Wildlife officials say the recent downlisting from endangered to threatened is a success story, but opponents say the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s reclassification is premature.
Officials are in ‘No hurry to sell’ 87 acres of Navassa site
Residents in the Brunswick County town have been speaking out against using for warehousing the 87 acres that went out for bid a year ago at the former wood treatment site.
Brunswick County to explore creating a stormwater utility
A month after an unnamed storm dumped more than a dozen inches of rain and caused flooding in much of the southeastern part of the state, Brunswick County commissioners are looking to better balance stormwater management and development.
State sets temporary allowable PFAS limits in groundwater
The North Carolina Division of Water Resources released interim maximum allowable concentrations to help define cleanup targets for groundwater contaminated with high levels of the chemical compounds.
Pender, Onslow towns seek moratorium on shellfish leases
North Topsail Beach, Surf City, and Topsail Beach and their counties, Onslow and Pender, are asking state lawmakers to put in place a moratorium on new shellfish leases in their waterways.
Brunswick County faces ‘undue burden’ amid funding shift
As western North Carolina grapples with unprecedented immediate needs after Helene, Brunswick County here on the coast is pleading for assistance to cover both its current and long-term storm recovery costs.
Gators’ more frequent appearances make splash along coast
Whether they’re country alligators or city alligators, wildlife biologists say the reptiles just want to be left alone, but the loss of habitat means interactions are more and more likely.
Groups call for federal protection of diamondback terrapins
Nonprofits have petitioned the federal fisheries agency to list as endangered the diamondback terrapin, an estuarine creature frequently drowned in abandoned crab pots.
Surf City’s 50-year sand plan calls for 22 million cubic yards
The town’s federal coastal storm risk management project – more than 20 years in the making – will put a total of 21.8 million cubic yards of sand on the beach over the course of a half-century.
Van der Vaart: Likely carcinogen does not equal carcinogen
Chief Administrative Law Judge and Director of the Office of Administrative Hearings Dr. Donald van der Vaart revoked permit limits of 1,4-dioxane for municipal wastewater treatment plants that discharge a compound the EPA calls a likely human carcinogen into the drinking water sources of tens of thousands.
Bald Head Island ferry firm, passengers reach settlement
A proposal submitted to the North Carolina Utilities Commission earlier this month would ease pushback over schedules and issues with capacity.
Topsail Mayor Smith ‘was always doing his homework’
Steve Smith, a Virginia native and East Carolina University graduate who was serving his second term as Topsail Beach mayor and had a reputation for educating himself on coastal issues, died Friday at 73.
Update: PFAS groundwater rule OK’d for public comment
The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission on Thursday unanimously waived the normal 30-day public notice, expediting the rulemaking process covering the compounds classified as likely carcinogens.
Cape Lookout dredge spoils used to restore vanishing island
A haven for waterbirds since at least 1970, the quickly vanishing Sandbag Island near Harkers Island was recently expanded from a tenth of an acre to 5 acres using spoils from a dredge project around Cape Lookout Lighthouse.
Bald Head Island curfew put to rest as staff eyes cameras
Public resistance to a proposed ordinance setting a curfew for teens has prompted village staff to instead look to camera systems and other ways to curb late-night sign vandalism and water-balloon attacks.
Commission advances rule for straw bales in lieu of fencing
The Coastal Resources Commission on Wednesday unanimously approved the fiscal impact analysis of the proposed rule, which officials don’t expect to result in a significant increase in the use of straw bales to curb erosion.
