Public urged to weigh in on Jockey’s Ridge protections

NAGS HEAD — The public has until Feb. 22 to comment on temporary rules proposed by the Coastal Resources Commission, one of which maintains the state designation of Jockey’s Ridge State Park as an area of environmental concern and restricts development for that reason.

A Jan. 25 news release announced the extension of the public comment period from its original Feb. 1 deadline to Feb. 22.

The Coastal Resources Commission regulates development in 20 coastal counties. It saw 30 of its rules struck from state administrative code in early October following a state budget provision that allowed the Rules Review Commission to return the rules, resulting in their elimination.

The Coastal Resources Commission in December adopted emergency rules to address 16 of those it considers critical to its work. Following public comment, it plans to adopt temporary rules that are essentially continuations of the emergency rules.

Both the rule designating Jockey’s Ridge as an AEC and another designating Permuda Island in Onslow County as “a significant coastal archaeological resource” AEC are included in the 16 critical rules.

The others are not as site-specific and cover topics including coastal energy development, permitting authority, processing Coastal Area Management Act permits, standards for work plats and more.

CAMA functions as a “clearinghouse on permits,” Coastal Resources Commission Chair Renée Cahoon explained in an email. “CAMA collects all comments, and it is an interactive process with excellent communication and simplified permitting.”

This saves time and streamlines the process into one document for applicants, who would otherwise need to apply to multiple agencies for permits, Cahoon said.

The commission held public hearings on the temporary rules in early January in Dare and Onslow counties — as each has sites directly affected by the rules — and in Morehead City, where the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management is based.

The commission meets Feb. 21-22 in Wilmington. Its next listed meeting is April 24-25 in Manteo.

Because the public comment period now extends through this month’s meeting dates, Cahoon said the commission will likely not take action then on the proposed temporary rules.

The emergency rules expire April 1, according to Cahoon. She said the commission will probably meet before then, “even if it’s by phone.”

In an interview following the Jan. 9 public hearing in Manteo, Cahoon opined that all the rules need to be readopted.

She has served on the commission for over 20 years, with more than a decade as its chair.

“This is uncharted waters regarding AEC designations,” she said in a Jan. 31 follow-up email. “This process of eliminating the rules was a surprise as CRC and RRC were still communicating trying to find common ground.”

The Town of Nags Head, in which Jockey’s Ridge State Park is situated, has strongly encouraged people to submit comments.

A Jan. 10 post, featured at the top of the town’s Facebook page, calls the situation “urgent” and says: “We need your help protecting a crucial land management tool that affects our beloved town’s character and identity.”

“It looks like we are getting people to write, so that’s good,” Nags Head Mayor Ben Cahoon said Monday.

He added that he did an interview with WRAL, a Raleigh-based TV station, which he hopes airs before the deadline for comments.

The nonprofit Friends of Jockey’s Ridge State Park has also publicized its concern.

“The AEC designation acknowledges Jockey’s Ridge as a unique coastal geologic formation and places it under environmental protection,” a Jan. 26 press release said. “It is a critical piece to the preservation of the landmark from possible development, as well as maintaining migrating sand off property be replenished to the dune. Removing this designation could be detrimental to this local landmark visited by over 1 million visitors each year.”

The news release noted that the Friends’ board chair, Craig Honeycutt, wrote a letter to the Coastal Resources Commission and encouraged members of the public to write, too.

“The recent decision by the Rules Review Commission to potentially remove this crucial designation poses a significant threat to the environmental integrity and long-term well-being of this unique coastal geologic formation,” Honeycutt wrote in the letter.

Of the area’s state legislators, only Rep. Ed Goodwin (R-Chowan) responded to inquiries this week about any thoughts, concerns, action or plan for action they might have related to the situation.

“I haven’t heard much discussion right now because we’re not in session,” Goodwin said over the phone. While he hadn’t “heard enough about it” to comment, he acknowledged that he knew many people were “complaining about it.”

People can submit comments by emailing Angela.Willis@deq.nc.gov or by mailing a letter to: Tancred Miller, Director, Division of Coastal Management, 400 Commerce Avenue, Morehead City, NC 28557. “Temporary Rules” should be the subject line.