Two Agencies at Odds.
Thirty state rules protecting coastal natural resources are hanging in the balance of a regulatory dispute between two state commissions: the Coastal Resources Commission, and the Rules Review Commission.
First, state law directs the Coastal Resources Commission (CRC) to craft rules using science to protect our coastal environment. State law directs the commission to use science in the crafting of these rules. Thus, the commission has enacted rules which have protected the environment since the 1970’s or 1980’s.
But to circumvent environmental protections, the Republican-controlled legislature empowered the Rules Review Commission (RRC) to arbitrarily strike down any environmental protection rule it considers ambiguous, technically flawed in some way, or even just “unnecessary.”
Under the current state legislative supermajority regime, environmental legal safeguards have been slashed again and again. Subsequently, the RRC has been delegated authority to periodically strip out what’s left. The “rules review” process represents a way to quickly end environmental protection rules in large numbers, with very little public review.
16 Emergency Rules
Last week, the Coastal Resources Commission adopted 16 “emergency” rules to allow the state to review development projects which could damage or destroy an “area of environmental concern” (AEC). These emergency rules go into effect in early January and continue for 60 days. This gives state courts time to consider the CRC’s lawsuit, which asks the 30 rules remain in effect. Since the 1970s or 1980s, CRC has used these rules to protect North Carolina’s environment.
“What we have is a situation that the Division of Coastal Management cannot rely on those rules to issue permits for development for coasts, for development in the coastal counties and to make enforcement decisions,” said Mary Lucasse, the CRC’s legal counsel. “[T]he loss of those rules seriously impacts the system’s ability to manage the Coastal Management Program, which is given to the commission by the legislature at your purview.” Furthermore, she said the removal of these rules, which have been around for many years, strips protections for coastal lands and waters and is a threat to public safety.
North Carolina’s Unique Coast, Land, and Waters
CRC’s obligation to conserve the designated AECs depend greatly on the 30 coastal environment rules in dispute. Congress defined these obligations in the 1970s state Coastal Resources Management Act, and the federal laws which that act implements. Analysts include oceanfront hazard areas and coastal shorelines as endangered AEC’s. They also include unique geological areas, like Jockey’s Ridge in Dare County. Additionally, these rules impact the state’s ability to review the environmental impacts of “major energy facilities,” including offshore oil and gas drilling.
As a result, the public may view this as an obscure and unimportant argument among agencies. But the outcome may majorly impact the protection of our state’s coasts, land, and waters.
We all depend on North Carolina’s clean air, clean water, clean seas, and productive land. To get involved, contact your state representative, and let them know you care about environmental protection!
