The new North Carolina Coastal Counties Fisheries Coalition’s held its second meeting last week, during which it laid out priorities that include transferring the Division of Marine Fisheries from the Department of Environmental Quality to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Spotlight
Coastal habitats are North Carolina’s hidden climate engines
North Carolina’s abundant coastal wetland ecosystems are highly effective carbon storehouses, serving to slow climate change’s pace while also providing vital fish nurseries, wildlife havens and storm buffers.
Coastal Federation lauds environmental stewards, volunteers
The North Carolina Coastal Federation celebrated 15 coastal stewards Saturday during the annual Pelican Awards ceremony for sharing “their time and talents, through leadership, education, hands-on projects, and volunteer efforts, to inspire others and create lasting change.”
Study presents modeled views of Ocracoke highway’s future
Researchers met recently with Ocracoke Islanders and presented findings from a multiyear, University of North Carolina-led study that looked at various ways to try and save N.C. Highway 12 from natural forces.
Survey says … be considerate with your music while fishing
Capt. Gordon’s “extensive research” finds that, while it may be a matter of individual preference, the question of whether or not may instead be a matter of how loud, when and where.
Another house, 12th in five years, collapses on Dare beach
Visitors should also avoid the north end of Rodanthe because of threatened oceanfront structures there.
Corps awards contract for second phase of Buxton cleanup
The Army Corps of Engineers’ Savannah District has awarded a contract for the second phase of cleanup at the former Buxton Naval Facility site in Dare County.
EMC moves groundwater standards, wetlands rules ahead
The N.C. Environmental Management Commission voted Thursday to send a groundwater standard rule for PFAS to the Rules Review Commission and a rule that defines wetlands in the state to the Office of Administrative Hearings.
Shark meat could be high in mercury, mislabeled: Study
Meat labeled “shark” for sale in grocery stores and fish markets may be from critically endangered species or have significant mercury in its tissue, according to a UNC Chapel Hill study.
Vanishing Bayous: On a boat at ground zero for sea level rise
Second in a series: Folks on Louisiana’s bayous, where Big Oil is really big, know firsthand the perils of sea level rise, and a group of North Carolinians recently visited there looking to start a conversation.
Historic Whalehead Club to mark centennial in October
The centennial of the 21,000-square-foot art nouveau mansion and centerpiece of Historic Corolla Park will be commemorated in October with special tours and other ticketed events.
Appeals period to begin for Jacksonville’s revised flood maps
Jacksonville recently hosted an informational open house on the proposed updated flood studies and revisions to the 2016 flood insurance rate maps that the city appealed.
Bulkheads lead to salt marsh erosion, total loss: Study
Researchers found that all 45 bulkhead sites analyzed for a recent study experienced marsh shoreline erosion during the 32-year study period, with complete marsh loss at 11% of the sites.
Riverkeeper, family man Rick Dove set example for advocates
He was an attorney, retired Marine Corps colonel, mentor, one of the first Riverkeepers in the Southeast and the original Neuse Riverkeeper — Rick Dove, 86, died Aug. 22.
Only half of state’s known sea turtle nests hatched before Erin
Many of the state’s sea turtle nests had hatched before Hurricane Erin passed offshore but those still incubating suffered overwash, and some nests were entirely lost.
Administration targets national forestland ‘roadless rule’
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has moved to repeal a 2001 rule that bars road construction, logging and mining in national forests, including more than 170,000 acres in North Carolina alone now protected by the rule.
