September 9, 2024 — The North Carolina Coastal Federation is taking a new, transformational approach to restoration. They are partnering with the state Division of Marine Fisheries to construct more than 100 acres of oyster reef habitat in the Pamlico Sound. They’re also preparing science students to tackle the country’s conservation and coastal resilience challenges. NOAA’s Office of Habitat Conservation awarded the Federation $14.9 million through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act for this work.
They are partnering with North Carolina State University’s Center for Marine Sciences and Technology (CMAST) and North Carolina Central University (NCCU), a Historically Black University. These partnerships are expanding opportunities for underrepresented students.
“With climate change, sea level rise, and all the other things the environment is experiencing, we need to train the next generation of restoration practitioners,” says Dr. Dave Eggleston, Director of CMAST. “We also know that the more diverse the workforce, the better the ideas generated.”