Terminal groins, landfills and rules were among the handful of remaining environmental laws that moved through the N.C. General Assembly as lawmakers wrap up the session this morning.
Budget Deal Shuffles State Trust Funds
The state budget that will likely be approved by the N.C. General Assembly this week merges the clean water and natural heritage trust funds and replaces all members of regulatory commissions.
Lawmakers Consider Another Rules ‘Reform’ Bill
A bill that would force state agencies to review all rules every 10 years and, say critics, turn an already lengthy rule-making process into a bureaucratic nightmare is one of several key environmental bills left on the table in Raleigh.
McCrory Objections Slow Landfill Bill
As the N.C. General Assembly enters its waning weeks, movement on a controversial landfill bill passed by the state Senate has slowed considerably in the N.C. House because of objections raised by the McCrory Administration.
Proposed Landfill Bill Generates Concern, Criticism
As the state legislature heads into debate on a new measure that drastically revises the state’s landfill policies, a chorus of voices expresses concern, urges caution.
Jetties, Dumps and Fracking Wells
Those are the environmental bills that are due up next as the N.C. General Assembly enters the last few weeks of its session.
McCrory, DENR Oppose Jetty Bill
A move by coastal senators to scuttle a 2011 compromise on the use of terminal groins to halt beach erosion has gotten a cold reception from the McCrory Administration.
Senate Budget Remakes Conservation Funds
The proposed N.C. Senate budget closely mirrors Gov. Pat McCrory’s proposal in terms of overall dollars, but it contains a number of key distinctions in priorities, including a complete overhaul of the state’s conservation trust funds.
Bill Guts Safeguards for Terminal Groins
Small jetties, called terminal groins, could be built at all the inlets along the N.C. coast, under a bill that a state Senate committee passed yesterday, and state taxpayers could be asked to pay for all of them.
Busy Week Ahead at Legislature
Legislators are considering many environmental bills as the so-called “crossover” deadline approaches this week in the N.C. General Assembly. We offer a summary of important bills to help you keep up.
‘Reform’ Bill Could Have Sweeping Effects
The N.C. Senate is considering yet another “regulatory reform” bill that follows similarly named bills of the previous two sessions. The bill would make an array of changes to environmental policy and regulations that could have far-reaching implications.
Compromise on Committees Bill Goes Up in Flames
In a rare show of unanimity, the N.C. House yesterday voted down a compromise on a controversial bill that would have remade the state’s major regulatory commissions. The vote: 116-0.
New Bills Target Stormwater, Wind Energy
Environmental organizations are tracking several key bills in the N.C. General Assembly, including new legislation on stormwater rules, permitting and wind energy and old bills on hydraulic fracking and inlet dredging.
Opposition Brewing to Injection Wells
Several coastal cities and counties have expressed opposition to a state bill that would allow fracking fluids to be disposed in the region’s aquifers.
McCrory’s Budget Slashes Conservation Funds
State trust funds dedicated to conservation, parks and clean water would take a big hit under a budget proposal that Gov. Pat McCrory released this week.
State House to Go Slow on Injection Wells
A bill that could allow fracking waste fluids to be injected into coastal aquifers will get a careful review in the state House, says a New Hanover representative.
