Duke University researchers have put into dollar figures the true costs to society of cheap plastic products: from $436 billion to $1.1 trillion annually.
public health
Port’s Cape Fear dredge project fails taxpayers, environment
Guest commentary: Deepening the Cape Fear River will only worsen flooding around the downtown Wilmington waterfront and the North Carolina Battleship site and lead to a substantial loss of vital wetlands and floodplains.
Chemours is doubling down on its toxic history: NRDC
Chemours is not a company that can be trusted to expand its operations responsibly, and it’s an example of the national PFAS pollution crisis, writes Drew Ball of the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Dare County shelter announces its 2026 board of directors
OBX Room in The Inn, the only shelter in Dare County for unhoused persons, announced Monday its new leadership for the coming year.
Opponents urge EPA to uphold objection to Asheboro permit
Those who spoke last week at the Environmental Protection Agency’s hearing on Asheboro’s wastewater permit urged the EPA to uphold its objection to the city’s proposed permit with no effluent discharge limit for 1,4-dioxane into the drinking water supply of hundreds of thousands downstream.
Attorneys allege Chemours hid emission data from public
The company “improperly withheld vital emission data from the public” in its Aug. 14 application to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality, according to a letter to regulators from Southern Environmental Law Center attorneys.
Public should avoid blue, green water in Chowan River
State health and water quality officials urge the public to avoid contact with green or blue water on the Chowan River between the Occano community in Bertie County and Arrowhead Beach in Chowan County.
Critics say law will derail health, environmental rulemaking
House Bill 402, which became law this past summer despite the governor’s veto, has drawn sharp criticism from environmental and health advocates who argue it will stifle an already daunting rulemaking process and create significant obstacles to addressing pollution.
EPA sets hearing on Asheboro’s proposed discharge permit
The Environmental Protection Agency is holding the public hearing on a proposed permit for the city’s wastewater treatment plant, which dumps high levels of 1,4-dioxane waste and is upstream of municipal drinking water customers in Brunswick, New Hanover and Pender counties.
Brunswick residents asked to participate in health survey
The 2025 Community Health Opinion Survey will help Brunswick County and its health care partners identify and prioritize health-related needs.
Brunswick halts water treatment plant contractor lawsuit
Brunswick County in a release stated that it reserves the right to refile the lawsuit it rescinded last Monday against the contractor it hired to expand and install a low-pressure reverse osmosis system at the Northwest Water Treatment Plant.
Hurricane Erin to remain offshore, coastal NC to feel impacts
The center of Hurricane Erin is expected to remain offshore, but forecasters expect eastern North Carolina to see coastal flooding, tropical-storm-force winds, overwash and beach erosion.
More than $240M awarded for water, wastewater upgrades
Drinking water and wastewater infrastructure improvement projects in a handful of coastal counties are among 48 projects selected to receive funding grants.
PACT Act ignores TCE, PCE contamination on military bases
Guest commentary: With more than 620,000 veterans living in North Carolina, many likely exposed to recently banned compounds trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene while working for the military, updating the toxic agents list is essential for equal access to benefits.
Unhealthy heat levels forecast for coastal counties this week
Residents should take precautions to avoid heat-related illnesses in all 20 coastal counties in the coming days.
Coastal counties should expect unhealthy heat
State officials are advising residents to take precautions to avoid heat-related illnesses in the coastal counties where the heat is expected to reach unhealthy levels.
