PLYMOUTH — The 62 concrete-and-steel casks storing more than 4,000 radioactive spent fuel assemblies from the former Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station’s 47 years of operation still sit on the site, […]
Environment
LONG TIMELINE
Future Is Unclear for Wind Leases off Cape Cod
Existing leases have not been canceled, and a five-year deadline leaves some time
WELLFLEET — On his inauguration day, President Donald Trump signed an executive order meant to start fulfilling his campaign promise to kill offshore wind development “on day one.” The executive […]
NATURAL SELECTION
The Birches Stay Forever Young
You can spot plenty of native gray birch trees in the brush next to Bound Brook and Pole Dike roads in Wellfleet: just look for the chalky bark with the […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 4 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
ENVIRONMENT
Wellfleet Adopts New Septic Regulations
Priorities: upgrades, cesspool removal in stages, and case-by-case decisions
WELLFLEET — The board of health approved a new set of septic system regulations at its Jan. 22 meeting. The rules are an essential part of the town’s Targeted Watershed […]
TRURO PUBLIC WORKS
Final DPW Funding Plans Are Taking Shape
The select board approves a timeline; no funds for assessment at 340 Route 6
TRURO — Three months before town meeting, the effort to replace Truro’s Dept. of Public Works (DPW) facility is gaining momentum. The ad hoc building committee, tasked with recommending a […]
STORM DEFENSE
After Flooding, Bulkheads Will Be Raised in Provincetown’s East End
The owners of three adjoining parcels have received permission to fortify their defenses
PROVINCETOWN — The owners of 599 Commercial St. and two adjacent pathways that belong to properties across the street — one numbered 597A Commercial and one that is part of […]
ON THE EDGE
Owner of House on Eroding Bluff Blames Town
Bonomi’s lawyer says he won’t be responsible for fate of former Blasch house
WELLFLEET — The conservation commission had been expecting to see plans on Jan. 15 for demolition of the large house now close to the edge of a quickly eroding bluff […]
MORNING FLIGHT
Odd Ducks
Hybrids challenge our assumptions about ‘species’
What do you do when you see a bird that looks like no bird you’ve seen before — not even in photos or illustrations or anywhere? A few days after […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 28 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
NATURAL SELECTION
Brambling On
The Rubus genus of blackberries is so enormous and complex — there are nearly 30 species found in New England alone and they love to hybridize — that telling them […]
ON THE EDGE
Owner of House on Eroding Bluff Blames Town
Bonomi’s lawyer says he won’t be responsible for fate of former Blasch house
WELLFLEET — The conservation commission had been expecting to see plans on Jan. 15 for demolition of the large house now close to the edge of a quickly eroding bluff […]
WHALE WATCH
Government Withdraws Tighter Vessel Speed Rule
Opposition focused on ferry services, but critics say NOAA was slow to adapt
PROVINCETOWN — The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) — the part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration charged with stewardship of the nation’s ocean resources and their habitats — […]
COMMUNITY
Serving Food and Fresh Clothes Amid L.A.’s Fires
Cape residents who winter in Los Angeles find ways to support neighbors
PROVINCETOWN — Michela Murphy, who owns Sal’s Place in Provincetown with her mother, Siobhan Carew, landed in Los Angeles for the winter on Jan. 6 to help manage the Italian […]
BLOODSUCKERS
Ticks — and Their Diseases — Are a Winter Problem, Too
Adult deer ticks, which carry Lyme disease, are most active in colder months
WELLFLEET — Life on Cape Cod includes ticks — and increasingly, tick-borne diseases. According to the state Dept. of Public Health, 113 people on Cape Cod were diagnosed with illnesses […]
