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Barnstable County Hosts Hazardous Waste Roundtable

Published on: November 20, 2019

Tuesday, November 19, 2019 – Barnstable County hosted a Hazardous Waste Roundtable in the Eastwing Conference room at the Barnstable County Complex.  Kalliope Chute, Hazardous Materials Environmental Specialist at the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension welcomed twenty-five representatives from municipalities across Cape Cod, MassDEP, and volunteer Hazardous Materials Collections workers.  They came together to discuss the changing needs of the Hazardous Waste Collections Program on Cape Cod, a program that is nearing its 30-year anniversary. 

Attendees focused their discussion on a rapidly changing industry, and their shared mission to preserve Cape Cod’s unconfined, sole source aquifer, and to protect first responders, including fire fighters, police and DPW.  Shannon Hulst, Deputy Director of the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension and the County’s Floodplain Specialist was also in attendance to consider the overlap between floodwater, hazardous waste, and drinking water quality.

Hazardous Materials Roundtable photo
Kalliope Chute, Barnstable County Hazardous Materials Environmental Specialist reminded attendees that, “When people talk about our blue economy, our tourism, it’s all tied to water. We recreate in water, we shellfish in it, we drink it, and that is one of the reasons we are collecting hazardous waste.” She adds, “We are also protecting our first responders, DPW workers, police and fire fighters.”

[su_pullquote align=”right”]“When people talk about our blue economy, our tourism, it’s all tied to water. We recreate in water, we shellfish in it, we drink it, and that is one of the reasons we are collecting hazardous waste.  We are also protecting our first responders, DPW workers, police and fire fighters.” – Kalliope Chute, Hazardous Materials Environmental Specialist at the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension[/su_pullquote]

AmeriCorps Cape Cod member Jordanne Feldman presented information on the educational Water Festival Program, known as Wet Fests.  Wet Fests are managed by the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension and are facilitated by members of AmeriCorps Cape Cod at participating elementary schools.

During the last school year 2018-2019, there were 14 Wet Fests that took place in 11 schools across the Cape. Through a series of hands-on stations exploring and learning, students learned how water impacts their daily lives and new ideas to save and protect water through simple personal actions.  Throughout this school year 2019-2020, 14 Wet Fests are planned at 10 schools, reaching roughly 1,650 students.

 

[su_quote]AmeriCorps Cape Cod member and Wet Fest Facilitator Jordanne Feldman says, “Kids love to learn and soak up the information we teach at Wet Fest, and hopefully they go back home and tell their parents, and that could start the ball rolling for more people to help our environment.”[/su_quote]

Learn more about hazardous waste management in Barnstable County on the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension website. 

demonstration Wet Fest program
Mike Cicale, Wellfleet Transfer Station Manager is pictured here with AmeriCorps Cape Cod member Jordanne Feldman, who demonstrates Wet Fest program activities to attendees at today’s Hazardous Waste Roundtable.