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The BPC held its Annual Meeting on Saturday, August 15 at the Cape Cod Bible Alliance Church. If you missed the meeting, a full recording will be available soon on our website and YouTube channel. Here is a recap of what was presented and discussed. The Year in Review  John Keith, BPC President, began the meeting with highlights of the organization’s activities since August 2025. Most importantly, he noted the Town of Brewster’s recently completed Integrated Water Resources Management Plan (IWRMP) and draft Pond Management Plan (PMP), both that the BPC took an active role in supporting, contributing research, and providing comments and suggestions. Together, these plans are critically important to ensuring the protection of our ponds and resources. Key highlights of the Septic System Phosphorus Travel Study, Citizen Science, Pond Education, Scholarship, and Pond Outreach programs were provided. In addition, John shared key details about Adult Education initiatives and the BPC’s participation in several annual town-wide events. He also presented the long-term strategic goals and priorities for the 2026-2027 business year. The yearly finances were summarized, giving attendees an overview of income, expenses, and how donations are allocated among the various segments of the organization. You can view John’s slide presentation here for more details. The Splash Award  At each Annual Meeting, the BPC presents its “Splash Award,” recognizing a volunteer who has made a splash through his or her contributions to improve the water quality, beauty, or natural habitats of Brewster’s ponds. This year, Ron Essig (Board member and Citizen Science Team leader) presented the award to Roy Bellush. Pictured here is Roy accepting his award from Ron. Ron explained that Roy has been sampling for cyanobacteria from the inception of the Citizen Science program 10 years ago in Upper Mill Pond. Back then, he worked with Bryan Horsley of the Association to Preserve Cape Cod (APCC) to help develop the sampling techniques. Roy uses his own boat to sample along with other team members at the deepest point of Upper Mill and Walkers ponds. These are the only two ponds on the Cape sampled for cyanobacteria by boat. Roy has also pitched in and delivered samples to APCC when needed. He is very willing to sample off-cycle and to share photos from other Upper Mill Pond residents with the BPC and the Town when there are cyanobacteria scums. In addition, Roy takes Marty Burke out to obtain Secchi disc measurements in Upper Mill Pond 10-12 times a year to ground truth satellite imagery. This is the fifth year that he has participated in this research project done in cooperation with the Cape Cod Commission and NOAA. The Guest Speakers The first guest speaker was Mark Nelson, principal hydrogeologist with the Horsley Witten Group. Mark has worked with the Town of Brewster since 2011 as an environmental consultant and developed the IWRMP. He presented the updated plan, explaining how it incorporates all water connections such as rain, groundwater, estuaries, and ponds. The main components of the broad plan are coastal estuaries, freshwater ponds, and drinking water. Mark explained how the IWRMP analyzed the number of homes in Brewster with septic systems within 300 feet of ponds. BPC volunteers were integral in this analysis by reviewing the Town land records and identifying 523 locations. When the ponds are identified and categorized in the PMP in regards to impairment level, Mark advised that subsequent wastewater management will then be determined. He further noted that there are no requirements to reduce nitrogen loads to Cape Cod Bay and no sewering in this watershed is anticipated in the foreseeable future. Lastly, he advised that Brewster’s drinking water quality is excellent. This was determined by the IWRMP mapping capture areas to the Town’s wells under average pumping conditions. No threats are expected from current development related to emerging contaminants. The audience then heard from Dr. Kim Crocker-Pearson, a physician specializing in occupational and environmental toxicology and a consultant in environmental science and policy. Kim is currently Chair of the Natural Resources Advisory Commission (NRAC) and member of the Brewster Board of Health. The NRAC has been responsible for drafting the PMP. Kim explained how the draft PMP has developed four quadrants that categorize the impairment or threat plan of Brewster’s ponds: 1) protect; 2) prevent; 3) remediate; and 4) rehabilitate. She noted that the draft plan suggests pilot studies in each of the four quadrants, as follows:
You can download and view each of the guest speakers' presentations via these links: John closed the Annual Meeting by thanking the attendees for their support and volunteer activities, and the Cape Cod Bible Alliance Church for the use of its facilities, audiovisual capabilities, and the support of its staff.  the Town of Brewster recently completed updates of its Integrated Water Resource Management Plan (IWRMP) and Pond Management Plan (PMP). The BPC has advocated for and participated in the development of these plans, which have been in development for the last year. Collectively, they set out how Brewster will manage its water resources going forward, and establish priorities for detailed pond studies. We encourage you to review these important documents. The draft PMP is available for public review and comment until August 21. Residents are encouraged to reviews the plan and submit comments in writing to the Natural Resources Advisory Commission. To do so, please email [email protected], including your name and address. For questions about the plan, contact Chris Miller (Director of Natural Resources) at [email protected] or (508) 896-4546.  |
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