Topsail Island towns are banding together in an attempt to reduce the presence of the invasive plant that chokes out native vegetation on oceanfront dunes.
News & Features
Buxton folk relieved at Corps action, ask why not sooner?
Corps of Engineers officials told Hatteras Island residents this week that work is ongoing and a formal advisory board on cleanup at the petroleum-contaminated National Park Service beach could help information flow, but some here wonder, why did it take so long?
Report uses new tools to address Wright Monument leakage
The recently released “Wright Brothers Monument and Powerhouse Historic Structure Report,” employs advanced tools to diagnose the interior of the monument’s stubborn excessive moisture and water intrusion.
Rules eased as red-cockaded woodpeckers’ status improves
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.
Science panel applies 2022 sea level report projections to NC
The Coastal Resources Commission’s science panel has released its “North Carolina 2024 Sea Level Rise Science Update” that applies the findings of a 2022 federal-level sea level rise technical report to North Carolina.
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.
NC Oyster Month makes October a shucking good time
This is the fourth year the state has celebrated the ecologically and economically important mollusks.
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.
Researcher tracks how species adapt to climate change
UNC’s Dr. Paul Taillie says that while there’s reason for concern about the environment, he does not share the anxiety others have, rather, “I tend to be very optimistic about things.”
Groups who joined to take on marine debris assess progress
Five years into a coastwide plan to address marine debris in North Carolina waters, those behind the plan met last week to judge their effort and consider the message going forward.
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.
