“I’m trying to help the public with their problems related to climate,” says Dr. Jared Bowden, a Rocky Mount native who became director of the North Carolina State Climate Office early this month.
science
Coastal Habitat Protection Plan steering committee to meet
members are to discuss possible updates for the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality that focuses on “long-term enhancement of coastal fisheries through habitat protection and enhancement efforts.”
Sunny day flooding not as paradoxical as it may sound
While seemingly counterintuitive, king tides are not a new phenomenon but do represent a chronic and increasingly difficult challenge for coastal communities, but ordinary people can help by contributing to the science.
In death, a living legacy may thrive at Veterans Memorial Reef
Military veteran Thomas Marcinowski’s final wishes to be interred beneath the waves prompted him to form a nonprofit that enables others who served to have their cremains interred in eco-positive reef modules, including nine whose ashes are to be placed on the seafloor Monday.
Sea turtle program coordinator Matthew Godfrey to speak
Godfrey, the North Carolina Sea Turtle Project coordinator for the Wildlife Resources Commission, is the the featured guest this month for the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s “Green Drinks” speaker series in Morehead City.
Corbett, Coastal Studies Institute executive director, to lecture
The public is encouraged to attend Dr. Reide Corbett’s lecture, “Holding the Line? Coastal Change and Barrier-Island Dynamics on the Outer Banks,” May 28 in Wanchese.
Dr. Lela Schlenker joins Coastal Federation as advocate
Schlenker, the new advocate with the North Carolina Coastal Federation in Wanchese, is a fisheries ecologist with a research career spanning topics such as the effect of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on mahi-mahi, how climate and weather affect the state’s shrimp populations, and the impact of catch-and-release fishing practices on white marlin.
Great Southeast Pollinator Census kick-off webinar April 15
The webinar for the community science data-collection effort to count pollinator activity in the region is being offered April 15.
Scientists record female sperm whales assisting in calf’s birth
A research team was working the summer of 2023 off the coast of Dominica when they made the “impossibly rare” observation of a mother sperm whale giving birth and the newborn assisted by the other whales in taking its first breath, all while recording their underwater vocalizations.
Mapping upgrades go live in online flood blueprint tool
The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s online tool designed to help local governments, agencies and nongovernmental partners plan and prioritize flood resilience actions now includes new maps for five river basins in Eastern North Carolina.
Ocean Conservancy’s tool measures impact of litter cleanups
The organization’s new online calculator lets users see how many seabirds, sea turtles and marine mammals they’ve helped by removing plastics from the environment.
Inaugural festival to serve up community science activities
The inaugural Wilmington Community Science Fest scheduled for Saturday brings the wide array of community science activities offered in the region.
Panel takes new look at beach erosion-control structures
Special report: As beach erosion alarms sound up and down the North Carolina coast and Outer Banks houses continue to fall into the ocean, policymakers are once again eyeing the science behind the state’s longstanding hardened structures ban.
State wildlife commission seeks turtle tally volunteers
The annual spring Terrapin Tally, which is headed by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, relies on volunteers to spot and document the little aquatic turtles in marshes, estuaries and tidal creeks along the southern North Carolina coast.
More red drum to be added to satellite tracking platform
The North Carolina Marine & Estuary Foundation and North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries plan to tag 25 additional red drum this year as part of a project to better understand where and how the species travels through the state’s coastal waters.
GenX study update to be shared at monthly seminar Saturday
Cape Fear River Watch’s first Saturday seminar series will feature Dr. Jane Hoppin, principal investigator of an ongoing study of human health effects of GenX.
