Waquoit Bay
Waquoit Bay
A designated Natural Resource Nitrogen Sensitive Area covering parts of Mashpee, Sandwich.
The same area on the map also covers Eel Pond / Waquoit Bay. MassDEP's application table lists that separately from this one; the map does not divide them. For a property here, that distinction does not change the answer — each town's filing is the same across the whole area.
What each town filed
| Town | Filing | Transmittal |
|---|---|---|
| Mashpee | Notice of Intent | 24-WP94-0009-APP |
| Sandwich | Notice of Intent | 23-WP94-0005-APP |
What the filings mean
Notice of Intent
The town has filed a Notice of Intent: a commitment to apply for a Watershed Permit later, on a schedule approved by MassDEP. It pauses the clock. It does not stop it.
Because these are applications rather than granted permits, the suspension is conditional. A town that misses the milestones in its approved schedule can have the five-year upgrade clock started by MassDEP — running to 8 July 2030.
MassDEP's reports for this area
The studies behind this area, published by MassDEP. They cover the whole Waquoit Bay & Eel Pond Embayment System area rather than Waquoit Bay on its own.
- Waquoit Bay & Eel Pond Embayment System, Falmouth & Mashpee, MA - 2013 (2013) — Massachusetts Estuaries Project report
- Nitrogen TMDL Report for Waquoit Bay System; including Eel Pond, Quashnet River, Hamblin Pond, and Jehu River (2020) — Total Maximum Daily Load report CN 378.1
Selling a property here
On the MassDEP nitrogen disclosure form, a seller in Waquoit Bay would normally tick box 2 — located in a Nitrogen Sensitive Area, but not subject to the upgrade requirement because a filing covers the watershed — and name the filing for their town above.
Separately, a passing Title 5 inspection is required before transfer, as it is everywhere in Massachusetts. How the disclosure works →
Recorded in the MassDEP application table as "Waquoit Bay".
Filings: MassDEP watershed application table, 11 June 2026. Map name transcribed from MassDEP's NSA Address Lookup Map, 10 August 2026. Reports: MassDEP Natural Resource Nitrogen Sensitive Areas feature layer, retrieved 26 August 2026.
Get a Title 5 inspection quote
Tell us the property and what you need. We pass the request to licensed Title 5 system inspectors covering that town. Free, and there is nothing to sign here.