Press Releases

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality (DAQ) is undertaking an enforcement action against Chemours for exceeding the facility wide GenX annual air emissions limit.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality's Division of Air Quality (DAQ) has issued a first-time Title V permit for the Enviva Pellets Northampton facility located in Northampton County.

State recreational water quality officials today lifted a precautionary advisory warning the public against swimming along the waterfront in Swansboro between the White Oak River Bridge and the Intracoastal Waterway beacon #49. 

Today the North Carolina Senate voted to confirm Governor Roy Cooper’s appointment of Elizabeth S. Biser as Secretary of the Department of Environmental Quality. She is the first woman to be confirmed for the role of DEQ Secretary.

An advisory against swimming was posted today at a sound-side site in Carteret County, where state recreational water quality officials found bacteria levels in the water that exceed the state’s and Environmental Protection Agency’s recreational water quality standards.

The Division of Marine Fisheries will accept flounder for the Carcass Collection and Saltwater Fishing Tournament (Citation) programs during the upcoming recreational fishing season.

The Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources (DEMLR) plans to hold a public hearing on the Hood Creek Soils mining permit application on August 26, 2021. The application for Mining Permit No. 14-14 (Pending) is for a soil and rock mining operation in Caldwell County.

The N.C. Division of Water Resources has honored 64 water treatment plants for surpassing federal and state drinking water standards in 2020.  The division’s Public Water Supply Section awarded the facilities the prestigious N.C. Area Wide Optimization Award, which is part of a state effort to enhance the performance of existing surface water treatment facilities.

State recreational water quality officials today lifted water quality swimming advisories at two sound-side sites in Carteret County.

RALEIGH – The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary’s Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Board will hold its meeting Monday, August 23, remotely via teleconference. The meeting was originally scheduled with an in-person option but has been changed to a remote meeting to minimize the spread of COVID-19.  Members of the public are welcome to participate online or by phone.