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A Booming Industry — And a New Threat

Healthy Ecosystems

The coastal environment faces numerous threats from emerging contaminants, plastics and marine debris, other pollutants, and more.

image: view from inside a well.

Jul 10, 2025

PFAS, Arsenic, and Trade-Offs

A bedrock well is the most cost-effective option.
image: irrigation for farmland.

Jul 9, 2025

Waste Not, Want Not

A new study explores wastewater renewal.
Austin Gray with a student conducting fieldwork at a creek.

Jun 9, 2025

A New World for Microbes

Former Sea Grant fellow Austin Gray is exploring what happens when microbes meet microplastics.
image: The view from the ruins of the old lighthouse (built in 1875) at Cape Three Points, Ghana. Credit: Friedmut Abel/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0.

Jun 3, 2025

Across the Atlantic

Funding cuts and policy delays threaten to derail Ghana’s first marine protected area, putting livelihoods and biodiversity at risk.
image: Falls Lake under the stars.

Mar 31, 2025

Safeguarding Water

A new approach to watershed health protects the Falls Lake drinking water supply for 500,000 North Carolina residents.
image: shucking an oyster.

Mar 31, 2025

Climate Change in the Napa Valley of Oysters

Rising seas and warming temperatures pose challenges for a critical, eco-friendly industry.
image: discarded plastic.

Mar 26, 2025

PET Predators

Chemical and biomolecular engineer Nathan Crook and Student Tianyu Li at NC State University are developing a microorganism that can break down and absorb plastic waste.
image: submerged U-boat diving site.

Mar 26, 2025

Off the NC Coast

Take a ride in an imaginary submersible, and explore unique creatures and geological features along the ocean floor.

Jan 21, 2025

Environmental Sentinels

“Our goal is to provide scientific data in context that can aid decision-making and dispel misinformation.” University of North Carolina Wilmington’s Stephen Skrabal and Brooks Avery are assessing metals and…

Jan 15, 2025

A Booming Industry — And a New Threat

A cutting-edge project is addressing “the biggest hindrance to sustainable oyster aquaculture development in the Southeast.” It’s no secret that seafood is a staple of North Carolina cuisine, and oysters…