The Silent Spring Institute Invites You To PFAS in Drinking Water on Cape Cod Get the Facts on October 2nd at STEEP Science Day The Silent Spring Institute hopes you will join them on Wednesday October 2nd for a presentation by STEEP Center scientists on hazardous chemicals called PFAS and their occurrence in U.S. drinking water supplies, including on Cape Cod. The event will include updates from the team—what scientists are learning about the health effects from exposures and how the chemicals move through the … [Read more...]
📌 An Afternoon with the Conservation Law Foundation
Jay and Christy Cashman Invite You To:An Afternoon with the Conservation Law Foundation Strong Island, Chatham, MA Friday, August 9, 2019 2-7 PM Please join us in this spectacular island setting to learn about the Conservation Law Foundation’s work to safeguard New England’s coastal waters and to address the threat of global climate change. Hear from our President, Brad Campbell, while enjoying cocktails, appetizers, and live music on the water. To RSVP, please contact Katie Ardrey at kardrey@clf.org or 617-850-1729.Please park at the Cape … [Read more...]
📌Orleans 2019 Town Meeting
Your voice and vote are important! Town Meeting starts Monday, May 13 at 6pm at the Nauset Middle School Vote Tuesday, May 21, from 8am to 8pm at the Orleans Senior Center ON THE WARRANT: ARTICLE 16: Fund Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan (CWRMP): This is the critical vote to build the new sewer system. If approved, $47,382,800 will be allocated. Orleans is taking advantage of all available financial assistance to minimize taxpayer Impact. Once approved, Orleans will qualify for interest-free loans from the MA State Revolving … [Read more...]
📌 Promises of Spring 2019
The Orleans Pond Coalition is pleased to announce the receipt of a $10,000 grant from the Fred J. Brotherton Charitable Foundation for OPC’s demonstration project of ultrafine bubble oxygenation technology that will begin in May in Sarah’s Pond. OPC is taking a leadership role in bringing this cutting edge water quality remediation strategy to New England that promises to be a sustainable, affordable option for healing impaired lakes and ponds, both freshwater and marine.Oxygen is deployed in tiny bubbles, invisible to the naked eye, that … [Read more...]
📌 Save the Date: Septic Systems at Nauset Estuary
Wednesday March 6, 2019 at 1:00 pm at Eastham Town HallJoin us to discuss Site Specific Septic System Pilot Options for Nauset Harbor Estuary with George Heufelder from the Barnstable CountyDepartment of Health and Environment How are these systems working on Cape Cod?How are these systems installed?Is the Layer-Cake System a possible option for Nitrogen Reduction in Eastham?Is this a cost effective alternative for Eastham?Please call Jane Crowley at 508-240-5900 x3229 for more information. … [Read more...]
📌 Happy Holidays and Best Wishes for 2019
AN UPDATE ON OPC’S UFB DEMONSTRATIO PROJECT IN SARAH’S POND Sarah's Pond Sarah’s Pond with demo area outlined in white.Red star indicates shoreline equipment location. On December 7, the Orleans Pond Coalition formally teamed up with SOLitude Lake Management on a demonstration project of ultra-fine bubble (UFB) oxygenation in Sarah’s Pond, to begin next May in Orleans, MA. This will be a significant debut for UFB in New England where the accepted pond and lake remediation practices … [Read more...]
📌 Orleans Town Meeting October 29, 2018
Please attend the Orleans Town Meeting on Monday, October 29 6:30 P.M. at the Orleans Middle School! Here are five Articles with environmental impact worthy of your support. Article 3: Fund the Water Meter Technology Replacement Program: $1,980,000. With new cellular technology, water usage can be monitored continuously and more accurately at less cost, offering opportunities to conserve water, provide better customer service, improve revenue flow, and manage water infrastructure more efficiently. Quarterly water billing would be possible … [Read more...]
