P.A.L.S. History
Recognizing the vital importance of ponds and lakes to the region, the Cape CodPond and Lake Stewardship (PALS) Program was developed in 2000 to coordinate pond-related activities among citizen groups and a variety of organizations, including the Association to Preserve Cape Cod, the Cape Cod Commission, the Compact of Cape Cod Conservation Trusts, the Community Foundation of Cape Cod, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, the National Park Service-Cape Cod National Seashore, and the School of Marine Science and Technology (SMAST) at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. Major accomplishments of the PALS includes the following:

• Establish a Volunteer Network (2000)
• Participate in National Secchi Dip-In (2001-2009)
• Annual Water Quality Snapshots (2001-present)
• Ponds in Peril Workshops (annual event with APCC)
• Local Pond Water Quality Reviews
• Prioritize Pond Properties for Protection
• Cape Cod Pond Atlas (2003)

Ponds and Lake Atlas
Cape Cod is a land of water, with over 1,000 surface water bodies covering nearly 11,000 acres. Most of these are depressions in the lands surface, created after the glaciers that formed Cape Cod 12,000 years ago retreated to the north.

The Pond and Lake Atlas was completed to present information about the condition and characteristics of ponds across Cape Cod. With funding from the state Executive Office of Environmental Affairs and the Community Foundation of Cape Cod, the cooperation and free laboratory services provided by the School of Marine Science and Technology (SMAT) at UMASS-Dartmouth, the grass roots enthusiasm of PALS volunteers, and the tireless efforts of Eduard Eichner (former Water Quality Scientist with the Cape Cod Commission), the Pond Atlas was created. Click here to download.