Massachusetts Bays National Estuary Partnership (MASSBAYS)

Established as a National Estuary Program in 1990, the MassBays region covers more than 1000 miles of coastline, from the tip of Cape Cod Bay to the New Hampshire border, and serves 50 coastal communities. MassBays has teamed up with five partnering organizations to host regional coordinators who provide technical support to communities in five coastal subregions: Upper North Shore, Lower North Shore, Metro Boston, South Shore, and Cape Cod.

We also provide hands-on support and guidance to community-based monitoring groups, through our Monitoring Coordinators' Network.

MassBays' Healthy Estuaries Grant Program supports monitoring and research focused on the Bays, especially to fill gaps in data and our understanding of coastal habitats and ecosystems.

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Zoom Into the Estuaries

Find out more about the coastal ecosystems of MassBays, and how human activities are shaping their future through this Story Map. 

In August 2022, MassBays launched the  Ecohealth Tracking Tool to track estuary health conditions. This new, interactive tool provides a gateway for the public, scientists, and policy makers to check the status and trends of salt marshes, eelgrass meadows, tidal flats, and diadromous fish habitats. Within each embayment, users can track progress toward MassBays goals for improving estuarine habitat condition. In addition, water quality data are available from thousands of sampling stations, allowing users to find data from estuaries across the region. 

The EPA National Estuary Program

The EPA National Estuary Program (NEP) was established under Section 320 of the Clean Water Act to protect and restore the water quality and ecological integrity of estuaries of national significance. There are currently 28 estuaries from around the U.S. in this program. To learn more about the NEPs visit the NEP Story Map; click here to see MassBays' contribution to the national story.