The Pleasant Bay Resource Management Plan 2008 Update is now available. Click HERE to read the Report. The report is about 10.5mB so be patient as it loads, in fact it might be faster if you download the report to your computer and read it at will. Right click HERE and select "Save Target As" from the context menu. You can then direct where you want the file stored on your computer (usually somewhere in the My Documents subdirectory).

The MA Estuaries Project Technical Report for
Pleasant Bay is now available on-line.
Click HERE to read the Pleasant Bay Report.

Final Nitrogen Total Nitrogen TMDL for Pleasant Bay
is now available. Click HERE to read the Report.
The report is also available as a WORD doc file. Right click HERE and select "Save Target As".

Massachusetts Estuaries Project Bacterial TMDL for Muddy Creek, Report # MA 96-51-2004-01 is now available,
Click HERE to read the Report..
The report is also available as a WORD doc file. Right click HERE and select "Save Target As".

Pleasant Bay Resource Management Alliance

Pleasant Bay is an area of extraordinary natural resources and beauty, and represents one of the most biologically diverse and productive marine habitats on the East Coast of the United States.

Pleasant Bay's natural resources remain healthy and productive despite decades of development and change. And while most of the historic uses of the Bay have been preserved, there is increasing competition for use of the Bay's resources among a variety of recreational and commercial activities. Recognizing that the long-term health of the Bay cannot be assumed and must be safeguarded, the towns of Orleans, Chatham, Harwich and Brewster petitioned the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to designate the 9,000 acre estuary as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC).

Through a cooperative agreement, the towns also developed a resource management plan for the Pleasant Bay ACEC and its watershed. The resource management plan provides a practical framework for the towns to work together to sustain the Bay's natural resources, and to promote a degree of use and enjoyment of those resources consistent with long-term sustainability.

PROFILE OF THE PLEASANT BAY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ALLIANCE

In 1998, Town Meetings in Orleans, Chatham and Harwich approved the Pleasant Bay Resource Management Plan and agreed to form the Pleasant Bay Resource Management Alliance. The purpose of the Alliance is to implement the recommendations of the approved plan, and to oversee the process of revising the plan upon the five-year anniversary of its approval. The organizational structure of the Alliance builds upon the high degree of public involvement and intergovernmental cooperation initiated with the development of the plan.

Steering Committee

A three-member Steering Committee governs the Alliance. The Steering Committee is the policy setting body for the Alliance and has overall accountability and responsibility for coordinating implementation activities. The Steering Committee consists of one representative appointed by the Board of Selectmen in each Alliance town. The Steering Committee has a Chairman, a Vice-Chairman and a Secretary/Treasurer. Each Board of Selectmen has also appointed from among its members a liaison to meet with the Steering Committee from time to time. The Steering Committee meets approximately once a month and all meetings are open to the public.

Technical Resource Committee

A Technical Resource Committee (TRC) consisting of four resource management professionals from each town provides technical assistance to the Steering Committee. TRC members are appointed by their respective Board of Selectmen and consist of harbormasters, coastal resource managers, conservation agents, planners, and water quality scientists with professional responsibility for managing the Bays resources. To facilitate cooperation among other agencies involved in managing the Bay's resources, the TRC has as agency liaisons from the Cape Cod Commission, Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Affairs and Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management. The TRC meets approximately once every six weeks and all meetings are open to the public.

Coordinator

A professional coordinator for the Alliance was hired on a contractual basis by the Steering Committee. The Coordinator is responsible for developing and managing implementation projects, coordinating activities with local and state officials, grant writing, media management, and public outreach and involvement.