Heard on WCAI's Morning Edition

The Barnstable County Sheriff's office will soon become the only department in the region with a specially-equipped boat that can detect radiation and other threats.  

The Sheriff’s office is buying the boat with a $450,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security. That means the boat comes with certain stipulations on how and when it can be used.  

The Cape Cod National Seashore has released a lengthy plan designed to protect endangered shorebirds at the Seashore. The plan includes selectively killing or removing predators that threaten the birds -- an initiative that's been controversial in the past.

When someone donates land to a town, they often request and intend that it be used only for specific purposes, like a park. But if those intentions are not clearly set down in a property deed, problems can arise.
 
In Brewster, construction has begun on new parking spaces at Breakwater Beach. The parking spaces are being built next to an existing parking lot at Breakwater Beach, on land that was donated to Brewster in 1955.

Cyclists say they want a safer way to get to Provincetown by bike.

The Cape Cod Commission and Cape Cod National Seashore are considering three options for a 20-mile route where the Rail Trail ends in Wellfleet. The plan calls for using old railroad beds and other pathways. They’re also looking at secondary routes that lead people to attractions like beaches and other sites.

The utility company Eversource is spraying herbicides along power lines in 13 Cape towns this fall. The action is going ahead despite the fact that all 15 towns in Barnstable County have asked the utility to stop its spraying program.

Come January, Cape Cod Community College students will be able to get certified in airplane maintenance and repair -- a skillset local aviation officials say they need in their workforce. The program is part of an effort to encourage local industries and train young people for jobs that are -- or will be -- available in our region.

WCAI's Kathryn Eident talked with college President John Cox about what the program and the opportunities it will provide.

A Hyannis nonprofit banned from distributing needles is taking the Barnstable Board of Health to court. 

At issue is whether the AIDS Group of Cape Cod needs state approval to operate a needle exchange in Hyannis. The town shut down the exchange last month saying the group needs a permit. 

The AIDS Group disagrees, and when the nonprofit threatened the town with a lawsuit, officials allowed the exchange to reopen for one week. 

Each year, millions of people visit the Cape Cod National Seashore. While the season is now over, Seashore Superintendent George Price says there's still a lot going on. Listen below as Price talks with WCAI's Kathryn Eident about different initiatives underway at the Seashore, including some of the things happening in the off season.

A Special Town Meeting in Falmouth next week will attempt to resolve the controversy surrounding two, town-owned wind turbines that some neighbors say are affecting their health.
 
A warrant article seeks to amend the town's wind turbine bylaw to allow the turbines to keep operating, despite a cease-and-desist order issued by the Zoning Board in September. The move is a response to a judge's ruling that the turbines were erected without proper zoning approval.
 

Preservationists in Fairhaven are looking for a new spot to display a bell made by Revolutionary war hero Paul Revere.

The bell dates back to 1796 and was first commissioned for the Congregational Church back when Fairhaven was part of New Bedford. Later, the bell tolled as part of the Oxford School.

The bell sounded one last time at the school last weekend, before preservationists took it down. The town is selling the building.

Bell Committee chair Doug Brady said it took some research to verify that the bell was indeed made by Paul Revere.