The sun was blazing on Aug. 16, but 27 volunteers removed over 100 cubic feet — an entire trailer full — of weeds and cattails that were invading the rain gardens and wetlands at Bradley Creek Elementary School in Wilmington. The volunteers were from Guilford College, UNC-Wilmington’s College of Health and Human Services Department and…
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The North Carolina Coastal Federation’s northeast staff ended last week with a treat — spending the day with more than 50 students who participated in Mano al Hermano’s summer reading program. This is the federation’s second summer partnering with Mano al Hermano. The Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership provides funding for the federation to purchase books related…
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The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) on Thursday filed a petition against a Sunset Beach development permit. The SELC filed it on behalf of the North Carolina Coastal Federation and the Sunset Beach Taxpayers’ Association, which are plaintiffs in a petition for a contested hearing against the permit. The North Carolina Division of Coastal Management gave the…
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The 2016 Pelican Award winners received their awards on Saturday in Beaufort at The Boathouse at Front Street Village. These award winners all contributed in unique ways toward protecting the North Carolina coast. The North Carolina Coastal Federation is thankful for the support and work of these individuals, groups and local governments. In total, 13 people,…
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The North Carolina Coastal Federation awarded 31 local governments Pelican Awards for passing resolutions against offshore oil and/or seismic surveys, which involve the use of sonic waves to search for oil and gas beneath the ocean floor. With the exception of three inland local governments, all are located in coastal towns and counties. These local…
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When this year’s four Coastal Advocacy Institute interns started at the North Carolina Coastal Federation, they had no idea just how much they would accomplish in a short time. Throughout the course of the summer, they helped write comment letters, worked on a website about living shorelines and participated in field activities along the central…
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The North Carolina Coastal Federation submitted its comment letter on the Army Corps of Engineers’ final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on Aug. 1 regarding the proposed terminal groin at Rich Inlet near Figure Eight Island. The comment letter points out several flaws in the Corps’ analysis, including its failure to comply with parts of the…
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Last summer, the North Carolina Coastal Federation partnered with Mano al Hermano for its Summer Literacy Project. Through funding from the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership, the federation provided three books with coastal themes to students. Volunteers in the community spent time reading to them and going through the books with them. In August, students joined federation staff…
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Teachers from around the state visited Jones Island at Hammocks Beach State Park on Thursday, July 28, for a teacher workshop session led by Rachel Bisesi, coastal education coordinator for the North Carolina Coastal Federation. The workshop was focused on helping teachers better understand how the hydrologic system on the coast. It was led by the…
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Waterfront property owners with eroding shorelines along our coastal sounds, bays, rivers, tidal creeks and waterways may soon be eligible for financial assistance to naturally control their erosion while increasing fish habitat at the same time. The North Carolina Coastal Federation recently received grant funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Coastal Ecosystem…
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Wednesday, July 27 was a hot day, but that didn’t deter the wonderful volunteers in Manteo from completing an oyster reef in Shallowbag Bay on Roanoke Island. Six volunteers came out for a fun-filled morning, and started out the day by moving crab pots and collecting buoys from a storage site to bring out to the North Carolina…
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Comment letter to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Headquarters The North Carolina Coastal Federation submitted comments regarding Nationwide Permit 13 (NWP 13) for Bank Stabilization and Nationwide Permit B (NWP B) for Living Shorelines to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers headquarters. The comments to the Corps headquarters recommends the retirement of NWP 13, similar…
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Volunteers helped the North Carolina Coastal Federation complete the fifth phase of its restoration work at the Morris Landing Clean Water Preserve near Stump Sound in Holly Ridge in Onslow County. On Wednesday, July 27 — the hottest day of the year so far — 18 volunteers worked to enhance and restore salt marsh habitat along the…
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The North Carolina Coastal Federation and North Carolina Wildlife Federation submitted an amicus brief on July 27 in support of public trust rights to access dry sand beaches. The Southern Environmental Law Center filed the brief on behalf of the two nonprofit organizations to the Supreme Court of North Carolina, which will soon hear the…
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Ann Daisey is the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s community conservationist, and her position is unique to the state. She focuses on improving water quality in Dare County as both a staff member of the federation and as the staff member for the Dare Soil and Water Conservation District — but her position might have never…
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The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) submitted a comment letter regarding living shorelines to the Army Corps of Engineers. The letter was written on behalf of the North Carolina Coastal Federation and other groups. The federation will also be submitting an additional letter in the next few days. SELC recommends the retirement of Nationwide Permit…
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The vice chairman of the Coastal Resources Commission approved a request for a third party contested hearing on the Sunset Beach West development but denied a request to hear the appeal of the property ownership issue. The North Carolina Coastal Federation and the Sunset Beach Taxpayers’ Association requested a formal appeal of a developer’s Coastal Area…
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A group of 16 campers spent three days exploring Hammocks Beach State Park for Coastal Discovery Camp, where they took in the many views of the park and learned about its many habitats. The North Carolina Coastal Federation led the camp from July 11-13, 2016 in partnership with staff at the park, including Sarah Bartlett, the environmental education…
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