THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 12, 1994 TAG: 9408120610
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY BETTY MITCHELL GRAY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WASHINGTON, N.C. LENGTH: Long : 148 lines
After about nine months of study, the state Coastal Futures Committee on Thursday approved its latest version of a plan for protecting the waterfront.
The committee made changes in some of its approximately 200 recommendations, particularly in its sections concerning coastal growth and land-use planning, in response to comments made at public hearings last month in Beaufort.
But most of the recommendations that appeared in a draft report are still there.
``The language is a little gentler throughout the document,'' said Jo Ann Burkholder, botany professor at North Carolina State University. ``But most of what we had suggested originally survived intact.''
Much of the discussion Thursday centered on the committee's recommendations concerning mining operations in the coastal area.
The committee approved recommendations to ensure that coastal resources are protected throughout the life of the mining operation and through reclamation after a mine is closed.
The committee rejected a proposal calling for the Coastal Resources Commission and other groups to consider requirements for long-term mining operations to be bonded against the costs of repairing any damage to the environment. And it rejected a proposal calling for the General Assembly to reconsider a minerals tax on mining operations.
The report still maintains that the key to protecting the coast lies with urging local governments to improve planning for land and water use and requiring governments to follow through with those plans.
The committee, however, softened its requirements that land use plans in the 20 coastal counties covered by the Coastal Area Management Act include zoning and subdivision ordinances. The plan now requires ``necessary land use ordinances.''
And it strengthened its requests for state funds to help local governments implement programs required in the document.
Under current CAMA regulations, each county is required to create a detailed growth plan - which must be updated every five years and approved by the Coastal Resources Commission - that analyzes local economic and environmental issues. Besides the 20 coastal counties, more than 60 municipalities have voluntarily developed land-use plans.
But under current law, local governments are not required to follow the plans they develop.
The committee's proposals also still include requirements that local land-use plans include detailed sewage treatment plans and projections for future needs and that local land-use plans be coordinated with drinking water plans to create a comprehensive strategy for dealing with local growth.
And the committee still proposes tying eligibility for some state and federal grants to a local government's development of an implementation program for their land-use plans.
The 15-member panel was created last year by Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. to study the successes and failures of the Coastal Area Management Act, adopted by the General Assembly 20 years ago.
No cost estimates for implementing the proposals have been prepared and many recommendations by the panel require additional action by the state legislature, the Coastal Resources Commission or other regulatory panels.
Once the plan reaches the General Assembly, it will likely face the close scrutiny of legislators. Some committee members and state officials said the next step will be to work to ensure that the plan is implemented. ILLUSTRATION: WHAT'S NEXT
The Coastal Futures Committee is scheduled to present its
completed report to Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. Sept. 7 as part of a
national meeting on coastal issues Sept. 7 to 9 in Wilmington. For a
copy of the recommendations or a schedule of meeting events, contact
the committee at 1-800-232-6210.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS
The recommendations approved by the Coastal Futures Committee
involve seven areas: Land-use growth management, coastal water
quality, protection of natural areas, the Coastal Area Management
Act regulatory program, environmental education and the coastal
economy. Here's a look at some of the nearly 200 recommendations
included in the committee's 84-page report:
Require local land-use plans to consider the cumulative and
secondary effects of growth. Requires Coastal Resources Commission
action.
Require land-use plans to contain an implementation package that
includes ``necessary land-use ordinances.'' Requests substantial
state financial help to local governments for implementing this
recommendation. Requires General Assembly action.
Tie eligibility for state and federal grants to adoption by the
local government of a land-use plan and implementation program that
complies with the Coastal Resources Commission's minimum standards.
Give special help to those local governments affected by the
development of the Global Transpark and to the expansion of military
bases to plan for increased serves generated by the developments.
Require a disclosure of known coastal hazards and regulatory
requirements to all buyers of oceanfront property. Requires General
Assembly action.
Improve the state's beach and coastal waters access plan and
develop a funding plan to improve public access. Requires Coastal
Resources Commission action and funding by the General Assembly.
Identify and establish an additional coastal reserve site in the
Albemarle-Pamlico region in cooperation with the Partnership for the
Sounds program and national wildlife refuges in the area. Requires
funding and action by the General Assembly and federal agencies.
Provide additional incentives for land donations to the public by
owners of coastal wetlands and other natural areas. Requires action
by the General Assembly.
Appoint one member of the Coastal Resources Commission with
expertise in ocean resource management. Requires action by the
General Assembly.
Develop a comprehensive marina policy that would include design,
siting and operation and maintenance procedures.
Develop a comprehensive policy concerning ocean outfalls for
wastewater disposal.
Increase water quality monitoring by the Division of
Environmental Management in targeted watersheds to evaluate the
effectiveness of agricultural best management practices.
Improve Department of Transportation management of stormwater
runoff from road construction sites.
Expand efforts to develop a comprehensive state ocean management
plan.
Expand funding for protection and acquisition of natural areas.
Requires funding by the General Assembly.
Develop a policy and regulations discouraging the use of hard
stabilization structures on estuarine shorelines. Requires Coastal
Resources Commission action.
Establish special designations similar to those used for primary
and secondary nursery areas for submerged aquatic vegetation,
shellfish beds, fish spawning grounds and habitat for aquatic
endangered and threatened species. Requires action by the Marine
Fisheries Commission and the Wildlife Resources Commission.
Accelerate current efforts to acquire remaining tracts of
maritime forest.
Develop a long-range transportation plan for the Outer Banks and
other barrier islands.
Develop additional standards for inlet hazard areas, including
restrictions on development in areas of inlet migration. Requires
Coastal Recources Commission action.
Source: Coastal Futures Committee
KEYWORDS: COASTAL FUTURES COMMITTEE
COASTAL MANAGEMENT ACT
COASTAL RESOURCES COMMISSION
by CNB