Tag Archives: Department of Environment and Natural Resources

Controversial proposal for managing the southern flounder fishery is on hold

A controversial proposal for managing the southern flounder fishery is on hold after apparent legislative concern over the process being used to potentially implement changes to the existing plan. The item was pulled from the agenda of last week’s meeting of the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission after the commission received a letter from Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Donald Van der Vaart in reference to a letter he had received from several legislators asking that he rescind the commission’s authority to adopt a supplement to the state’s Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan. Read the rest here 08:00

Oil Thirsty N.C. Division of Coastal Management approves seismic surveys off the coast

Seismic surveys are used to search for oil and natural gas deposits for offshore drilling. The state Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the department that contains the DCM, held a public hearing in April at the Crystal Coast Civic Center on all four companies’ proposals. Most of the 19 speakers at the hearing were opposed to the surveys. These speakers – which included environmentalists, marine scientists and coastal residents,,, Read the rest here 16:24