Federal officials were on hand Friday for a pandemic-delayed ribbon cutting at the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, which was elevated 5 feet and renovated, work that was completed in spring 2020.
News & Features
Topsail Island towns begin work on new resiliency effort
North Topsail Beach, Surf City and Topsail Beach held their first public meeting Wednesday to begin the process of identifying a coastal resilience project using nature-based solutions and state funding to benefit all three towns.
Student study finds Buxton Woods a healthy, valued reserve
UNC students participating in a capstone study project at the Coastal Studies Institute found that the Buxton Woods Coastal Reserve is both apparently healthy and valued in various ways by Hatteras Island residents.
Fine print in budget worries environmental advocates
The state budget recently signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper, his first since taking office, provides significant funding for resilience and conservation, but the 1,200-page spending plan also includes provisions that could undermine environmental protections.
‘A Sound River’ documentary traces nonprofit’s 40 years
Filmmaker Rain Bennett, who grew up on the Pamlico River and produced the history of environmental nonprofit Sound Rivers, says storytelling is a powerful way to stand up to polluters.
New plan aims to save northeastern NC marshlands
The recently released Currituck Sound Coalition Marsh Conservation Plan was designed to address the challenges marshes in the sound face, including sea level rise.
Researchers eye alternative energy to power state ferries
The North Carolina Ferry Division and university researchers are studying possible ways for alternative energy to power the state’s 21 ferries.
Years of flood disasters drove NC’s new resiliency funding
After years of climate disasters across North Carolina, the newly approved state budget includes hundreds of millions of dollars for new programs and initiatives to address flooding and bolster resilience to storms.
Coastal Habitat Protection Plan 2021 amendment approved
The Coastal Habitat Protection Plan’s 2021 amendment to the 2016 plan has been unanimously approved by the Coastal Resources, Environmental Management and Marine Fisheries commissions.
Estuaries, though small, have huge economic impact: report
These small areas where rivers mix with salt water in coastal regions contribute a significant amount to the country’s economy, according to a recent update to a decade-old report on the economics of estuaries.
Feds withdraw plan to scale back red wolf protections in NC
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service cited recent court decisions and public comments about the 2018 proposal to remove most private land in the 1.7-million-acre recovery area in Hyde, Tyrrell, Dare, Beaufort and Washington counties.
Town creates fund for UNCW’s study of living shoreline
St. James recently took the unusual step of creating an endowment for University of North Carolina Wilmington research and work related to the Brunswick County town’s living shorelines, but townsfolk here have long recognized the power of the mighty oyster.
Fish study’s findings trigger consumption advisory update
A recent study that showed fish favored by subsistence fishers along the Brunswick and Cape Fear rivers were found to have elevated levels of arsenic, hexavalent chromium and mercury has prompted a state health advisory.
UNCW alumnus among global environmental prize winners
UNCW alumnus Joe Oliver and his colleagues at Bahamas-based Coral Vita have been globally recognized with an environmental award for their work restoring coral reefs.
Severe storms possible Thursday night: Weather Service
National Weather Service officials warn of possible severe thunderstorms Thursday night into Friday morning in eastern North Carolina.
Nourishment funds now secured for 2 New Hanover towns
Earlier this year three New Hanover beach towns learned there was no appropriation for longstanding shoreline nourishment projects, since then Army Corps of Engineers has shifted funds for Kure and Carolina beaches, but not Wrightsville Beach, for now.
