Wanchese office educates students on rain gardens

The North Carolina Coastal Federation has been busy with creating functioning rain gardens throughout the community. The soil and plants in these spaces will filter out pollutants and reduce stormwater runoff. Education Coordinator Sara Hallas and Coastal Specialist Leslie Vegas spent time exploring the rain garden at First Flight Middle School with students. Over the…

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Federation educates Oystoberfest guests on the importance of recycling shells

Staff and volunteers from the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s northeast office were proud to attend Coastal Provisions Oyster Bar and Wine Café’s annual Oystoberfest on Saturday, Oct. 13.  Around 200 attendees enjoyed unlimited oysters on the half shell and a variety of cooked oyster dishes from local restaurants. Some of the North Carolina oyster growers…

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Living shorelines recommended for effective and lasting shoreline management as storm repairs continue

Hurricane Florence damaged many docks along the coast. The soil behind some bulkheads was also scoured out and many of these hard structures failed. Living shorelines on the other hand weathered the storm, outperforming more traditional shoreline management techniques like bulkheads.   Living shorelines include planted salt marsh grasses and low-profile sills or marsh toe…

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AmeriCorps

From 2015-2018, the North Carolina Coastal Federation was a host site for a 10-month national service program in environmental education and outreach with AmeriCorps. The program focused on connecting people to the outdoors, while also developing future leaders in conservation. The federation hopes to continue this partnership in the future. 2018 AmeriCorps Members Kristin Gibson served…

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Federation provides government recommendations following Hurricane Florence

With North Carolina slowly beginning the process of recovering from Hurricane Florence, the North Carolina General Assembly is scheduled to meet Oct. 15 to approve a multimillion-dollar package of aid to farmers, flooded out homeowners, small businesses and disaster-stricken communities. On Oct. 10, Gov. Roy Cooper released his Hurricane Florence recovery plan, which includes substantial…

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Don’t burn pressure treated wood

OCEAN – Hurricane Florence’s big storm surge destroyed many docks, walkways and bulkheads along our coast. “There are large, mangled piles of chemically preserved lumber and poles from docks and bulkheads washed up all along our shorelines,” said Todd Miller, executive director of the North Carolina Coastal Federation. “Now people are asking what they should…

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Roanoke Island oyster reef monitoring yields positive results

The week before Hurricane Florence landed on the North Carolina coast, staff and volunteers in the federation’s Northeast office spent an afternoon monitoring an oyster restoration site on the southern end of Roanoke Island, near Thicket Lump. This 200-foot section of sill was initially built three years ago and is monitored at least once a…

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Updated: Federation urges the public to stay out of the water after Florence

OCEAN – Officials with the North Carolina Coastal Federation and the state of North Carolina advise residents and tourists that it’s not yet safe to swim and wade in coastal waters. Massive amounts of polluted runoff are still flowing into coastal waterways all along areas of our coast impacted by heavy rains from Hurricane Florence.…

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Federation staff and volunteers assist with OBX Beach Sweep

The North Carolina Coastal Federation staff and volunteers were pleased to act as Avalon Pier’s zone captain for the Outer Banks Surfrider Foundation’s annual OBX Beach Sweep and TrashFest on Sept. 22. Both locals and visitors gathered at multiple accesses to remove trash from the beach.  While the sweep had been planned far in advance,…

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