The final agenda is available online at http://www.ncbiwa.org/NCCLG13Agenda.pdf

Copies of most of the presentations are in a directory here: http://www.ncbiwa.org/NagsHead13

For more info, write ncbiwa@ncbiwa.org

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NCBIWA 2012, the annual conference of North Carolina Beach, Inlet & Waterway Association is set for Monday & Tuesday, November 19 & 20 at the Blockade Runner Beach Resort on the oceanfront in Wrightsville Beach. We’re just 2 weeks away. Conference topics are below.

Registration form is here: http://www.ncbiwa.org/12NCBIWARegister.pdf

Sponsorship options are here: http://ncbiwa.org/NCBIWA2012SponsorOpps.pdf

Attendees include beach managers; local, state and federal officials from NC and surrounding states; consultants; dredgers; lawyers; academicians; regulators; developers and realtors; environmentalists; skeptics; believers and all sorts of folks in between.

NCBIWA 2012 Conference Topics include:

· Finding Funding for Water Resources Projects

· Ocean Radar Measurements in the Coastal Ocean

· Is SLR the big concern along the ocean coast?

· Lawsuits impacting the coast

· Coastal Insurance: Wind & Hail and NFIP

· Community Rating System (CRS) primer: Saving Money on Flood Insurance

· Meet the Coastal Resources Commission’s Science Panel

· What does H819 say and mean for sea-level rise policy and science in NC?

· Inlet Management and Beach Effects

· Terminal Groins Update

· Hotspot of accelerated sea-level Rise on the Atlantic Coast of North America

· Yesterday - Lock and Dam; Today - Rocks and Fish

· What is the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management?

· Funding Options for the Dredging and Maintenance of the State’s Coastal Inlets from Fees Charged to Those Who Make Use of the Inlets

· and much, much more!

Write conference@ncbiwa.org for more info or assistance.

 Select Conference Topics:

Applied Terminal Groins

Inlet & Waterway Dredging Options

The Future of Wind Energy

Wind Insurance And Wind Credits: How to qualify

Northern Outer Banks Success Stories

The Outer Banks & NC 12

Oregon Inlet

Corps of Engineers Research & Development

Practical Approaches to Climate Change / Sea Level Rise

Funding for Coastal Projects in “The New Normal”

Property Rights Update 

Draft Agenda is here: http://ncbiwa.org/DrftAgnd2011.pdf

Registration form and hotel info can be downloaded here: http://www.ncbiwa.org/11NCBIWARegister.pdf

Networking opportunities will be many!

NC Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores

Beginning Monday at 10:00AM, through Tuesday at 4:00PM

Program Schedule: http://www.ncbiwa.org/2011ProgramSchedule.pdf

Registration Form Online: http://www.ncbiwa.org/11LocGovtRegister.pdf

Included in this year’s event will be a Legislative Roundtable with General Assembly members, talks on new and proposed regulations, wind energy, project funding, changes in Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway rules and much more

The conference program is coming together rapidly
and will include presentations and discussions on:

• NEW Coastal Inlet Hazard Areas: What Are The Impacts?
• Offshore Wind Energy: The Real Deal
• Beach & Inlet Management Plan: Where Are We?
• Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway,  Past/Present/Future
• National Flood Insurance Program: How To Make It Work
• The Nags Head / Dare County Project: Federal Project to Local Project
• Oregon Inlet & The Bonner Bridge: What Next?
• Coastal Insurance and NC Rate Bureau Building Incentives
• Marine Spatial Planning: What Does That Mean For You?
• State & Federal Policy Changes and Management Initiatives
• Along with TONS of Networking Opportunities, Updates & More!

 
The Conference Advance Registration Form is available online at:  http://www.ncbiwa.org/10NCBIWARegister.pdf
You may return it by mail or toll-free fax.  Check, Visa and Mastercard accepted.

Sponsorship options: http://www.ncbiwa.org/NCBIWA2010SponsorOpps.pdf

To continue our efforts as “The One Effective Voice for the North Carolina Coast,” we need your continued and direct involvement.  See you in November!

This year’s sponsors can be found at this link.

