Press Releases

The state’s environmental education program will expand environmental justice, equity, diversity and inclusion offerings as part of the Department of Environmental Quality’s efforts to address the goals set in Governor Roy Cooper’s Executive Order 143 on addressing racial disparities.  

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

RALEIGH – The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary’s Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Board will hold its meeting Monday, August 24, remotely via teleconference, in place of an in-person meeting. The public is invited to listen to the meeting online or by phone.

The North Carolina Division of Coastal Management (DCM) will host two interactive webinars on the new N.C. Resilient Coastal Communities Program. The webinars are free and will be held on Aug. 18, 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. and Aug. 25, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.

Coastal property owners in Brunswick and New Hanover Counties who need to replace docks, piers, bulkheads or similar structures damaged by Hurricane Isaias along sounds, rivers and creeks may be authorized to do so more quickly through an emergency general permit offered by the N.C. Division of Coastal Management.

State recreational water quality officials are advising the public to avoid swimming in both ocean and sound-side waters in Brunswick County affected by Hurricane Isaias

Due to concerns of potential impacts from Hurricane Isaias, the N.C.

Secretary Michael S. Regan statement on the permitting process :

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission is accepting public comment on proposed amendments and re-adoption of seven rules under a state-mandated periodic review schedule

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality (DAQ) has issued an air permit for Active Energy Renewable Power, a wood pellet facility in Robeson County, which includes added requirements to address concerns of people in the community.