Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely.

Thursday, Feb. 4

• Cultural Council, 6:30 p.m.

Monday, Feb. 8

• Select Board, 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Feb. 9

• Conservation Commission, 6 p.m. 

Wednesday, Feb. 10

• Finance Committee, 5 p.m.
• Nauset High School Building Project meeting, 6:30 p.m.

Conversation Starters 

Covid-19 Update

As of Jan. 28, Eastham had 21 new cases within the preceding 14 days and 78 total cases to date, according to the Mass. Dept. of Public Health weekly Covid-19 report. No Eastham Covid-19 deaths have been reported.

Farmers to Families

USDA Farmers to Families weekly food box distribution will be coming to the Elks Lodge in Eastham starting Monday, Feb. 8. The boxes contain about 32 pounds of perishable food, including milk, fresh fruits and vegetables, and cooked meat.

Although the USDA’s distribution partner is the Mass. Military Support Foundation, select board member Aimee Eckman stressed the program is open to veterans and non-veterans alike. Participants must sign up for the weekly distributions on the MMSF website, mmsfi.org. A copy of the email confirming registration will be required to pick up the food boxes at the lodge on Mondays from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Anyone needing assistance with registering or arranging for pickup and delivery can contact Eckman via text or phone at 508-237-9724 or email at [email protected].

Eckman also encouraged anyone needing help with food, rent, utilities, or other living expenses to contact the Lower Cape Outreach Council at 508-240-0694 or at [email protected].

Drones Banned From Federal Land Flyovers

In September 2020, the Center for Coastal Studies had to delay phase one of the Nauset Marsh study that was to include creating a high-resolution 3D map of the area, because of a ban on drones. It had already scrubbed its April 2020 launch due to the return of plovers. Now, only temporarily, it is hoped, all drone flights over federal lands are banned, coastal geologist Mark Borrelli told the select board during an update on the project.

“This had to do with the previous administration,” Borelli said. “I’m not going to get into too many details, but they basically banned drones made in China. They weren’t allowed to fly over federal land.”

The center has two drones, he said, one that was made in China and another that was made in New Hampshire. The group moved forward with plans to use the New Hampshire-made drone.

“By the time we jumped through all the hoops,” Borrelli said, “it turned out some of the components in the drone made in New Hampshire were actually made in China.

“The Seashore feels horrible about this,” Borrelli said. “They’re scientists. They want to get this stuff done,” and, he added, “they love drones.”

Borrelli believes the drones will be allowed to fly again by September, but he does have a Plan B, which would be to use an RTK (real-time kinematic) GPS unit attached to an ATV and drive up and down the beach for a couple of hours.

“It’s collecting data every second,” he said. “You can create a really nice surface model from it,” though, “admittedly, it’s not as good as a drone.”

While Plan B would be completed by spring, should the drone ban be lifted by September, that mapping would be done as well. “You’ll just get two maps,” Borelli said.

While phase one is in a holding pattern, phase two has continued, Borelli reported, with samples being taken from 25 stations throughout the marsh to be analyzed, and seine sampling and vessel-based surveys also continuing.

The project is expected to be completed by June 2021.

—Linda Culhane