Who Is Waterkeeper: RJ Turcotte, Nantucket Waterkeeper
By: Thomas Hynes
RJ Turcotte grew up obsessed with the water. He loved the ocean and pretty much anything that swam. He fostered that curiosity at the University of Rhode Island where he studied marine biology. Outside of the classroom, he volunteered and learned about things like water quality monitoring and advocacy. It dawned on him that there could be a way to apply the existing academic research to benefit a great deal of people in the world if it were explained the right way to the powers that be.
If it sounds like RJ was destined to be a Waterkeeper, that’s partially true. In fact, he had a tattoo of the sturgeon, Waterkeeper Alliance’s logo, a full three years before he became Nantucket Waterkeeper. Though that was not necessarily some coincidence. The volunteer work he did in college was with South County Coaskeeper and Save the Bay.
RJ eventually heard about an opening with the Nantucket Land Council. He knew the island from his days as a Boy Scout, just across the sound from where his family vacationed in Sandwich, MA. It was not officially a Waterkeeper position, but it certainly sounded a lot like one.
“They were doing everything a Waterkeeper group does, except for having a boat and paying dues, They were doing water quality monitoring, they were doing advocacy, they were educating,” says RJ. “I thought maybe I could talk them into joining Waterkeeper Alliance.”
By 2020, RJ had successfully made a case. Nantucket Waterkeeper was launched. They even got a boat donated.
Nantucket is an island about thirty miles off the coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. It was once a crucial port in the whaling industry. Today the island is primarily a vacation destination for the wealthy. It’s most popular in the summer months, though a fair amount of people, RJ included, live there all year. The island is often referred to as the gray lady, which is particularly appropriate in the offseason when it’s overcast and quiet.
RJ’s jurisdiction is Nantucket, Tuckernuck,and Muskeget islands, as well as all of Nantucket Sound which is just under 850 square miles. There’s no river on these islands, but there are dozens of kettle ponds, vernal pools, and wetlands. And, of course, there is a lot of coastline. Tourism is big, but it’s not the only industry. Nantucket has one of the last surviving bay scallop fisheries. There is also lots of sportfishing and clamming.
Another emerging industry in the Nantucket area is renewable energy, specifically in the form of offshore wind power. This renewable energy source withstood decades of delays and false starts, but is finally providing the area with a welcome alternative to fossil fuel combustion. However, in July of 2024, a Vineyard Wind turbine broke apart and shattered into countless pieces. (RJ was working on another environmental threat – testing for PFAS – when the news of the turbine accident broke.) The debris washed ashore for weeks. It was a catastrophe for the local ecosystems and a major reputational hit for the local clean energy endeavors. It’s a quandary and RJ is right in the middle of it.
“We are in this really interesting position where we want to be supportive of renewable energy, but, at the end of the day, Vineyard Wind was not a good neighbor back in July,” says RJ. “They waited three days to tell anyone, only after people started stepping on pieces of fiberglass. Only then they were like, ‘oh yeah, there was an incident.’”
In spite of Vineyard Wind’s ineptitude, RJ still supports the offshore wind power industry. He also recognizes that it is a relatively new industry and there will inevitably be unforeseen problems. So he supports the clean energy industry, but is quick to point out that it is still an industry, and, as such, must be regulated and appropriately permitted. There must also be stronger and stricter protocols in place to clean up and alert the public of any future accidents.
“We are not going to say pack everything up and get rid of those turbines. We know what those turbines represent. We know, if done right, what they can do for everyone,” says RJ. “But that is not how you handle it. It’s been frustrating. It’s better than coal fired power or other fossil fuels, but it comes with a cost.”
The need for a swift clean energy transition in order to prevent the worst impacts of climate change and sea level rise is not some altruistic goal. The consequences are not hypothetical, not on Nantucket island. RJ likes to say that the island is all sand, 49 square miles of glacial till. Erosion is not in the distant future. It’s happening now.
On the south shore of Nantucket, entire houses have been washed away over the last 25 years. One property lost 60 feet in a single storm. It’s been a lesson in trying to teach people about coastal resilience and how to use nature based solutions to fight erosion. Retreat is another strategy, albeit an unpopular one.
“We need to work with the Atlantic. Instead of trying to fight it, we need to work with it,” says RJ. “Because there are people out here who think they have enough money to dig in and fight the Atlantic. But, as I always say, the Atlantic is undefeated.”
Suffice to say, RJ has his hands full dealing with a wide array of issues and challenges. The good news is that, as a member of Waterkeeper Alliance, he is tapped into a robust network of advocates who are dealing with similar situations. There are folks working on offshore wind, stormwater runoff, erosion, PFAS, and every other problem facing Nantucket Waterkeeper.
“It is like LinkedIn for water quality advocates. We meet all the time. We’re comparing notes,” says RJ. “Somebody either has the answer or is working on it.”
Visit here to learn how to get involved or make a donation to support the essential work of RJ and his dedicated team.
All photos courtesy of RJ Turcotte.
