Press Releases

The Conservation Fund Committee of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet at 4 p.m. Feb. 21 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel New Bern Riverfront, 100 Middle St., New Bern.

The N.C. Coastal Resources Commission (CRC) will meet Feb. 21 and 22 at the Aloft Wilmington at Coastline Center, 501 Nutt Street, Wilmington. A public comment period is scheduled for 10:45 a.m. on Feb. 22. At the chair’s discretion, comments may be limited to 3 minutes per person. The Coastal Resources Advisory Council (CRAC) will meet Feb. 21 at 10:30 a.m. Following the CRAC meeting DEQ will kick off the 50th Anniversary of the N.C. Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) at 1:30 p.m.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources (DEMLR) has scheduled a public hearing to accept comments on a proposed  stormwater permit for International Tie Disposal, LLC, for its facility in Richmond County. The hearing will be held at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 18, 2024, at the Richmond Community College - Cole Auditorium, 1042 W Hamlet Ave, Hamlet, NC 28345. 

Members of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission Commercial Fishing Resource Funding Committee and the Funding Committee for the N.C. Commercial Fishing Resource Fund will meet informally on Monday, Feb. 19, to receive a presentation on the Always NC Fresh Public Relations Campaign. The presentation will begin at 10 a.m. at the Division of Marine Fisheries Central District Office, 5285 Highway 70 West, Morehead City 28557.

For the first time since Aug. 8, 2023, there are no counties in North Carolina listed in drought status, according to the DMAC. However, all or parts of five counties were still listed as “abnormally dry:” Cherokee, Clay, Dare, Graham and Macon.

Net emissions of greenhouse gases have fallen 38% between 2005 and 2020 in North Carolina, according to the latest update of the state Greenhouse Gas Inventory, released today by the Department of Environmental Quality.The inventory contains detailed estimates of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in key source categories from 1990 to 2020, the most recent year for which historical data are consistently available. This update also projects GHG emissions through 2050 for the first time.Key takeaways in the updated inventory:

The N.C. Division of Coastal Management (DCM) has certified its latest North Carolina Clean Marina, a designation given to marinas that exceed minimum regulatory requirements. Ocean Isle Marina in Brunswick County received certification in January.

Telephone numbers at the Division of Coastal Management (DCM) office in Elizabeth City have changed. The new main number is 252-621-6450.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries recently certified a new state record for White Perch (Morone americana).

The City of Burlington has notified the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Resources of elevated 1,4 dioxane levels discharged into the Haw River from the South Burlington Wastewater Treatment Plant.