Press Releases

With the arrival of the Christmas holiday, the N.C. Division of Coastal Management is providing guidance to property owners, organizations and towns that plan to accept natural Christmas trees for use in dune restoration and/or beach sand fencing.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries is reminding the public to report any cold stunned spotted seatrout they may see in North Carolina coastal waters.

RALEIGH: Governor Roy Cooper has released the following statement on North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Michael Regan's appointment to lead the United States Environmental Protection Agency:

Stricter harvest restrictions will take effect Jan. 1, 2021 for the commercial and recreational striped bass fisheries in the Albemarle Sound Management Area. The reduced harvest is needed to end overfishing on the Albemarle-Roanoke striped bass stock.

The Division of Coastal Management (DCM) invites communities and contractors to apply to participate in Phases 1 and 2 of the N.C. Resilient Coastal Communities Program (RCCP), which aims to equip communities with additional capability to understand and enhance coastal resilience at the local level. DCM is requesting applications from interested municipal and county governments in the 20 coastal CAMA counties, as well as professional services from qualified organizations to provide technical assistance to selected localities.

RALEIGH – State and federal officials together with Multistate Trust representatives will hold two online public meetings regarding the Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp – Navassa Superfund site on Tuesday, December 15. Topics will include remediation progress and plans at each of the site’s operable units (OUs) as well as information on the amended Proposed Plan for OU1.

The blue crab season closures will go into effect Jan. 1-31, 2021 in North Carolina state waters north and east of the Highway 58 bridge and March 1-15, 2021 south and west of the Highway 58 bridge. The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission approved measures to end overfishing and achieve sustainable harvest with the adoption of the Blue Crab Fishery Management Plan Amendment 3 at its February 2020 meeting.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries is requesting input on locations for 2021 oyster cultch planting.

The Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Resources (DWR) will re