coast
Registration is Open for the 4th Annual NC Marine Debris Symposium
Marine debris is a problem that continues to grow. Our waterways and oceans are constantly polluted with a wide variety of marine debris ranging from polystyrene trays and plastic bags to derelict fishing equipment and abandoned boats.
Marine life, such as several Fish species, Whales, Sharks, Sea Turtles, and Birds have been known to ingest marine debris or become entangled in marine debris, which may lead to injury, intestinal blockage, and death. Marine debris is an Eastern North Carolina concern not only because of the threats to our native wildlife, our ecosystem and our own health, but it also washes up on beaches and shorelines degrading the environment, and effecting our local economy and tourism.
Local cooperation and regional partnership is needed to create public awareness while developing ways to decrease the amount of debris going into the waterways as well as cleaning up the debris found in our waterways and on our shores.
We hope that this Symposium will create local cooperation and regional partnership by providing a forum for the exchange of information on recent developments, program ideas, and best management practices for marine debris prevention, education, and removal.
Register here: 2016 Registration for the NCMDS in Wrightsville Beach, NC
Earth and Surf Fest is Gearing Up for Good Time
Get ready for ONE awesome day of FUN for the entire family at the Tenth Annual Earth and Surf Fest on Saturday, July 9th in North Topsail Beach.
This rad waste-free eco awareness event showcases many of the splendors that there is to enjoy in our coastal community environment.
Things get kicked off at 7am with registration for the Fun, Sun, and 5K Run on the beach, a one mile fun run, and the On Shore Surf Shop surf contest.
A free beach yoga session is offered by Keep Onslow Beautiful Committee member and certified yoga instructor, Christina Lewis, at 10am. Bring a mat or towel and get ready to sweat and breathe in the sweet salty ocean air. Don’t forget your refillable/reusable water bottle. Refilling stations will be located at the event.
Live music begins in the morning and continues throughout the day. We will also have a live broadcast with fav local DJ, Vaughn, from the morning show at Modern Rock 98.7/.
Local musician, artist, and long time beach sweeper, Justina will get things started with an acoustic solo act at the bathhouse stage area. Headliners are local surf music jam rockers, Arise Awake who will get us through the mid day.
Later that afternoon, you get the chance to show your talents with a 2 hour open mic gig hosted by Wes Rider. Be sure to bring a guitar, drums, or whatever you need to showcase your talents. Open mic jam session begins at 3pm and there will be a sign up form available at the bathhouse stage area starting at 2:30pm.
A traditional beach cleanup will be held throughout the day with the crew at the Plastic Ocean Project. Prizes will be given, you can learn how to participate in a fun citizen science program, and you also have the chance to earn SAT credit hours (for high school volunteers).
This is a waste-free event so place make sure to carpool, bring your own reusable water bottle, and use the recycle and compost bins properly. Pack in and pack out any waste you bring that is not compostable or recyclable, please. There will be a healthy and waste-free food truck on site for all your munching needs throughout the day.
Healthy and eco friendly vendors and environmental education booths include: Keep Onslow Beautiful, Plastic Ocean Project, Spring Locker, White Oak New River Association, NC Coastal Federation, Onslow Co Museum, NC CMAST and NC Youth Ocean Conservation Summit, Arbonne, Your Bottle Means Jobs, Sonoco Recycling, Loggerhead Designs, Oceana, Going Green, Beauty Counter, On Shore Surf Shop,Forkful Food Truck, Sparkling ICE, and more…
Thank you so much to our sponsors: KIXX Outfitters, On Shore Surf Shop, Only in Onslow, Sonoco Recycling, Spring Locker, Sparkling ICE, Keep Onslow Beautiful, Onslow County Solid Waste Department, Onslow County Parks and Recreation, Nixon, Dragon, Loggerhead Designs, Hyperflex Wetsuits, …lost, Global Surf Industries, Savage Surfboards, Sanuk, Prolite, Go Pro, Clean Energy Events, and Sun Bum.
