Planting Week
It takes a lot of administrative work to get an environmental restoration project approved. It is nice, however, that when the reviews are finally done, we get and put trees in the ground. We were able to close out 2020 doing planting work at…
Water Dashboard
Just in time to monitor the recent extreme rain events, the USGS released it’s national water dashboard. The tool takes advantage of web mapping technology and a nationwide network of stream/river monitoring gauges to provide updated information on waterways Whether you’re planning a canoe…
Filtering the Way
October is here and for many shellfish enthusiasts that means they can begin enjoying local oysters. In addition to their taste, oysters have tremendous ability to clean water through their filter feeding. Oysters pump gallons of water daily through their gills to consume the…
The Chowan Algae Problem
As highlighted last year, the Chowan River has an Algae problem. Excess nutrients provide the key ingredient that, when combined with summer heat help fuel harmful algal blooms. NC Sea Grant program is now funding research into the Chowan and the potential for continued…
Looking Forward
2020 has not started off well. The global Pandemic has sickened and killed many and put a hard stop on the economy. Our environmental continues, however, in modified form. We’re developing plans for our current projects at home and looking forward to when we…
Revenuesheds
Watershed management is essential in the protection of water resources. How about revenuesheds? That’s one of the messages in a report released from UNC’s NC Policy Collaboratory on measures needed to improve water quality Jordan Lake. The revenueshed concept emphasizes that users of the…
Impaired Water Trends
Nutrient related water quality impairm At the November 2019 Environmental Management Commission Meeting, NC DEQ presented their Annual Basinwide Water Management Plan report highlighting threats and efforts to manage our state’s water resources. Regarding nutrients, there were a number of concerning items reported: Nutrient…
Chowan Bloom
As the temperatures cool, the likelihood of algae blooms and associated water quality problems diminishes. Flowing through the sparsely populated northeast North Carolina, the Chowan River needs a break from being plagued by several blooms that raised health alerts from the State this summer….
Northern Exposure
North Carolina is no stranger to algal blooms. Hot summers, runoff from agricultural and urban lands combine with shallow, slow moving estuaries create conditions that cause harmful algal blooms (HABs). While common in our State, its becoming more common in areas to our north….
North River Farms
In 1999, the largest coastal restoration project in NC began with funding from the State’s Clean Water Management Program to purchase nearly 2000 acres of farm land in Carteret County for the purpose of restoring wetlands that were drained to become North River Farms….