Biden-Harris Administration recommends funding of $20.9 million for projects in North Carolina to strengthen Climate-Ready Coasts as part of Investing in America agenda

Today, Vice President Harris announced that the Department of Commerce has recommended $20.9 million for projects across North Carolina to make communities and the economy more resilient to climate change, as part of the Investing in America agenda. Across North Carolina, five projects will create jobs and boost economic and environmental outcomes for coastal communities. The awards are made under the Biden Administration’s Climate-Ready Coasts initiative funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) with additional funds leveraged from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). 

“Coastal North Carolina is a vital economic engine and environmental hub for the Tar Heel State,” said Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, we are making historic investments that will preserve and revitalize important coastal habitats that more than a million people rely on for work, leisure, and quality of life.”

Administered by the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Climate-Ready Coasts initiative is focused on investing in high-impact projects that create climate solutions by storing carbon; build resilience to coastal hazards such as extreme weather events, pollution and marine debris; restore coastal habitats that help wildlife and humans thrive; build the capacity of underserved communities and support community-driven restoration; and provide employment opportunities.

“North Carolina’s recommended projects focus on protecting undeveloped shoreline, restoring oyster habitat, removing abandoned vessels and other debris from waterways, and deepening the relationship between people and their environment,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “NOAA is proud to recommend and support such projects, which represent multiple approaches toward building healthier, more resilient coasts and coastal communities.”

“I fought to pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act because I knew these transformational laws would create lasting progress in North Carolina and beyond,” said Congresswoman Deborah Ross (NC-02). “North Carolinians are all too familiar with the burden of extreme weather, and this funding from the Climate-Ready Coasts Initiative will help our coastal communities better prepare for and respond to high-impact weather events.”

These projects are part of NOAA’s nearly $6 billion total investment under BIL and IRA. Recommended projects and funding amounts in North Carolina include:

• Completing the Pamlico Sound Oyster Sanctuary and Training the Next Generation of Restoration Professionals
  North Carolina Coastal Federation: $14.9 million
  Funding Source: Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Grants  
  This project will restore nearly 120 acres of oyster habitat in Pamlico Sound, completing the 500-acre goal of the Jean Preston Memorial Oyster Sanctuary. Oyster restoration will provide direct benefits to key recreational and commercial species such as striped bass and wild oysters thereby supporting commercial and recreational fisheries and tourism businesses throughout the state’s coast. Additionally, NCCF will join with North Carolina State University’s Center for Marine Sciences and Technology and North Carolina Central University to provide hands-on opportunities for underrepresented graduate and undergraduate students studying marine sciences. 
• North Carolina Large-scale Marine Debris and Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal
  North Carolina Coastal Federation: $4.5 million
  Funding Source: Marine Debris Removal Competition
  This project will remove storm-related debris, lost fishing gear, and derelict vessels throughout coastal North Carolina. In addition, the project will seek to prevent marine debris that future storms generate through broad public outreach to increase awareness and encourage more resilient building techniques for waterfront structures.
• Capacity Expansion to Support Habitat Restoration and Resilience in the Gullah Geechee Corridor  
  Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor: $536,000
  Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
  The Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor will create new staff positions to expand their work creating a plan for restoration and resilience across the Corridor, which stretches from North Carolina through Florida. The new positions will help build relationships between restoration organizations and Gullah Geechee communities, identify the resilience priorities of community members, and form local advisory committees to support future restoration efforts.   
• Bay River Coastal Land Conservation 
  North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: $500,000
  Funding Source: Coastal Zone Management Habitat Protection and Restoration Grants
  This investment will support the Bay River Coastal Partnership in the purchase and conservation of an ecologically significant coastal property within the over 400-acre Bay River Tract in Pamlico County. Conservation of this area will protect an undeveloped natural shoreline and rare coastal forest communities, minimize the loss of life and property by directing development out of a high risk area, and safeguard coastal water quality along the Bay River.
• Co-creating Inclusive Community Resilience with Nature-based Solutions in the Coastal Carolinas
  National Audubon Society: $499,000
  Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
  The National Audubon Society will work with coastal communities to identify and propose nature-based solutions that increase resilience to extreme weather and climate change. They will collaboratively create a suite of proposed projects that address the goals and challenges of Awendan and McClellanville, South Carolina, and Columbia and Tyrrell County, North Carolina. They will also hire community planners to support the process and help coordinate future restoration.