Press Releases

MOREHEAD CITY – State recreational water quality officials today advise the public to avoid swimming in ocean and sound-side waters in Dare County affected by hazardous weather conditions.

NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Secretary Reid Wilson joined coastal communities, resilience partners and consultants in New Bern today to celebrate five years of the Resilient Coastal Communities Program (RCCP) and look ahead to the next phase of helping communities turn resilience priorities into action.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Flood Resiliency Blueprint Program (Blueprint) will hold a public information session on Oct. 6 at 6 p.m. to provide information and gather feedback on two draft flood resilience plans: the Cape Fear River Basin Action Strategy and the White Oak River Basin Action Strategy.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Management (DCM) is accepting public review and comment on a request for review of a federal consistency submission for a proposed update to training activities and operations within the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point Range Complex.

On Sept. 16, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service submitted in federal court a proposed consent decree and accompanying draft restoration plan to address damages to the Roanoke River caused by the Weyerhaeuser Plymouth Mill.

Effective Sept. 14, Michael Pjetraj has been named the director of the NC Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) Division of Water Resources (DWR). He replaces Richard Rogers, who retired Aug. 31.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Resources (DWR) will hold a public hearing on Sept. 28, 2026, to accept public comments on the Clean Water Act 401 Water Quality Certification Application for Stamey Farm Road Data Center/Compass Data Center in Iredell County. 

Recordatorio: La División de Recursos Hídricos (DWR) del Departamento de Calidad Ambiental de Carolina del Norte celebrará una audiencia pública el 28 de septiembre de 2026, para recopilar comentarios del público sobre la solicitud de certificación de calidad del agua 401, en virtud de la Ley de Agua Limpia, correspondiente al centro de datos de Stamey Farm Road/Compass Data Center, en el condado de Iredell.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Resources (DWR) will hold a hearing on Oct. 20 as part of a public comment period on a draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit for a new water treatment plant in Emerald Isle. The permit regulates pollutants discharged in the facility’s treated wastewater.

Below-average rainfall, coupled with unseasonably warm temperatures, worsened North Carolina’s year-long drought in some parts of the state, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor report released Thursday.