Higher groundwater levels, heavier and more frequent rain storms and flooding associated with climate change threaten both individual and centralized systems for wastewater along the N.C. coast.
water quality
Move On to Take Over River Locks, Dams
The Fayetteville Public Works Commission was expected to submit a letter of intent this month to take ownership of three Cape Fear River locks and dams now owned and managed by the Army Corps of Engineers.
Coastal Research: Would You Swim Here?
Students with the UNC Institute for the Environment’s Field Site program spent last semester researching how contaminants get into Beaufort’s Town Creek and what happens next.
Coastal Research: One Town’s Septic Risks
UNC researchers recently presented findings from a study of how climate change and failing septic systems combine to affect Nags Head’s water quality and how the town is addressing problems.
Biologist: Seagrass A ‘Canary In Coal Mine’
Jud Kenworthy, a biologist and co-lead of a project to better understand the status of the submerged aquatic vegetation, says seagrasses can warn about the health of N.C.’s coastal ecology.
Submerged Vegetation Mirrors Coast’s Health
Researchers are working to map the extent and density of submerged aquatic vegetation along the N.C. coast, to assess its health, which is important far beyond the state’s estuaries.
Brunswick Wastewater Permit Hearing Dec. 5
The state Department of Environmental Quality is holding a public hearing in Bolivia Dec. 5 on Brunswick County’s wastewater draft permit modifications for its Northwest Water Treatment Plant in Leland.
State Set to Step Up Water Quality Testing
New, additional funding for shellfish sanitation and recreational water quality testing in the state could go a long way in protecting public health.
Closures Result of Record Rainfall in July
Many North Carolina waters were closed to harvesting shellfish and recreational water use after the deluge that made July one of the wettest months on record.
GenX Aware: Old Assumptions, New Attitudes
In the second and final part of our series on the anniversary of the first GenX news report, we examine what has changed in terms of the public’s awareness, behavior and how they may vote.
Collaboratory Studies: Better GenX Detection
Researchers with grants from the North Carolina Policy Collaboratory are proposing new, simpler ways to test for GenX and other emerging contaminants in drinking water and to encourage more frequent water sampling.
SC Group Seeks Data on Offshore Dumping
A S.C. business group has filed requests with the Defense Department and federal nuclear regulatory agencies seeking information on conventional, chemical and radioactive weapons and materials that were dumped into the Atlantic Ocean.Â
EPA Funds NC Effort to Curb Water Pollution
The EPA has awarded the state Department of Environmental Quality $3.77 million for a variety of projects designed to improve water quality in priority watersheds across the state.
Sound Rivers New Executive Director Chosen
Heather Deck will begin Sept. 1 serving as executive director of Sound Rivers, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the Neuse and Tar-Pamlico River basins.
Researcher to Study Eastern NC Lakes
A UNC researcher is set to study water storage in eastern North Carolina lakes with the help of state residents and NASA.
Officials Eye Water Quality As Floods Recede
Rivers have crested and begun to recede in the week and a half since rain from Hurricane Matthew inundated the eastern part of the state, but officials are unsure about the nasty stuff that’s heading downstream.