📌 OPC 2018 Annual Meeting
📌 Celebrate Our Waters 2018 is now Live
Spread the Word: Celebrate Our Waters Goes Live! Orleans Pond Coalition is happy to announce the weekend schedule for its popular Celebrate Our Waters festival in Orleans September 22nd & 23rd. With the Nauset Beach Bonfire and 50+ other activities, you'll enjoy old favorites and many new ones. Watch your mailbox for a compact schedule. For the full schedule, event details and locations, and the latest updates, visit our website, orleanspondcoalition.org. On-line reservations for certain events will open on the website Sept. 13. Invite … [Read more...]
📌 OPC is Looking for a Few Good People…
Water Samplers, Mutt Mitt Stockers, and Celebrate our Waters Volunteers Needed. Do You Love Our Waters? We Need Water Samplers... Every summer since 2000, citizens of all ages from teens to nineties have volunteered a few hours to collect scientific data on estuary waters of Orleans. This summer more volunteers are needed sample Town Cove, Nauset Estuary, and Little Pleasant Bay on five mornings. We will teach you the skills for collecting water samples and taking measurements of temperature and dissolved oxygen. Please volunteer and … [Read more...]
📌 Election
Please Vote “Yes” on Question 3 at the Orleans Election this Tuesday Question 3 would authorize $4.2 million for the final design of the downtown sewer system, for non-traditional approaches like aquaculture, and for Town adaptive management practices such as water quality monitoring and storm water run-off management to clean up Orleans estuaries and freshwater ponds. A “Yes” vote is a vote for clean water! At the Orleans Town Meeting last Monday night, there was a unanimous vote of approval for Warrant Article 14 that is Question 3 on … [Read more...]
📌 Town Meeting
Please attend Orleans Town Meeting on Monday, May 7 at 6:30 P.M. at the Orleans Middle School! Here are six Articles with environmental impact worthy of your support. Article #14: (Fund CWRMP Implementation – Planning, Engineering and Adaptive Management: $4.2 million). Please approve funding for the final design of the downtown sewer system and for non-traditional technologies, including $200,000 for freshwater pond cleanup . Approval will keep the Town on track to qualify for 0% interest loans from the State Revolving … [Read more...]
📌 Earth Day
Celebrate Earth Day - April 21st and 22nd In this Bulletin: Rock Harbor Cleanup Arts for the Earth for Orleans Conservation Trust Love Thy Nature with Association for the Preservation of Cape Cod W.H.A.T.'s Wrong with Plastic Straws? Cape Cod Canal Cleanup Actions to Take on Your Own Divide in Concord - a Film at Snow Library on Plastic Bottles Town Meeting Reminder April 22 marks our nation’s 48th Earth Day, proclaiming a national theme to “End Plastic Pollution.” In a year when national environmental progress seems … [Read more...]
📌 Sewering Starts
Sewer Construction Begins On March 12th, as another nor’easter approached and heavy equipment worked in the background, members of the Orleans Pond Coalition met in the Friends Marketplace parking lot, walked to the work site and unfurled their banner that read “The Orleans Pond Coalition Says Thank You.” The brief standout was to celebrate the commencement of construction of the collection system for Orleans' future sewer system. Len Short, a former OPC President and a member of both the Orleans Water & Sewer Board and the Cape Cod … [Read more...]
📌 Plastic Cleanup and APCC Rainbarrels
Join Us For The Orleans Construction Kick-off! Monday, March 5th, 10 A.M. at Friends Market Parking Lot The first steps in sewering downtown Orleans are about to begin! On next Monday, March 5, the street work to install the main sewer collection pipe commences at the intersection of Main Street and Route 28, adjacent to Snow Library and the Orleans United Methodist Church. OPC plans a brief “stand-out” with a thank-you banner to show support for this important project. We will meet in the Friends Market parking lot at 10 A.M. and walk to the … [Read more...]