Be sure to check out http://www.earthandsurffest.com for registration, location with a map, and event info.
Friday the 13th Cleanup
Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium
Shackleford Banks
BEACH KEEPERS BEACH CLEAN-UP
FRIDAY MAY, 13
Help keep the Crystal Coast pristine on Friday, May 13 during a public Beach Keepers beach clean-up event. Spend the day removing marine debris from Shackleford Banks with Cape Lookout National Seashore, the Crystal Coast Tourism Authority, Island Express Ferries and the Aquarium. Advance registration is required and participants need to provide their own food, reusable water bottles, and other beach necessities. This free event begins at 7:30 a.m. in Beaufort and will last approximately seven hours, including transportation to and from Shackleford Banks. For those on Instagram, the event will also include an InstaMeet – an opportunity for Instagrammers to come together, share photos, and tell stories about the day.
Help keep the Crystal Coast pristine on Friday, May 13, in a public Beach Keepers clean-up on Shackleford Banks. Join us at 600 Front Street, Beaufort, and spend the day removing marine debris from Shackleford Banks. For those on Instagram, the event will also include an InstaMeet. This is a great project for families or groups with children and is appropriate for anyone ages 8 and up. Be prepared to get wet and dirty!
What to Bring:
Water Shoes
Sunscreen
Lunch and Reusable water bottle
Ages 8 and up, maximum 60 participants
This activity is free
REGISTER HERE:
https://reservations.ncaquariums.com/pineknollshores/Info.aspx?EventID=1015
Ocracoke Island Camping with Drew
My sister, @nelizadrew (www.nelizadrew.wordpress.com) traveled here to the NC coast for a visit. We decided to go camping in Ocracoke for the weekend. Above is a short vid of our journey.
…more to come.
9th Annual Earth and Surf Fest
Keep Onslow Beautiful and several sponsors are gathering to host the 9th Annual Earth & Surf Fest at North Topsail Beach July 4 rain or shine. The event aims to promote waste reduction, litter and marine debris prevention and a healthy lifestyle. This is an environmental awareness event.
Festivities begin with a 7 a.m. registration for the 5K beach run and surf contest. The 5K race on the beach will award prizes to the top overall male and female runners and the first and second place finishers in each age group. The course is an out-and-back course that is run completely on the beach. The start and finish of the race is on beach in front of Onslow Public Beach Public Access #2. Runners will head north about 1.5 miles before turning around and heading back south. T-shirts are available for runners and surfers registered for the event and some will also be available for purchase until supplies run out.
Surf and stand-up paddle boarding contests are being coordinated by On Shore Surf Shop and other sponsors. Registration is available online at http://www.earthandsurffest.com/-surf–sup-registration.html or at the store in Surf City.
Free stand-up paddle board demonstrations plus kayak and canoe demonstrations will be on the sound side and are coordinated by Surf City Paddle Club and the New River Foundation.
A beach yoga class will be at 10 am by Keep Onslow Beautiful committee member and registered yoga teacher, Christina Lewis
A beach cleanup for the entire section of North Topsail and Surf City beaches is also scheduled. A sign up tent (aqua blue/green tent that says “Keep Onslow Beautiful”) will be located at the event. Sign up, pick a location to clean up and venture out. Buckets, gloves, and other materials will be provided. SAT credit hours for high school students will be recorded. Don’t forget to bring forms!
Free live music from Trevor Harris and the Birds, and Pamlico Joe will be featured. WRMR 98.7 Modern Rock and DJ Christine Martinez will also be on-site for a live broadcast and giving out Modern Rock 98.7 coolers until supplies last (mid day).
This is a waste-free event. Everything will be either recyclable or compostable. Recycle and compost bins will be conveniently located. Guests are encouraged to bring reusable water bottles for use at refilling stations located throughout the festival. All activities will also be completely solar powered in keeping with the theme.
It’s all taking place at Beach Access #2, 2950 Island Drive in North Topsail Beach. Additional information is available at: Earth and Surf Fest
Make plans to enjoy the holiday at the Earth & Surf Fest.
