North Carolina will likely tighten its recreational swimming standards this year at some places along the coast in response to new federal water-quality guidelines.
Pellet Plans Draw Mixed Reviews in Morehead
Plans to build a wood pellet facility at the state port in Morehead City raise questions about how such a facility may change the face of a town that relies so heavily on tourism. Some are skeptical, others cautiously optimistic.
Climate Change, Insurance and the Coast, Part 2
Part 2 of the series takes a look at efforts undertaken by specific locales to address problems of coastal insurance in a changing climate.
Climate Change, Insurance and the Coast, part 1
Part 1 of this two-part series takes a look at the insurance industry’s efforts to address coastal climate change in their risk assessment scenarios.
Who Will Pay for Ports’ Pellet Plan?
Aside from being a good tongue twister, that’s the $70 million question that has yet to be answered after the N.C. Railroad Co. declined to financially back a pellet storage facility at the state port in Morehead City.
Federation Leads Push for Review of Wood Pellet Plan
The N.C. Coastal Federation and an advocacy group in Carteret County are pushing the N.C. State Ports Authority to adhere to state law and do an environmental review of its plans to ship wood pellets from the port in Morehead City to European power plants.
Fish Can Now Get Around Old Obstacle
For almost 100 years, spawning fish heading up the Cape Fear River ran into an unmovable obstacle called Lock and Dam No. 1. Now a passage that resembles natural rapids gives them a chance.
A Beacon of Wind in Morehead City
A small wind tower astride N.C. State’s Center for Marine and Science Technology in Morehead City may be a beacon for small-scale renewable energy along the coast.
$30 Million vs. $13 Million
The first number is what the state paid in 2006 for land near Southport for the now-dead international container port. That second number? That’s the land’s tax value today.
The Greening of the Marines
Solar panels are sprouting up all over Camp Lejeune. You can see them in fields, covering parking lots and on the roofs of new base housing, which are far “greener” than most houses outside the gate.
Maritime Study: What It Will Take to Stay Competitive
The new North Carolina Maritime Strategy report calls for billions of dollars in transportation improvements and construction at the state’s ports, in order to compete in the import/export business.
Special Places, Special People
Our new annual publication, “Our Coast,” celebrates places along the coast that you can visit this summer that thousands of people fought long and hard to protect.
Lea-Hutaff Island, a Restful Respite
The deserted beaches, shifting shoals and expansive marshes of Lea-Hutaff Island along the southeast coast make it a needed haven for many bird species.
Cherry Point Takes Steps to Help the Neuse
The Marine Corps Air Station plans to remove a stormwater ditch that dumps untreated runoff into the river and replace a damaged bulkhead with a natural shoreline.
From Polluting Sewer Plant to City Showcase
Riverworks at Sturgeon City in Jacksonville is a memorial to how one community pulled together to reverse the devastation caused by years of dumping sewage into Wilson Bay.
Warning: May Cause Toe Tapping
A coastal high school jazz band is joining the North Carolina’s legendary Red Clay Ramblers for a concert that is sure to be an audience pleaser.
