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As climate change continues to bring about more frequent and severe flooding, communities in flood-prone areas face increasing challenges adapting to these changes. On Cape Cod, where communities are particularly vulnerable, work to develop innovative solutions to mitigate the impacts of flooding is underway.   

Explore a variety of electric vehicles on Saturday, June 3, 2023, at the Recharge Cape Cod Electric Vehicle (EV) Expo and Test Drive Event from 10 AM to 2 PM at the Hyannis Transportation Center.

Cape Cod Commission staff are working with all 15 Cape Cod communities to examine vulnerabilities in the roadway network and identify adaptation alternatives. The project employs state-of-the-art modeling and community engagement to identify and prioritize low-lying roads to target for coastal resiliency action.  The towns of Barnstable, Bourne, Brewster, Eastham, Truro, and Wellfleet are at the stage of the project that includes review of conceptual designs for high-priority road segments.

Transportation accounts for 55% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions produced on Cape Cod. While riding public transit is a way to reduce GHG emissions from personal vehicles, a fleet of zero-emissions buses could further reduce emissions – which the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (CCRTA) hopes to accomplish. The Commission is working with the CCRTA on a nine-month study to explore transitioning to a zero-emission fleet. 

The Cape Cod Commission will host a series of virtual public meetings in the coming weeks in the towns of Barnstable, Bourne, Brewster, Eastham, Truro, and Wellfleet to present conceptual design alternatives created by the Woods Hole Group to address vulnerable low-lying roadway segments, bridges, and culverts.

In 2022, the Cape Cod Commission worked with ten Cape Cod towns to examine vulnerabilities in the roadway network and identify adaptation improvements. The team has developed initial concepts for improvements and potential adaptation solutions for each prioritized site. Work in the remaining five Cape Cod towns of Chatham, Falmouth, Harwich, Mashpee, and Provincetown kicked off in early December.

The Cape Cod Commission has been awarded a $148,534 grant from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to develop tools to help communities regulate development within the floodplain and improve resiliency to climate change threats.

There’s more to explore within the Cape Cod Coastal Planner, a decision-support tool that helps users understand the climate change hazards impacting Cape Cod’s coastline and some of the adaptation strategies available to address them.

The 2023 session of the Cape Cod Climate Ambassadors began in a new way: for the first time, students met for the opening meeting in person instead of online.

Strategic planning and regional coordination will encourage the development of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure and increase awareness of EV options in support of the region's GHG reduction goals. The Cape Cod Commission has developed a model municipal EV bylaw to serve as a resource for Cape Cod communities seeking to incorporate consideration of EV charging infrastructure in the local bylaws.