Mashpee’ s Andrew Gottlieb and the four-town Pleasant Bay Alliance Receive 2017 OneCape Awards
Published on: June 27, 2017
Launched in 2016, OneCape Awards recognize one individual and one organization annually for outstanding leadership and dedication to Cape Cod water quality. The awards were presented during the OneCape Summit’s June 22 evening program.
Cape Cod Commission Executive Director Paul Niedzwiecki presents Andrew Gottlieb of Mashpee with the 2017 OneCape award for individual contribution to Cape Cod water quality.
Describing Gottlieb’s contribution to defining the region’s nitrogen problem, Cape Cod Commission Executive Director Paul Niedzwiecki said, “The progress made in awareness, resources and movement to action is in no small part attributable to Andrew’s work as director of the Collaborative and his unrivaled understanding of government process.”
Andrew spent 10 years at the forefront finding affordable, achievable ways to manage to Cape Cod’s nitrogen problem. In his new role as Executive Director of the Association to Protect Cape Cod, Andrew’s commitment to the Cape, its environment and its residents remains.
The Pleasant Bay Alliance was formed in 1998 to implement the management resource plan associated with the area’s Area of Critical Environmental Concern Designation, initially made in 1987.
Pleasant Bay Alliance Chairman Allin Thompson of Harwich and Robert Duncanson, Chatham Natural Resources Director, accepted the 2017 OneCape Award for organizations on behalf of the Pleasant Bay Alliance.
Accepting the Award was current chairman Allin Thompson of Harwich and Chatham Natural Resources Director Robert Duncanson. Earlier in the day, Thompson opened a joint meeting of the Alliance with the boards of selectmen for all four member towns. At that special session held as part of the OneCape Summit, the boards jointly approved a resolution to coordinate wastewater planning. The resolution also supports the Alliance’s analysis of nitrogen allocations for Pleasant Bay.
When Pleasant Bay was designated an Area of Critical Environmental Concern in 1987, the towns bordering this unique resource recognized that its future protection required a shared approach. First agreeing to draft a management plan, the towns of Chatham, Harwich and Orleans in 1998 created the Pleasant Bay Alliance to coordinate its implementation and future development. Brewster joined in 2007, adding its support and resources. For 20 years, the Alliance has furthered the scientific understanding of the Bay, its habitats and its threats.
The Alliance is a model for how towns with shared interests can combine resources to protect the significant public interest of such a sprawling and important waterbody.
ABOUT THE ONECAPE SUMMIT: The OneCape Summit was launched in 2014 to chart the progress of the update to the Section 208 Cape Cod Water Quality Management Plan, which began in 2013. The annual summit provides local elected leaders, municipal staff and appointed board members, industry practitioners and community activists an opportunity to understand advances in regulation and technologies. It also provides an opportunity for a region-wide discussion of issues related to wastewater. This year saw an expanded focus on broader regional planning issues, including housing and infrastructure planning.
