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Troubled Waters: Flooding, Contaminants, and Heightened Risks 

Climate

What do shifts in the global climate mean for our state?

image: Coastal brown bear sows and their cubs graze the salt marsh in Chinitna Bay, Alaska.

Jun 2, 2023

Vital Signs: Most of World’s Salt Marshes Likely Will Be Underwater by 2100

Sea Grant is among the funders on a 50-year study of salt marsh ecology that has concluded that more than 90% of the world's salt marshes could succumb to sea level rise by the end of the century.
image: Okracoke Island is shown with a mounted sign that reads: "Stop. No one allowed beyond this point."

Jun 2, 2023

From Portsmouth to Aurora

As impacts from climate change heighten, our state finds new strategies for new challenges.
image: architectural design, Duffyfield neighborhood street view.

Apr 5, 2023

Resilience and Redevelopment in Duffyfield

After Hurricane Florence flooded an African American neighborhood with a long history of strength after adversity, a team of community leaders, researchers, and students has been working to restore housing and preserve community history.
Perito Moreno Glacier

Mar 21, 2023

Vital Signs: The Hottest Ocean in Recorded History

Covering more than 70% of the earth, our global ocean has a very high heat capacity, and the top few meters of the ocean store as much heat as earth’s entire atmosphere. Ninety percent of global warming is occurring in the ocean...

Jan 4, 2023

Between a River and a Swamp: All That Water Has to Go Somewhere

After flooding from hurricanes Matthew and Florence, a team helps build resilience and innovation in Robeson County through a North Carolina Sea Grant-supported project.

Dec 8, 2022

Our Coast, Our Future: The 2022 North Carolina Coastal Conference

They came to Raleigh from across North Carolina, discussed urgent and emerging issues affecting our coast, forged new ties, and literally devoured new research for lunch — and you can watch it here.
image: Lauren D. Pharr.

Nov 30, 2022

Naturalist’s Notebook: Saving the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker

Currently, 63 out of 124 known red-cockaded woodpecker populations are vulnerable to hurricanes, with 56 of those populations having low or very low ability to withstand environmental or demographic changes.

Sep 13, 2022

Climate Resilience: NC’s State-of-the-Art Warning System Strengthens Flood Planning

This hurricane season, the N.C. Department of Transportation (DOT) is relying on an advanced flood-warning system that includes 400 river and stream gauges. Transportation Secretary Eric Boyette calls it a “state-of-the-art warning system” that “will help us be better prepared for the next major storm.
image: Upper Cape Fear River.

Sep 13, 2022

Natural Solutions and a Clean Water Future for the Cape Fear

With more people living in the Cape Fear River Basin and climate change bringing heavier rains, a new project is forecasting the effects of stormwater runoff as well as how strategic buffers can lessen pollution. 

Sep 13, 2022

Troubled Waters: Flooding, Contaminants, and Heightened Risks 

Underserved communities in North Carolina disproportionately experience the adverse effects of flooding and poor water quality. Why is this? And what can we do about it?