February 20,  2009

Outer Banks residents will have an opportunity to weigh in on a draft North Carolina ocean policy report on Tuesday, March 10, at the Nags Head Beach Fire Station.

The report recommends management strategies to address five emerging ocean resource issues – sand resource management, ocean-based alternative energy development, ocean outfalls, marine aquaculture, and comprehensive ocean management.

Developed over the past year by the Ocean Policy Steering Committee, a 13-member committee from federal and state agencies, universities, and the private sector, the report is the first broadly inclusive state ocean policy report since 1994. 

Lisa Schiavinato and Joseph Kalo of the North Carolina Coastal Resources Law, Planning and Policy Center co-chaired the committee. North Carolina Sea Grant and the state Division of Coastal Management funded the project. 

The draft report presses the state to develop general policies and guidelines for dealing with sea level rise and shoreline erosion. 

In the event of escalating sea level rise or major storms, a “worst-case-scenario” planning document would assist the state in identifying areas and infrastructure that would no longer be supported with public funds. 

A coastal vulnerability index would be used in establishing beach nourishment priority areas and a process for allocating state-owned sand would replace the current “first come, first served” system.

Legislation requiring disclosure of natural hazards to potential coastal land buyers is also supported.

The report recommends development of a comprehensive statute that addresses easements and leases of coastal waters and state-owned submerged lands for alternative energy projects, such as wind, wave, current, and tidal energies.  

The environmental impacts, as well as the impact on fishing, boating, and shipping, of turbines, transmission cables, and other equipment, would be examined.

The report recommends no new or expanded ocean outfalls and the phase-out of existing stormwater and wastewater ocean outfalls.

A technical assessment of whether marine aquaculture in coastal and ocean waters is feasible is also recommended.

Mapping of coastal ocean resources for potential use in development of a comprehensive ocean management plan is supported.

The March 10 meeting at the Nags Head Beach Fire Station will run from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.  Other hearings will be held in Pine Knoll Shores, Wilmington, and Raleigh.

A final ocean policy report will be submitted in May to the Coastal Resources Commission.

The draft report can be downloaded at the Division of Coastal Management website, http://dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/News/2009%20releases/opsc%20meetings.html, or the Coastal Resources Law, Planning and Policy Center website, http://www.nccoastallaw.org/oceanpolicy.htm. 

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