Press Releases

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries recently established a new state record for Cubera Snapper (Lutjanus cyanopterus). David Ashman of Mohnton, Penn., caught the 85-pound fish on July 31 off of Hatteras. Ashman replaced the existing state record Cubera Snapper that weighed 58 pounds, 8 ounces, landed by Thomas Madsen in 2022.

Visitors to the Raleigh Regional Office of the NC Department of Environmental Quality will need to go to a new address beginning next week, as part of a larger series of changes to the department’s facilities.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries is reminding people to please report any sightings of Blue Land Crabs, Cardisoma guanhumi.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries will collect flounder carcasses from recreational fishermen during the 2026 season, held Sept. 1-14 in joint and coastal waters. The carcasses will be used for research purposes.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission received a presentation on the draft Coastal Habitat Protection Plan 2026 Amendment, one of several agenda items during the board’s regular quarterly business meeting in Raleigh this week.

Spotty rains across North Carolina during the past week brought relief from the year-long drought to some areas, but others saw little to no improvement. Parts of the state remain in severe or extreme​ drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor report released on Thursday. Because many reservoir​ and groundwater levels are still below normal in these areas, the public is encouraged to conserve water.  

MOREHEAD CITY – State recreational water quality officials today lifted a water quality swimming advisory at a sound-side site in Dare County.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) Flood Resiliency Blueprint program released the Lumber River Basin Action Strategy (RBAS), a comprehensive framework designed to guide long-term flood resilience planning and decision-making across the basin. Developed with local input and informed by existing flood planning efforts and vulnerability assessments, the strategy identifies 17 prioritized actions to help Lumber communities reduce flood risk and strengthen resilience. 

MOREHEAD CITY – State recreational water quality officials today lifted a water quality swimming advisory at a sound-side site in New Hanover County.

MOREHEAD CITY – State recreational water quality officials today lifted a water quality swimming advisory at a sound-side site in Dare County.