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Cape Cod Call to Action
An algal bloom in Lower Mill Pond in Brewster, Massachusetts, on Aug. 5, 2022. (Courtesy Association to Preserve Cape Cod)
Cape Cod continues to take leaps and bounds towards advancing urine diversion to protect watersheds from severe nutrient pollution:
- The Falmouth urine diversion pilot project, managed by the Barnstable County Massachusetts Alternative Septic System Test Center (MASSTC), has been funded and approved by MassDEP
- A $500,000 amendment to the house budget, submitted by State Representative Hadley Luddy, would provide funding for MASSTC to conduct a urine diversion pilot on the Lower Cape, building upon lessons from Falmouth’s pilot work
- The Martha’s Vineyard Lagoon Pond Urine Diversion Task Force is planning a demonstration project of their own
- Many other towns across the Cape are actively studying and discussing urine diversion
However, one critical obstacle remains: The State Plumbing Board has yet to approve even one urine-diverting toilet fixture.
We’re asking Massachusetts residents to send letters to the State Plumbing Board and Governor Healey/Lt. Governor Driscoll, urging swift approval of multiple qualified fixtures so this important research can finally move forward. Approving these fixtures, and demonstrating them on Cape Cod, will have ripple effects for the future of ecological sanitation across the state, including our planning project with community partners in Western Mass.
Please send your letters or emails to:
The Governor, Lt. Governor, and members of the Conference Committee
- Contact info here
- These draft letters can be used if you are a municipal staff person or a resident/civic advocate
The Plumbing Board
- Contact info here
- You can use this letter from the Falmouth Selectboard as a template or for talking points
Language and letter-writing resources developed thanks to efforts from: Talitha Abramsen (Wastewater Innovation Network), Hilda Maingay and Earle Barnhart (Green Center), and other community advocates. Explore CapeWastewater.org for municipal meeting recordings and other resources.
