Residents are asked to help remove roadside trash as the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Spring Litter Sweep kicks off Saturday.
pollution
Institute, visitors bureau to screen ‘Cigarette Surfboard’
The Coastal Studies Institute is partnering with the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau to host a screening of the award-winning film, “The Cigarette Surfboard,” which uses surfing as a vehicle for a message about protecting the marine environment.
State’s fix for costly litter problem ‘not efficient or sufficient’
“It’s like you’re Band-Aiding over an artery,” says Rob Clark, of Cape Fear River Watch, a coauthor of a report that found that cleaning up more than 7,000 tons of litter in North Carolina cost more than $56 million in 2023.
Water quality officials monitor weekend hog waste spill
State Division of Water Resources officials say more than 80,000 gallons of hog waste spilled into tributaries of the Northeast Cape Fear River over the weekend.
Buxton Beach is clean but advisory board sees work ahead
While the visible and odorous signs are now gone, a panel formed to oversee environmental restoration sees remaining challenges at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore site where a secret submarine survey base once operated.
Former ADI manager found guilty of discharging chemicals
A former manager at a chemical processing company in Navassa has pleaded guilty to knowingly discharging tens of thousands of gallons of chemicals directly into the Cape Fear River.
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.
Inundation-prone Sledge Forest site set for development
A sprawling, “rare, old-growth forest” on the banks of the Northeast Cape Fear River in New Hanover County that’s a key part of the river floodplain is targeted for a massive 4,000-home golf course/equestrian development with few options for opponents to stop it.
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?
Groups partner to organize Wilmington watershed cleanup
Cape Fear River Watch is partnering with Keep New Hanover Beautiful for its Second Saturday Cleanup, which will take place from 9-11 a.m. Nov. 9 in the Smith Creek Watershed at the intersection of Princess Place Drive and Evans Street in Wilmington.
Corps sets Nov. 4 presentation on Buxton petroleum cleanup
The presentation set for 7-9 p.m. Nov. 4 at the Fessenden Center will include information regarding a restoration advisory board related to the cleanup at the former defense site.
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.
‘Total mess’ after third Rodanthe house in four days falls
“I would say the debris field was so dense and thick, for the first quarter-mile south of the house collapse site that it was difficult to actually walk,” Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent Dave Hallac said.
Van der Vaart: Likely carcinogen does not equal carcinogen
Chief Administrative Law Judge and Director of the Office of Administrative Hearings Dr. Donald van der Vaart revoked permit limits of 1,4-dioxane for municipal wastewater treatment plants that discharge a compound the EPA calls a likely human carcinogen into the drinking water sources of tens of thousands.
Work gets underway to pinpoint Buxton pollution source
Corps of Engineers contractors are to start work Friday near Old Lighthouse Beach in an intensified effort to find the source of intermittent fuel odors and oily soil first exposed more than a year ago by storm erosion.
‘Strong petroleum smells’ lead to expanded beach closure
The odors Thursday prompted Cape Hatteras National Seashore staff to temporarily broaden the closed area of Buxton Beach near a former military and Coast Guard site.
