6 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 2. The petitioners want the parcel […]
LAND USE
Truro Trust Inks Deal to Buy Beach at Great Hollow
No town funds are expended in $250,000 purchase
TRURO — The Truro Conservation Trust closed on a bayside property on Nov. 1 for $250,000 — far below the original asking price for the 1.1-acre parcel next to Great Hollow Beach. The trust covered the entire cost, with no public money spent. Last year, the property at 2 Kill Devil Road was listed at […]
climate crisis management
Hazard Mitigation Is Focus for Eastham Planners
Survey seeks input on increasing resiliency against natural disasters
EASTHAM — If a severe storm or flood hit the Outer Cape forcing residents to evacuate, it would cause a major traffic backup. Route 6 is the main evacuation route to Orleans and beyond. But what if the Orleans Rotary were under water? Drivers could try the back roads through Eastham, but that would require […]
climate crisis
Citizens Push for Climate Crisis Legislation
A meeting in Wellfleet with Peake to discuss carbon tax and other bills
WELLFLEET — Fifteen concerned citizens gathered at the Flying Fish Café in Wellfleet on Nov. 15 to discuss bills now in play at the State House that aim to curb greenhouse gas emissions. They then met with state Rep. Sarah Peake at town hall to seek her support. Volunteer organizer Tony Rogers from the Mass. […]
MILLION-YEAR PICNIC
Why Orion the Hunter Is Rising This Evening
An astronomy lesson for five-year-olds of any age
With the end of daylight savings time, it’s suddenly darker much earlier in the evening. You may notice that the night sky has changed since those beach bonfires back in August. Look east around 9 p.m., and you’ll see Orion the Hunter rising, which you probably haven’t seen since last winter. Why is that? What […]
ENVIRONMENT
A Mountain of ‘Sacrificial Sand’ Is Dumped at Blasch House
Coastal bank is replenished as property owners challenge town in court
WELLFLEET — The Blasch property is receiving another massive amount of “sacrificial sand” in an effort to stall the mansion’s collapse over the edge of a coastal bank. The 5,817-square-foot house perched on “the Gut,” a narrow spit of sand between Cape Cod Bay and the Herring River, was only 25 feet from the edge […]
FIRST RESPONSE
Police Station Gets First Renovation Since 1989
Roof, locker room, kitchen, and training room improvements under way
EASTHAM — The town’s police station was built 30 years ago and has stayed virtually unchanged ever since. But now some much needed exterior and interior renovations are under way. The building received a new roof this fall and renovations to the locker rooms, kitchen, and training room are expected to begin in January and […]
ENVIRONMENT
Globe Brings Cape’s Climate Crisis to City Audience
A follow-up conference raises issues of equity, justice, and retreat from the coast
BOSTON — The Boston Globe’s multimedia reporting project “At the Edge of a Warming World,” published with much fanfare last month, held few surprises for Cape Codders. Most of it was old news — yes, we’re experiencing erosion, flooding, storms, and biodiversity loss. Species are shifting their ranges. Fish stocks are dwindling, and special habitats […]
WINTER WATCH
Keeping Lights On and Food Cold With a Home Generator
Towns and households are taking the season ahead seriously
In the wake of the Thursday, Oct. 17 nor’easter with winds of up to 90 mph Eversource received over 100,000 Cape Cod power outage reports. According to Eversource representative Reid Lamberty, restoration efforts lasted over 72 hours, with the last customer back online the following Sunday morning. The coming winter is forecast to be colder […]
CLIMATE
An Ancient Cycle of Erosion Carves the Beach
What coastal scientists see as a natural process may be accelerating
TRURO — The nor’easter that struck the Outer Cape on Oct. 10 and lingered for almost three days caused massive erosion at Ballston Beach. Sand dunes and bluffs were carved away, exposing the bare clay beneath. The new scenery is unfamiliar — almost Martian in its hues and its bizarre ridged formations cut into the […]
ENVIRONMENT
Shark Mitigation Study Offers No Guarantees
Woods Hole Group analyzed 27 alternatives
EASTHAM — “There isn’t a single alternative or suite of alternatives that can 100-percent guarantee the safety of all individuals who choose to enter the water,” coastal scientist Adam Finkle told a crowd of about 100 at Nauset Regional High on Oct. 17. Representing the Woods Hole Group (WHG), Finkle presented the results of the […]
oysterfest 2019
OysterFest Goes ‘Plastic Free’
Beer and wine in cans and stainless steel mugs replace plastic cups
WELLFLEET — Organizers of the Wellfeet OysterFest announced last week that this year’s event will be “plastic free” in response to rising concerns about the environmental impact of single-use plastics. Lead organizer Michele Insley said of SPAT (Wellfleet Shellfish Promotion and Tasting), the group that puts on the festival, “We’re a nonprofit that supports the […]
