Press Releases

Sixty-nine Marine Fisheries Commission rules go into effect today, including rules pertaining to marking requirements for commercial pots and trotlines; license and permit suspensions and revocations; shellfish and crustacea management and processing; recordkeeping requirements and tournament licenses; and importation permits. The rules were amended and/or readopted under a state mandated periodic review schedule.

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed National Primary Drinking Water Regulation to establish legally enforceable levels for six PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known to occur in drinking water. The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality has been working with public water systems to prepare for the proposed regulation and assess PFAS levels in drinking water systems across the state. 

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources (DEMLR) has issued a permit for the Timbermill Wind, LLC, proposal to construct, operate and decommission an onshore wind energy facility generating as many as 189 megawatts in Chowan County.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries will hold a public hearing on proposed shellfish leases in Dare County at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 12. The hearing will be held in-person at the Dare County Government Center, Commissioner Boardroom, 954 Marshall C. Collins Drive, Manteo and by WebEx.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries announced today that the spring 2023 recreational striped bass season in the Albemarle Sound Management Area will close at 11:59 P.M., Sunday Mar. 12, 2023. Preliminary estimates of recreational striped bass harvest indicate the spring harvest allocation for these waters has been met.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Infrastructure is accepting public comment until April 7, 2023 on the draft Intended Use Plan for federal Lead Service Line Replacement funding.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s State Energy Office will hold a public hearing Friday, March 17 to receive public input on its proposed grant application to the U.S. Department of Energy for the Preventing Outages and Enhancing the Resilience of the Electric Grid program created under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).