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South East
North Carolina
(+) Developing a Management Strategy for North Carolina's Coastal Ocean: Draft Report, prepared by the N.C. Coastal Resources Law, Planning and Policy Center through contracts with the Division of Coastal Management and the N.C. Sea Grant College Program, discusses five emerging ocean resource issues: sand resource management, ocean-based alternative energy development, ocean outfalls, marine aquaculture, and comprehensive ocean management.
(+) In February 2009 the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission and its advisory board unanimously passed a resolution asking the General Assembly to consider creating a state trust fund to help finance coastal infrastructure projects, including removal of structures encroaching onto public beach areas, beach fill, inlet channel realignment, beach access and dredging projects.
(+) Under new rules adopted by the Environmental Management Commission in January 2008, developers in 20 coastal counties will have to create wider vegetative buffers along waterways, expanding them from the current 30 feet to 50 feet for new projects. Developments that alter more than a quarter acre of land, up from the current one-acre threshold, will have to use cisterns or permeable pavement or other devices to keep stormwater from washing off the land.
(+) In 2007 the NC General Assembly appropriated $20 million for waterfront access projects in an effort to reduce the loss of public access to coastal waterways due to private development.
(+) NCAC 7H .0312, Technical Standards for Beach Fill Projects, which outlines new sediment criteria rules for beach nourishment projects, went into effect Feb. 1, 2007. It is the most comprehensive set of rules regarding beach nourishment for any coastal state.
(+) The state divisions of Coastal Management and Water Resources are developing the state’s first comprehensive Beach and Inlet Management Plan, or BIMP.
(+) Under the Coastal Area Management Act, each of the state's 20 coastal counties must submit plans to the state that show how they intend to grow and develop, while protecting the coastline and its natural resources. Many coastal cities and towns opt to submit plans of their own.
(+) North Carolina’s coastal setbacks are based on local average coastal erosion rates. The average coastal erosion rate is multiplied by 30 or 60 depending on the size of the building to be built.
(+) NCDCM staff estimates that although only 40% of coastal lands are publicly owned, about 95% of the beaches are publicly accessible. They indicate that there are coastal access points about every one-half mile in urban areas and every two miles in rural areas.
(+) The Coastal Resources Commission ban on seawalls was incorporated into law. The NC Coastal Area Management Act was amended to permanently ban these structures.
(+) In 2007, NCDCM enhanced public access to public beaches and coastal waters through $2.9 million in grants for 23 projects in 19 local communities for public access projects. The grants help pay for a variety of projects to improve access to coastal beaches and waters, including walkways, dune crossovers, restrooms, parking areas and piers.
(-) N.C. Senate Bill 832 is a serious threat to North Carolina's long-standing ban against hardened structures along the shore. The current bill rewrites G.S. 113A-115.1 and adds three important definitions that will open the door for "terminal groins" all along the beaches of North Carolina.
(-) Gov. Beverly Perdue transferred $100 million from the Clean Water Management Fund to the state general fund in February 2009. That could leave some land-acquisition, wastewater improvement and stream restoration projects in the lurch. Some 192 water and sewer projects, many of them already under construction, were halted across the state in the wake of Gov. Perdue’s decision.
(-) Approximately 441,448 acres of the state’s coastal waters are closed to the harvest of shellfish due to high bacteria levels or adjacent potential pollution sources. Approximately 43,188 additional acres are classified as Conditionally Approved and are temporarily closed after periods of heavy rainfall. The percentage of Hewlett’s Creek closed to shellfishing has increased from 54 percent in 1988 to 100 percent today. Pages Creek showed a similar increase, rising from 66 percent to 89 percent closed.
(-) Nutrient pollution of rivers and estuaries from large-scale hog operations is still a serious problem.
(-) The state Division of Water Quality has stated that it has logged more than 500 wastewater releases in New Hanover County since 1997.
South Carolina
(+) South Carolina's Beach Management Act calls for a gradual retreat of new development from the coast. However, building pressures continue from Cherry Grove to Hilton Head Island.
(+) The Town of Hilton Head has a general policy of discouraging development on any of its beachfront across the entire island. It passed an ordinance blocking any further construction along South Forest Beach. They are opposing state proposals to shift the beachfront baseline seaward in areas where beach renourishment projects have been conducted.
(+) South Carolina’s coastal setbacks are based on local average coastal erosion rates. The average coastal erosion rate is multiplied by 40 with a minimum setback distance of 20 feet.
(+) Since 2000, North Myrtle Beach has spent $13 million for 4 stormwater ocean outfalls, and they plan to spend $30 to $40 million for six more over the next 20 years. The city has also re-routed drainage away from the ocean as part of road improvement projects and has been incorporating "smart growth" principles by encouraging clustering of development, larger open spaces and buffers to minimize runoff.
(+) The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control was awarded a $3.1 million non-point source pollution grant from U.S. EPA. Projects will include water quality monitoring, outreach and education, and the creation and revision of agricultural waste permits. There will also be $2.1 million in state and local matching funds for these projects.
(+) The South Carolina Code of Laws includes provisions requiring communities to prepare comprehensive beach management plans. These plans include an inventory of public beach access sites and associated parking, as well as a plan for enhancing public access and parking.
(+) Following passage of the 1988 Beachfront Management Act, the Coastal Council established a beach monitoring program that measures beach profiles twice a year at approximately 400 locations along the coast.
(+) South Carolina is receiving three grants from NOAA totaling $4.5 million to continue implementation of the state's coastal zone management program; for a Land Use-Coastal Ecosystem Study; and to measure the impacts of urbanization on coastal estuaries.
(-) Despite a state policy of “retreat” — or moving back new construction from the beach — DHEC regulators have loosened development rules for hundreds of seaside lots since 1988.
