3609 Hwy 24 (Ocean) | Newport, North Carolina 28570

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
October 3, 2003

Frank Tursi, Cape Lookout Coastkeeper
252-393-8185
lookoutkeeper@nccoast.org

Winners of NCCF's First Pelican Awards

Individuals

• Sen. Marc Basnight, D-Dare, president pro tem of the NC Senate, for his staunch support of the Clean Water Management Trust Fund and for a bill that bans seawalls and other hard structures along the ocean.
• Dr. Courtney Hackney, vice chairman of the state's Coastal Resources Commission, for courageously noting in a guest editorial that received wide play across the state that "the time has come to abolish CAMA" because it now regulates honest citizens.
• Bonnie and Lee Jones, for recording sediment violations at a new subdivision in Carteret County that forced the state to take action and resulted in better sediment controls.
• Jan Harris and Sue Weddle, for stopping developers from dredging Tubbs Inlet in Brunswick County. (photo caption: Ocean Isle on the left, Sunset Beach on the right)
• Wade Rawlins, Richard Stradling and Robert Willett, for their newspaper series "Sand Castles" in The News & Observer of Raleigh that exposed the weaknesses of state laws on coastal development.
• Tracy Rice, formerly a geologist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, for unrelentingly exposing problems with the beach re-nourishment project on Bogue Banks in Carteret County. She did so while often under great pressure to keep quiet.
• Bill Ross, secretary of the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources, for his leadership in promoting a plan to protect the state's critical marine habitats.
• Rep. Keith Williams, R-Hubert, for the Living Shorelines Bill, which offers more natural alternatives to bulkheads to control erosion. (photo caption: Signing of Living Shorelines Act, from left: George Givens, Rep. Keith Williams, Bland Simpson, Gov. Mike Easley, Jim Stephenson and Sen. Charlie Albertson) Scenic shot

Local governments

• Emerald Isle, for developing a park to control stormwater and to preserve a maritime forest. (photo caption: Dedication of Emerald Isle Woods, from left: Frank Rush, Rep. Jean Preston, Mayor Art Schools, Dick Eckhardt, Emily Farmer, Todd Miller and Bill Holman.)
• Jacksonville, for restoring Wilson Bay.
• Nags Head, for a program that encourages its residents to maintain their septic tanks.
• Pender County and Rep. Carolyn Justice, R-Hampstead, for a bill that allows the county to set standards for subdivisions and to manage growth.

State agencies and organizations

• College of Veterinary Medicine at NC State University for helping with the restoration of Wilson Bay.
• Hatteras Village Civic Association for forcing restrictions on density and building height in the village.
• NC Clean Water Management Trust Fund for providing the critical grants for the restoration of Wilson Bay and North River Farms in Carteret County. (photo caption: Wetlands restoration at North River Farms.)
• NC Division of Marine Fisheries and the NC Nature Conservancy for oyster restoration projects in Pamlico Sound.
• NC Shellfish Growers Association for winning a legal challenge against developers who illegally filled 200 acres of wetlands in Onslow County. (photo caption: Deep ditches at Holly Ridge carry pollutants to shellfish waters.)