Contact: Patricia Smith
(252) 726-7021
Date: May 27, 2010

CHPP MEETINGS TO BE HELD IN JUNE

MOREHEAD CITY-The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources will be holding a series of meetings to receive public comment on draft revisions to North Carolina’s 2010 Coastal Habitat Protection Plan (CHPP).

The CHPP is a long-term strategy to protect and enhance habitats supporting coastal fisheries, which was mandated by the 1997 Fisheries Reform Act. The four commissions - Environmental Management, Coastal Resources, Marine Fisheries and Wildlife Resources – are required to cooperate in developing and implementing rules and regulations impacting coastal habitats. Every five years the CHPP must be reviewed and updated to accommodate new issues and needs.

The draft plan can be found at http://www.onencnaturally.org/pages/CHPP_2010_Revision.html . Proposed updates to the plan include information on sea level rise/climate change, invasive species, point sources, endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), mapping, threats and management needs.

All meetings will begin at 7 p.m. at the following locations:

June 17 - Manteo Library, 700 N. Highway 64/264, Manteo

June 14 - NCDENR Regional Field Office, 127 Cardinal Drive Extension, Wilmington

June 8 - N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries Central District Office, 5285 Highway 70 West, Morehead City

For more information, contact Plan Coordinator Jimmy Johnson at 252-948-3952 or [email protected] or Anne Deaton, with the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, at 910-796-7215 or [email protected].