📌 Join Us to Celebrate Progress in Orleans
Join Us For The Orleans Construction Kick-off! Monday, March 5th, 10 A.M. at Friends Market Parking Lot The first steps in sewering downtown Orleans are about to begin! On next Monday, March 5, the street work to install the main sewer collection pipe commences at the intersection of Main Street and Route 28, adjacent to Snow Library and the Orleans United Methodist Church. OPC plans a brief “stand-out” with a thank-you banner to show support for this important project. We will meet in the Friends Market parking lot at 10 A.M. and walk to the … [Read more...]
📌 Important Upcoming Town Committee Meetings
Update on Uncle Harvey's Pond Tuesday, February 6th at 7 pm Orleans Town Hall, Nauset Room The Marine and Fresh Water Quality Advisory Committee, after considering a wide range of alternatives, recently voted to recommend the use of alum in Uncle Harvey’s Pond to control the phosphorous that contribute to the blooms of dangerous cyanobacteria in the water. The study of Uncle Harvey’s Pond found that 67% of the phosphorus load is generated by existing sediment in the pond. Alum treatment is often the “go to” strategy for moderate to severely … [Read more...]
📌 Climate Change on the Cape — Join Us this Sunday
Climate Change On Cape Cod On behalf of Lower Cape Indivisible, OPC invites you to hear Paul Niedzwiecki, the Executive Director of the Cape Cod Commission, talk about the affect Climate Change is having on the Cape Cod economy. Paul's presentation will take place this Sunday from 3:00 to 4:30 at the Chatham Community Center. Evidence of Climate Change surrounds us on Cape Cod. The waters are already rising along the marshes on Cape Cod Bay. Our lobsters are migrating north to Maine's colder waters. If you haven't already seen the … [Read more...]
📌 OPC Annual Meeting — Members
OPC's Annual Meeting Just a quick reminder. Our annual meeting is this Saturday morning, October 28th, at the Orleans Waterfront Inn. Refreshments will be available at 9:30 and our meeting will start at 10 a.m. First, we'll take a few minutes to thank OPC's members who were instrumental in helping the town approve laying sewer pipes downtown. After all the years of study and design, we're delighted with the support! We'll then give an update on what we've done this year and we'll also get to hear from Dr. Mayur Dev from Gaia Water. … [Read more...]
📌 Town Election Results
The Results Are In . . . . . . and the ballot question approving construction of our downtown sewer pipes passed by a solid majority of 1,102 in favor of moving forward and 412 opposed! Many thanks to all of you who went out and voted, who encouraged their neighbors to vote, who offered rides to the polls for any who needed it, and, most importantly, to everyone who offered their time and energy to protect our waters. This is an important step for the future in Orleans. Our town will move from studies, plans, and designs to actually … [Read more...]
📌 Orleans Special Town Meeting Results
We're Almost Finished! Thank you to everyone who showed up at our Special Town Meeting Monday night. The room was full and, after more than an hour of discussion and debate, Orleans voters overwhelming approved the project to install sewer pipes in the center of Orleans. More than three quarters of our voters endorsed the decision to move forward, At last, Orleans will start to move from studies and designs and start actually building something. By coordinating this project with Mass DOT's work to rebuild the streets in the center of … [Read more...]
📌 Special Town Meeting
A Vote For the Future of Orleans On Monday, Orleans voters will set the direction for the town's future wastewater efforts. We can decide to move forward and demonstrate our commitment to the future of Orleans. Or we can vote to delay or derail our wastewater efforts, sending a clear message that we are unwilling to invest in our future. We urge Orleans voters to look to the future and approve Article 1, a request to fund the construction of a downtown sewer system. Orleans Special Town Meeting Monday, October 16, 2017 6:30 PM Nauset … [Read more...]
📌 OPC Annual Meeting — New Members
OPC's Annual Meeting Please join us for this year's annual meeting. We'll provide you an update on everything we've been working on and our plans for the coming year. As you'll see below, you'll have an opportunity to meet with Dr. Mayur Dev and Wayne Brummet, executives from Gaia Technologies, a firm with some emerging technology which OPC is looking at to see if they can help clean up our freshwater ponds. This year's annual meeting will take place on Saturday morning, October 28th at the Orleans Waterfront Inn. Refreshments will be … [Read more...]
📌 OPC Annual Meeting — Expiring Members
OPC's Annual Meeting Please join us for this year's annual meeting. We'll provide you an update on everything we've been working on and our plans for the coming year. As you'll see below, you'll have an opportunity to meet with Dr. Mayur Dev and Wayne Brummet, executives from Gaia Technologies, a firm with some emerging technology which OPC is looking at to see if they can help clean up our freshwater ponds. This year's annual meeting will take place on Saturday morning, October 28th at the Orleans Waterfront Inn. Refreshments will be … [Read more...]
📌 OPC Annual Meeting for Members
Please join us for this year's annual meeting. We'll provide you an update on everything we've been working on and our plans for the coming year. As you'll see below, you'll have an opportunity to meet with Dr. Mayur Dev and Wayne Brummet, executives from Gaia Technologies, a firm with some emerging technology which OPC is looking at to see if they can help clean up our freshwater ponds. This year's annual meeting will take place on Saturday morning, October 28th at the Orleans Waterfront Inn. Refreshments will be available at 9:30 and our … [Read more...]
📌 Celebrate Our Waters 2017 — Thank You!
Celebrate Our Waters - Thank You Celebrate Our Waters 2017 is now behind us and we want to thank everyone who came out and joined in the festivities and, more importantly, the many many people and organizations who helped make this happen. This was the eighth year the Orleans Pond Coalition put on our annual festival, and we certainly hope everyone enjoyed the weekend as much as we enjoyed orchestrating it. If you run into them in town, please thank Anne Sigsbee and Carol Counihan, the two key individuals who co-chaired this year's weekend. … [Read more...]
📌 Orleans is Moving Ahead on Wastewater
Orleans is Moving Ahead On Wastewater This past Tuesday, voters in Orleans approved the wastewater funding by a two to one majority. By all accounts, Orleans is committed to ramp up its efforts and finally take action to address our wastewater challenges. On Wednesday, it was clear the town had already begun to act. The Orleans Water Quality Advisory Panel heard from Mike Domenica and AECOM about their goals and plans for the next seven months. Our engineering teams are continuing with the financial projections, completing a 25% design … [Read more...]
📌 Is Winter Really Coming Back?
I was sure we were moving forward and went looking for the perfect photograph. Bright yellow daffodils? Forsythia? Perhaps dandelions or hawkweed, giving me a reason to be proud of my neglected, fertilizer and pesticide-free lawn? Not to be. It's been snowing for the past two days and today's temperature is in the 20s. This week's been tough. I'll keep the snowy photograph. Despite this, I'm confident spring will return next week. Within the Orleans Pond Coalition, I'm seeing a burst of activity. We're re-energizing our focus on our ponds, … [Read more...]
📌 Special Bulletin: Moving Ahead on Wastewater
This special edition of the Orleans Pond Coalition's Bulletin is brought to you on behalf of the Orleans Water Quality Advisory Panel. It summarizes the panel's recent meeting on January 20, where AECOM presented quite a bit of material on their effort. It also lists several meetings scheduled for this month, including two this week on the downtown planning effort. Water Quality & Wastewater Planning Program Status Update On January 20th, the Orleans Water Quality Advisory Panel (OWQAP) met with AECOM, … [Read more...]
📌 January 2016 Bulletin
Winter's finally arrived and those of us wintering on the Cape are in the unusual position of watching our southern friends and family struggle with two feet of snow while we escaped the wrath of Jonas. Hopefully, they'll dig themselves out, their roads will clear, and everyone will be safe. No doubt, we'll have our chance sooner than we know it. Stepping in as president, working with OPC's board, and writing my first Bulletin has given me a chance to look back at OPC's legacy. I'm proud of the organization and I thank all of you for making … [Read more...]