CARTERET COUNTY — Construction on the second phase of the Swan Island Oyster Sanctuary began this month as crews started moving granite from the port in Morehead City to the project site. Construction on the 10-acre sanctuary — which is located in Pamlico Sound near the mouth of the Neuse River — started May 11. It is…
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On April 30 the North Carolina Coastal Federation hosted 37 volunteers at the Bradley Creek Elementary School rain garden for Work on Wilmington, a communitywide event to promote partnerships and community service. During the event, volunteers worked in the rain garden mulching, weeding and performing overall maintenance. One group put on waders and removed cattails,…
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Staff in the North Carolina Coastal Federation participated in two events recently that were focused on getting girls interested in math, science and technology. The first event, Girls Exploring Science and Technology (GEST), was on April 14 at the Duke University Marine Lab. GEST brings together researchers from a number of STEM institutions to inspire…
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WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH — The North Carolina Coastal Federation is working with the Town of Wrightsville Beach, the City of Wilmington and community partners to implement projects that will reduce the volume of polluted stormwater runoff affecting these neighboring coastal communities. These projects are funded by the North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund (CWMTF) and…
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The North Carolina Coastal Federation staff spent a busy weekend celebrating Earth Day last month, with multiple events going on in all three coastal regions and in the Triangle. Earth Day is always full of events that get people outside and experiencing the coast, and federation staff are always excited to participate in the many…
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Veronica Carter, a long-time North Carolina Coastal Federation board member, has been appointed to the Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Board, which will advise the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Secretary Michael Regan created this panel to help DEQ involve and engage disadvantaged and minority populations in its decision-making processes. Carter has been involved in promoting…
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Over the course of four days, staff at the federation’s Wanchese office educated approximately 600 students on living shorelines, marine debris, water quality and much more. The week full of education events kicked off at Manteo Middle School on April 24 and 25, when Sara Hallas, coastal education coordinator, and Reilly Kelly, AmeriCorps member, visited…
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SWAN QUARTER — The fourth public meeting about the Lake Mattamuskeet Watershed Restoration Plan is on May 8 and will cover strategies that are being explored by the planning team. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Hyde County Government Complex in Swan Quarter. The agenda is available here. The goal of the watershed restoration plan is to provide…
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This story has been updated with additional numbers from the April 19 bagging event in Wilmington. A total of 87 volunteers worked with the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s Wrightsville Beach staff for two oyster bagging events in April. The bags of recycled oyster shells and gravel granite will be used on a future living shoreline…
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With funding from Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership, the North Carolina Coastal Federation teamed up with River City YouthBuild to install several stormwater retrofits at the Shoppes at Renaissance Square in Elizabeth City on April 18. River City YouthBuild, run by River City Community Development Corporation, provides education and employment skills for economically disadvantaged young adults aged…
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The UNC-TV show Exploring North Carolina featured the North Carolina Coastal Federation in an episode that aired April 19. The episode is the third in a four-part series titled “Water in NC: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.” More information about the series is available at UNC-TV’s website. Watch below:
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HOLDEN BEACH — At last night’s Board of Commissioners meeting, the town of Holden Beach revoked all of its applications for a terminal groin at the east end of the town. The five town commissioners voted unanimously to revoke the applications. The North Carolina Coastal Federation has been against the terminal groin since it was…
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During Dare County Schools’ spring break, the North Carolina Coastal Federation hosted a full day of oyster-focused learning at its Wanchese office. This day was just one event in a month-long celebration of science hosted by UNC’s Morehead Planetarium and Science Center. The eighth annual North Carolina Science Festival will host 676 science-based educational events…
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On Tuesday, April 3, 14 volunteers from Cape Fear Realtors volunteered with the North Carolina Coastal Federation in the rain gardens at Alderman Elementary School for Realtor Action Day. Volunteers performed maintenance on the rain garden, which typically consists of removing invasive plants, pulling weeds, removing debris and spreading mulch. The 2018 event marked the fourth year…
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With just a month to go before the North Carolina General Assembly’s short session, Gov. Roy Cooper got an early start on what will be one of the biggest issues of the 2018 session — how to respond to the water pollution issues raised by the GenX pollution problem in the Cape Fear region. On April…
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In summer 2017, the North Carolina Coastal Federation began the construction of a 300-linear foot living shoreline at Camp Albemarle on Bogue Sound. The project is now only a few workdays from being completed. Camp Albemarle is one of the public living shoreline locations chosen for funding through the federation’s three-year National Oceanic and Atmospheric…
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Fourteen local waterfront property owners gathered on March 29 at the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s Ocean office to learn how living shorelines, an environmentally friendly alternative to bulkheads and seawalls, could help them control shoreline erosion. The workshop — led by Dr. Lexia Weaver, coastal scientist, and Rachel Bisesi, coastal education coordinator — was designed…
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A new book about the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s work to help organize local efforts to protect important places on the North Carolina coast has recently been published and is available at nccoast.org/savinggreatplaces. Glenn Blackburn, professor emeritus of history at University of Virginia’s College at Wise, wrote “Saving Great Places” based on interviews he has…
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Several events across northeastern North Carolina involved the North Carolina Coastal Federation on Saturday, March 24, providing opportunities for people to learn about low-impact development, stormwater runoff, oysters and more. Ann Daisey, community conservationist at the federation’s Wanchese office, presented at the Tri-County Home Landscaping and Gardening Workshop in Barco in Currituck County. This event…
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Thirty-two college students worked with the North Carolina Coastal Federation in March, dedicating their spring breaks to community service and coastal restoration. Read more about their hard work. Wanchese Nine students from Ithaca College traveled to the federation’s Wanchese office for the week of March 12. Their first task of the week was to bag…
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Update: Because the town revoked its applications, the Corps is no longer seeking comments. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is seeking public comments on the project proposal for the construction of a terminal groin structure on Holden Beach just west of Lockwood Folly Inlet and Oak Island. On March 15, the Corps released the Final…
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A total of 76 commercial watermen worked throughout the coast of North Carolina in January to collect 3,496 lost crab pots as part of a statewide marine debris removal effort to prevent hazards for people and wildlife. The Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project is led by the North Carolina Coastal Federation with $100,000 from the…
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For the past few years, staff at the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s Wrightsville Beach office have worked with students at Lake Forest Academy in Wilmington to help increase their exposure to nature and wildlife in the area. AmeriCorps member Kate Conery is currently conducting some stormwater and salt marsh lessons with the students. “In the…
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WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH — The North Carolina Coastal Federation recently revamped its Walk the Loop for Clean Water website, walktheloop.org, which serves as tour guide of projects in Wrightsville Beach that reduce the volume of stormwater runoff flowing into nearby waterways. Walk the Loop for Clean Water is a 1-mile, self-guided walking tour of innovative stormwater projects…
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submit your comment by march 9 The federal government wouldn’t go to the coast for a public meeting — so the people who live on the coast came to them. More than 500 people attended Monday’s Rally to Raleigh, with approximately 200 riding buses from Wilmington, Morehead City and Nags Head to make their voices…
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