Drilling for oil and gas off the North Carolina coast was the topic of the Radio Hatteras interview show, “To the Point,” on Sunday, Aug. 16. The guest for the interview was Frank Tursi of the North Carolina Coastal Federation. A former award-winning environmental reporter, Tursi now is the editor of the federation’s online news […]
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Petroleum industry officials have repeatedly dismissed claims that seismic surveying for offshore gas and oil can have ill effects on marine mammals, but coastal scientists say loud man-made noises change animal behavior and more work needs to be done to be sure sensitive species aren’t harmed by seismic survey activity. Offshore seismic surveys are performed […]
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Federal regulators are taking the unusual step of providing a 30-day public review and comment period before acting on applications related to proposed seismic surveys for oil and natural gas off the Atlantic coast. A decision on whether to issue the permits could come by the end of the year. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric […]
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The early morning sky was in a moment of indecision, split in half, unsure of its intentions. To the north, a blue sky was growing the promise of a sunny day, however, to the south, dark clouds still held the outlook of soaking rain showers. I was trailering a boat down to the isolated community […]
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Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., sent some of his people to Manteo a few weeks ago to get a feel for what locals think about the prospect of offshore drilling. In Dare County, they got an earful. Lee Nettles, the executive director of the county’s Visitors’ Bureau, was among the 20 or so local people invited […]
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Stepping out onto my front porch on Ocracoke, I did a double-take. Looking again, I confirmed what I saw. A hummingbird was hovering nearby and perusing my late blooming lantana. It was unusual to see hummers here, even in the summer — and this was late December. Hummingbirds were not supposed to be here in […]
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One of the flashpoints in the debate over developing possible offshore oil and gas centers on seismic surveying, an effective but controversial method used in the search for energy deposits. Three public meetings have been scheduled this month about using “air guns” off the N.C. coast. The first was earlier this week in Wilmington, the […]
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While the ocean is knocking at the front door of some beachfront homes and hotels in North Carolina, the forests across the Albemarle and Pamlico sounds are retreating from the shoreline. They’re being driven back by saltwater. It’s seeping into the soil and surface waters of the coastal plain. What scientists call “saltwater intrusion” has […]
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It was not a pretty sight for David Mickey and Sue Dayton the fall day they came upon a large dark object on the Ocracoke beach. Walking closer, they identified what they had spotted as a dead bottlenose dolphin. Disturbed, they called the Marine Mammal Stranding coordinator for North Carolina’s central coast, Vicky Thayer. She […]
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The benefits of restoring North Carolina’s coastline extend beyond the state’s environment, infusing millions of dollars into local economies, according to a recent report that will be unveiled in Raleigh today. “Coastal Restoration and Community Economic Development in North Carolina,” a study of RTI International, examined the economic effects on local economies of four N.C. […]
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