(-) There is no state requirement that sewage treatment plant operators notify the public when there’s a spill.
(-) After a large beach fill project at North Myrtle Beach in the late 1990s, state regulators moved setback lines seaward by 50 to 100 feet in the center of Cherry Grove. This allowed the construction of four oceanfront condominium towers on a low-lying, flood-prone shoreline. Despite the threat of hurricanes and rising costs to taxpayers, state regulators in April 2008 decided against toughening rules that allow high-rise condominiums in the Cherry Grove community.
(-) The Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management has maintained that groins are not prohibited by state laws regulating the use of erosion-control structures on the beach. Also, state legislators changed the law in 2002 to make it easier to get groin-construction permits.
Georgia
(+) The Georgia Department of Natural Resources has proposed rules that give its Coastal Marshlands Protection Committee the authority to enforce water management, limitations on impervious surfaces and increased buffer restrictions for certain developments along the coast.
(+) Georgia's Green Growth Guidelines help local governments, developers, engineers and land planners, landscape architects and natural resource managers compare the environmental, social and economic benefits of using sustainable development strategies with conventional development approaches.
(+) Tybee Island received a "Water First" award from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Tybee has a city ordinance that requires pervious pavement on driveways to reduce storm water runoff. Tybee also has worked with the city's hotels to voluntarily reduce water usage and their tiered water rate system promotes conservation.
(+) Coastal Georgia is home to about one-third of the viable salt marsh left on the Atlantic coast and where the public owns 10 of the 18 major islands.
(+) The Coastal Resources Division contributes approximately 60% of Georgia’s CZMA allocation as “Coastal Incentive Grants” to allow regional and local coastal issues to be defined and addressed at the grass-roots level.
(+) Unlike many other areas of the East Coast, approximately two-thirds of Georgia's islands are parks, refuges, or preserves.
(+) All of the beaches in Georgia belong to the citizens of Georgia and are open to the public to the ordinary high water mark.
(+) It is a goal of the Coastal Management Program to “Develop and institute a comprehensive erosion policy that identifies critical erosion areas, evaluates the long-term costs and benefits of erosion control techniques, seeks to minimize the effects on natural systems (both biological and physical), and avoids damage to life and property.”
(-) Georgia does not enforce coastal setbacks along the shoreline.
(-) Very little erosion data, beach fill project information or shoreline structure inventory are accessible on the DNR Web site.
(-) Oconee County has not implemented its state-required stormwater improvement plan (completed in August 2004) because they don't have ordinances to restrict residents from dumping dirt, yard debris, and chemical pollutants into storm drains.
Florida
(+) Governor Charlie Crist signed bill CS/CS/HB 1423 to create the Florida Coral Reef Protection Act, which clearly defines the authority for the protection of corals and penalties for boat anchoring and grounding damage to the reefs of Palm Beach, Martin, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties.
(+) In October 2008, Sarasota County Commissioners approved a virtual ban on building sea walls and generally made it tougher to build or reconstruct along the Gulf of Mexico.
(+) In June 2007, Governor Crist approved an expanded definition of beach access.
(+) The Florida Coastal and Ocean Coalition, which includes Surfrider Foundation, authored a report Florida’s Coastal and Ocean Future, A Blueprint for Economic and Environmental Leadership in September 2006 that has now been endorsed by 160 Coastal and Ocean Businesses, Civic, Outdoor, and Conservation Organizations. The Coalition followed this with the release of Preparing for a Sea Change - A Strategy to Cope with the Impacts of Global Warming on the State’s Coastal and Marine Systems, which calls upon state leaders to take the necessary steps to address the expected impacts of global warming on the state’s unique coastal and marine resources.
(+) An Ocean Outfall Study report was prepared in 2006 that identifies the six existing ocean sewage outfalls in Florida and evaluates options for elimination of these outfalls. The Delray Beach outfall was closed in early April 2009.
(+) The Florida Legislature has approved a bill to require that buyers of coastal property be given "meaningful disclosure" about the dangers of living in the potential path of killer hurricanes.
(+) Florida’s Beach and Shore Preservation Act defines a statewide setback of 50 feet from the line of mean high water.
(+) Beach tourism contributes about $15 billion a year to Florida's economy.
(-) In January 2009 an article in the Miami Herald reported that the Florida Senate was considering halting the Florida Forever program to stave off more pressing budget cuts. The proposal would stop the state from issuing the remaining $250 million of $300 million worth of bonds that are issued each year to buy conservation land across the state. Although the move would save about $20 million in debt and interest payments each year, it would suspend a program to protect wild areas from development that has long been considered a national model.
(-) A Senate committee killed a bill that would have prevented day-cruise gambling ships from dumping sewage in the waters off Florida's coasts.
(-) In 2005, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pumped $156 million of sand onto Florida beaches to replace what was washed away by rising sea levels and more intense storms, 20 percent more than the accumulated spending of the seven previous years combined. In nearly the same period, the federal EPA spent less than $300,000 to map how sea-level rise will affect coastal communities in Florida.
(-) If a beach monitoring sample exceeds the standard, an advisory or warning is not issued until a follow-up sample also exceeds the standard. In some cases, the follow-up sample is taken the same day, but in other cases it may take up to a week before the results of the follow-up sample are known. In the interim, no advisory or warning is issued.
(-) There is only about one public access site for about every 5 miles of shoreline. This corresponds to roughly one access for every 10,000 residents. This doesn't include tourists!
(-) 67% of the beaches in Florida are privately owned.
(-) As much as 80% of the erosion on Florida's East Coast is attributable to the navigation improvements and historical sediment management practices at inlets, which have disrupted the natural flow of sand, virtually starving downdrift beaches.
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