Happy Birthday National Ocean Policy
Happy Birthday to the National Ocean Policy (NOP)
Learn more here: Healthy Oceans Coalition / NOP Background
Want to do more for our marine environment locally? Please consider volunteering for the Plastic Ocean Project, Keep Onslow Beautiful, Project AWARE, or a local Surfrider Foundation chapter and also be sure to register for and attend the North Carolina Marine Debris Symposium
Don’t have time to officially volunteer for an org, but still want to be an environmental hero – clean your beach whenever you are there, pick up debris in a parking lot on your way to and from your car, or simply donate to help fund vital programs that help preserve our marine ecosystem.
Blue skies and calm seas,
L
Salty Saturday with the Priechenfried Crew
Had a lovely day on the water with the Priechenfried’s (Amy, Carl, and my fav misfit crew of mini pirates) today. Weather was a wee bit windy, but the temp was perfect. We made our way to a little island just North of Bear and just South of EI. It was a very small piece of real estate that we made our home for several hours of grilling and chilling, SUPing, kayaking, and other salty hair and sandy feet activities.
Here is a snippet of our day:
Until next time…
Wishing you all Blue Skies and Calm Seas,
Tangled Up
A few years ago, as seen in this photo, I was doing a beach cleanup at the South end of Topsail Island and came across this Common Loon that was hooked, tangled, and emaciated. I was able to grab him, remove the hook and line, but he was still in bad shape. I took him to Possumwood Acres Wildlife Rehab in Hubert where he recovered and was released. This is not all that uncommon and happens from time-to-time when surf and pier fishing.
This summer, while attending the Southeastern Marine Debris Consortium Workshop in Charleston, I got a text message from a friend, who was pier fishing, with a photo of a Loggerhead Sea Turtle entangled in his line. I immediately sent him a text back asking him not to cut the line, but it was too late.
This is a common problem with fishing, catching something that you don’t intend to. There are few things you can do to avoid catching something you don’t intend to catch when it comes to pier fishing, unless you avoid fishing all together, but you can take steps to save the creature you accidentally captured and prevent future entanglements with the same line (monofilament line doesn’t biodegrade so it is in the marine environment forever) and that line can become a future death trap for even more creatures.
Here are some steps to take if you ever find yourself in this predicament.
1. Don’t PANIC!!
2. Don’t cut the line!!!
FOR BIRDS:
1. Slowly reel the bird in and do not shake the bird loose.
2. Call a local Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.
3. Wear Sunglasses and gloves if you have them to prevent injury – birds are feisty!
4. Tightly grab the bird behind the eyes and hold it’s legs – you may want to fold the wings and straddle the bird with your legs to get him/her under control.
5. Cover the bird’s head. This will to calm him/her down in case you are going to remove the hook yourself, but you can also rely on the Wildlife Rehab Center to do this for you.
6. If the bird is entangled, cut the line only when you have full control of the bird.
7. If you remove the hook and line and the bird looks healthy, release him/her carefully. If the bird looks unhealthy or tired, call the Wildlife Rehab Center.
8. Don’t forget to recycle the line!
FOR OTHER MARINE LIFE including SEA TURTLES:
1. If there are surfers in the water, yell down to them and ask for their help. Most surfers are eager to do so and would be thrilled at the chance. Surfers are already in the water and depending on the size and type of marine life you captured, they can unhook and you are back to fishing in no time.
2. If there are no surfers in the water, simply walk the pole and line down the pier until whatever you caught is on the beach, then have someone help you remove the hook.
3. If it is a Sea Turtle, call the closest Sea Turtle Hospital or Wildlife Rehabilitation Center
4. Report what happened with the local Marine Fisheries Department. They might be interested in the data.
For more information about entanglements, monofilament recycling, and marine debris, please contact the NC Marine Debris Symposium at RidTheSeaOfMarineDebris@gmail.com or go to http://www.ncmarinedebrissyposium.com
Coastinista 