The deal reached last week to avert a government shutdown further reduced funding for national wildlife refuges, including those already stretched thin along the North Carolina coast.
Spotlight
Slick’s dilemma: How to save Pine Island as a bird refuge
Earl Slick, who in 1972 purchased nearly 3,000 acres spanning from the ocean to the sound, didn’t want Currituck Banks to be swamped by development.
Murphy honors deceased boater Chad Dunn in US House
Rep. Greg Murphy spoke during the morning session to remember the life of the 36-year-old who died Sunday in a boating accident in Oregon Inlet.
State’s climate plan adds carbon sequestration component
State environmental officials’ new, “different approach” to reducing greenhouse gas emissions puts the spotlight on the climate benefits natural and working lands conservation brings.
Dirty birds prompt worry over shellfish safety, state staffing
It’s rare for bird droppings to cause shellfish illness, but officials say there is potential, and the state Division of Marine Fisheries has fewer than 60 officers along the entire coast to do federally required inspections and check deterrent effectiveness.
$19.2M Hatteras Lighthouse restoration gets underway
The Feb. 14 ceremonial groundbreaking kicked off the 18-month, comprehensive project to restore Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, the first for the brick structure since its 1870 construction.
National Invasive Species Awareness Week highlights risks
Biologists, extension agents and foresters here on the North Carolina coast say National Invasive Species Awareness Week, Feb. 26-March 3, is an important time to learn how to limit the spread.
Most coastal state parks report visitor growth in 2023
North Carolina State Parks recently announced that attendance grew by 4% statewide last year, with most of the nine sites on the coast contributing to that growth.
Coastal Resources Commission celebrates CAMA’s 50th
The state Coastal Resources Commission this week in Wilmington featured an observance and look back at the N.C. Coastal Area Management Act’s first 50 years.
Diesel odor returns to Buxton beach; source still unknown
A Defense Department project purportedly cleaned up petroleum and debris from a former Naval base site on a Hatteras Island beach, and while the source of recurring fumes and sheens on the water remains a mystery, erosion has revealed a messy past.
Hertford’s quiet, rural setting, rich history add to its appeal
The seat of Perquimans County incorporated in 1758 and has never had more than 2,500 residents.
Southport advances plan to sell habitat-rich acreage to state
Wildlife Resources Commission is closer to purchasing more than 400 acres from Southport for conservation after a majority of Brunswick County town’s aldermen said they intended to sell the land to the state in a majority vote.
Reflections on 50 years of NC Coastal Area Management Act
When first considered 50 years ago, North Carolina’s Coastal Area Management Act was hotly controversial environmental legislation, and despite challenges past and present, it remains the state’s only attempt to forge a partnership for regional resource management.
Ballance to bring Ocracoke history to Core Sound’s present
“Ocracokers” author and native Alton Ballance is to talk about the isolated island’s growth from a fishing village to a tourist destination.
A million new acres: Cooper sets lofty conservation goals
Environmental advocates are calling the governor’s latest executive order to conserve and restore forests and wetlands and plant 1 million trees in urban areas “ambitious and important.”
Ocracoke man dies on flooded Highway 12
Warren Howard Frantz died Tuesday after his vehicle hydroplaned and crashed off ocean-overwashed N.C. 12 at the north end of Ocracoke.
