MEDIA ADVISORY: Public hearing scheduled for proposed shellfish leases in Hyde County

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries will hold a public hearing on proposed shellfish leases in Hyde County at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 29. The hearing will be held in-person at the Hyde County Government Center, 30 Oyster Creek Road, Swan Quarter and by WebEx.

Ocracoke Salt Company, LLC (Dylan L. Bennink, agent) has applied for a 1.46-acre bottom lease (21-045BL) and water column lease (21-046WC) east of Bluff to Long Shore.

Carraway Oyster Company, LLC (Richard A. Carraway, agent) has applied for a 5.69-acre bottom lease (21-054BL) and water column lease (21-055WC) in Abel Bay.

Ryan Bell has applied for a 0.78-acre bottom lease (22-017BL) and water column lease (22-018WC) north of Caffee Bay.

Mary Ellen Allen has applied for a 2.05-acre bottom lease (22-054BL) and water column lease (22-055WC) in Back Creek.

The public may comment on the above lease applications in person at the hearing or by WebEx. To facilitate online comments, the Division is asking those who wish to speak via WebEx to pre-register at  https://deq.nc.gov/hyde-county-shellfish-lease-hearing-speaker-registra… by 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 28. Those who wish to comment in-person should sign up on-site the night of the hearing.

Public hearing information, including the web conference link, call-in telephone number, presentation slides, and biological investigation reports can be found at https://deq.nc.gov/news/events/hyde-county-shellfish-lease-hearing.

The public may also comment on the proposed shellfish leases in writing. Written comments will be accepted until 5 p.m., Thursday, March 30 and may be submitted two ways:

1. Online Comments – Written comments will be accepted through an online form available at https://deq.nc.gov/hyde-county-shellfish-lease-hearing-comment-form.
2. Mailed Comments – Written comments may be mailed to the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, Shellfish Leases, P.O. Box 769, Morehead City, N.C. 28557.

For more information, contact Marla Chuffo, with the division’s Habitat and Enhancement Section, at 252-808-8048 or Marla.Chuffo@ncdenr.gov.