News Release

National Park Service releases decision to issue special use permit to Dare County for Oregon Inlet dredging

Date: June 18, 2020
Contact: Mike Barber, 252-475-9032

A plan to issue a Special Use Permit (SUP) to Dare County to utilize a privately-owned hopper dredge to perform maintenance dredging within Oregon Inlet has been approved by the National Park Service (NPS).

In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, the NPS adopted an Environmental Assessment (EA) drafted by the United States Army Corps of Engineers for their Section 404 permitting in which the NPS was a cooperating agency. A public review and comment period for a draft Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the adopted EA was available for a 15-day period (May 11-25, 2020). Karen Cucurullo, Acting Director, South Atlantic-Gulf Region, finalized the FONSI by signing it on June 11, 2020.

“This plan is important to support safe navigation for commercial fishermen, charter boats, the Coast Guard, and recreational boaters that use the inlet on a daily basis,” stated David Hallac, Superintendent of the National Parks of Eastern North Carolina. “It will allow Dare County to assist the Army Corps of Engineers in the maintenance of the federally authorized channel.”

Copies of the EA and the FONSI can be found on the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) website at: https://parkplanning.nps.gov/caha_oregoninlet.