Program can be found at this link.

We look forward to seeing you next year at NCBIWA 2010.

Harry Simmons
Executive Director, NCBIWA
910-200-7867

Thanks to all those who attended and to our presenters, Tom Jarrett of Coastal Planning & Engineering, Rudi Rudolph of Carteret County Shore Protection Office and Spencer Rogers of NC Sea Grant.  Reminder that deadline for comments is July 6, 2009.

Meeting agenda at this link: http://www.ncbiwa.org/09LocGovtMtgAgenda.pdf

Presentations are online here: http://www.ncbiwa.org/powerpoints0309/

Sponsorship info can be found at http://www.ncbiwa.org/09LocGovtSponsInfo.pdf

Networking opportunities will be many.  The meeting will begin at 10:00AM on Monday and be over by 4:30PM on Tuesday.

We look forward to seeing all those involved with and interested in local government issues.

For more info, email meeting@ncbiwa.org or call Harry Simmons at 910-200-7867.

Time For Change

Editorial - By Mayor Debbie Smith, Chair, NCBIWA

The use of terminal groins to protect the ever-changing ends of our islands has been much debated this past year.  North Carolina has prohibited the use of hardened structures along the ocean shore and inlets for years. Prohibition of hardened structures along the North Carolina coast should not be changed, but inlets create special situations and require special tools, such as terminal groins. It is time for change!

In 2007 the NC Senate overwhelmingly supported (41-8) a bill to allow for the use of terminal groins in NC. In the NC House, the bill was held in committee and never allowed to go to the full House for a vote. Because the bill never emerged from the committee the bill died at the end of the 2008 short session. To cause a change to the law prohibiting terminal groins, a new bill will have to be introduced in 2009.

At present the only shoreline protection measures allowed in North Carolina are beach nourishment, temporary sandbag structures or inlet realignment. Beach nourishment is extremely successful in restoring our beaches but does not stay in place at inlet areas without some structure such as a terminal groin. Sandbags are temporary structures. The Coastal Resources Commission is mandating all sandbags be removed that have outlived their permitted time frames (usually 2-5 years). Inlet realignment is expensive, requires constant maintenance and the results are not as predictable as a terminal groin.

Terminal groins are a proven protective tool without negative environmental impact. Terminal groins are widely used in almost all coastal states as an erosion control measure. There are presently two successful terminal groins in the state of North Carolina. One has protected historic Fort Macon in Carteret County since the mid 1960s. The other protects Pea Island at the base of the Bonner Bridge and was constructed in 1989-1991. Both have functioned as designed and provided protection to these structures.

A terminal groin is not the answer for all inlets, but properly engineered and constructed it can offer the needed erosion protection for a number of NC inlets.

Many environmentalists oppose the use of terminal groins, offering retreat or relocation as the preferred option.

This may have been an economically viable option decades ago but with the present value of coastal land and often limited availability of vacant lots it is not always feasible today. It is not always just a matter of economics; there is an emotional factor in unnecessarily losing a home on the coast that you have enjoyed for many years. It is not just private property that is lost. It is public property, public access and infrastructure that are endangered as well. Decades ago there were not as many roads, public sewers or water systems in place on our islands as there are today. Visit any barrier island and you will see that the ends of the islands are some of the most popular spots for visitors and vacationers. They offer unique opportunities for exploring, fishing, and shelling.

Terminal groins are not large unsightly structures. It is generally a low structure that is built perpendicular to the end of an island, adjacent to the inlet. It traps sand on the ocean beach before it reaches the inlet. Though not designed as a navigation aid, it could benefit the flushing action of our inlets and improve the tidal marshes and nurseries in our backwaters.

It would allow for more public beach for recreational use and wildlife habitat and nesting areas, while protecting the ocean shoreline.

Let us not bury our heads in the sand when it comes to erosion protection. Scientists must develop and communities must implement erosion mitigation strategies that are both effective and affordable. Terminal groins coupled with beach nourishment will provide an integrated approach that should be the foundation of coastal shoreline management.

Increased knowledge of shoreline processes and proven engineered solutions call for new and different protective measures.

IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE!