Agency beginning inventory of N.C. islands

Greenville | The big ones are already known, and pretty much developed. But how many small islands that can still support a house or two or more does North Carolina have left? It may seem a strange question to be contemplating, especially for the state agency that regulates the coast.

But that's exactly what the N.C. Division of Coastal Management intends to investigate, starting with Carteret County before moving statewide.

Doug Huggett, the agency's major permits coordinator, said the idea of taking inventory of all the state's private islands was prompted by what's happened in South Carolina. There, marsh islands and other specks of land along the coast that had been overlooked or just forgotten about for generations are suddenly sparking interest from developers. Worried that the recent surge in coastal property values could make any bit of coastal high ground attractive for development, even areas that can only be reached by boat, North Carolina regulators decided they didn't want to get caught flat-footed.

Huggett said knowing how prevalent the potential is means officials can see if they want to adopt or stiffen rules to protect some of the last privately owned, undeveloped areas along the N.C. coast.

"We want to be proactive instead of reactive like we're so often forced to be," he said. "Anything an acre or less in size, you might be able to put a house or two on. But it probably wouldn't be cost-effective to build bridges or other connections out there.

" Officials will then confer with the Army Corps of Engineers and other state agencies to try to determine who owns these small, often marshy blips of land. Coastal Management also intends to assign each island a "development pressure rating." Huggett said that would give the N.

C. Coastal Resources Commission, the policy-making arm of Coastal Management, and conservation groups an idea about where to focus their attention. "Sure, it could focus more attention on some of these places," Huggett said.

"But first we have to see what kind of a potential issue this is."

This historical perspective, compiled from past editions of the Star-News, takes readers back to sports in the Cape Fear region of 50 and 25 years ago.

A lionfish is supposed to be an aquarium fish.

But like many other species U.S. citizens have imported as pets, the lionfish has escaped and is now living offshore of North .

..

Waycross, Ga.

| About 20 homes near Waycross remained evacuated for a third day Saturday as firefighters struggled to control the massive blazes that have charred more than 550, ...

Read more on by www.wilmingtonstar.com. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Coastal Management, North Carolina