The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries announced Wednesday that it will close coastal and joint waters in North Carolina to both commercial and recreational spotted seatrout, or speckled trout, harvest effective 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 24, because of widespread cold stuns.
Spotlight
Call for volunteers to help protect Carteret’s wild horses
Volunteers are needed to help the organizations that care for the wild horses on Shackleford Banks and Rachel Carson Reserve raise community awareness.
Pea Island groups seeks feedback, lifesaving station stories
The Pea Island Preservation Society is hosting a special program next month to receive feedback and collect more stories about the Pea Island Lifesaving Service station.
Agency nixes speed limits proposed to protect right whales
“Despite its best efforts, NMFS does not have sufficient time to finalize this regulation in this Administration due to the scope and volume of public comments,” NOAA said before Trump’s inauguration Monday.
Wildlife Corridor offers curriculum on animal crossings
Available at no charge, the new wildlife crossing curriculum is designed for middle school students, but can be modified to meet any learning level, organizers said.
EPA to NC: Solvent discharge limits deadline ‘mandatory’
A pending lawsuit notwithstanding, the Environmental Protection Agency has put North Carolina on notice: There’s no extension of the time frames for addressing the federal agency’s objections regarding the discharge of 1,4 dioxane into waters upstream of the Cape Fear.
Sleepy Creek trail segment planners intend to ‘keep it wild’
The idea behind a planned new portion of Mountains-to-Sea Trail through the Holly Shelter Game Land’s lush pocosin in Pender County is to lure hikers safely away from Highway 17 and most other signs of civilization.
NOAA model designed to help assess coastal flood risks
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has released an online, visual, interactive tool based on decades of modeled and historical water level and wave information for roughly every quarter mile along the U.S. coastline.
Permaculture prerequisites: Learn your land, lean on nature
Permaculture is about observation and understanding how your property’s natural elements can help you to create more bounty with less work, even in North Carolina’s challenging coastal conditions.
Flooded barrier islands, rising mainland risks: USGS study
A new U.S. Geological Survey report finds that accelerating sea level rise and intensifying storms pose a threat to barrier islands like those of the Cape Lookout National Seashore, which the superintendent says confirms what park staff have been observing over the years.
Coastal Land Trust secures final million to buy ‘The Point’
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding $1 million to the state and conservation organizations to protect the 150-acre, undeveloped tract at the southern end of Topsail Beach.
Darrell Collins remembered for giving life to Wrights’ story
“He found a way to blend science and history and art to paint a picture that resonated with everybody that entered this building,” Scott Babinowich with the National Park Service Outer Banks Group said Saturday.
Biden makes protections from offshore drilling permanent
President Joe Biden on Monday used his authority under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to withdraw from new oil development the entire East Coast, eastern Gulf of Mexico, West Coast, and remainder of Alaska’s northern Bering Sea.
Incoming environmental chief Reid Wilson revisits his roots
Former Department of Natural and Cultural Resources Secretary Reid Wilson sees important opportunities and challenges in terms of public health and environmental protection in his new role as Department of Environmental Quality secretary in the Stein administration.
EPA adds 9 more PFAS to chemical reporting requirements
Nine additional per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have been added to the EPA’s annual Toxics Release Inventory reporting requirements.
NC Aquariums reduce admission for MLK Jr. Day
Aquariums are honoring King’s life and legacy Jan. 20 by providing visitors the reduced admission to enjoy the immersive experience while engaging with staff who are passionate about conservation, in keeping with the civil rights leader’s environmental ethic.
