Carteret Community College, Morehead City

Description

Carteret Community College (CCC), founded in 1963, is one of 59 institutions comprising the N.C. Community College System. Located in Morehead City, the college lies on the shores of Bogue Sound, which is currently classified as Outstanding Resource Waters and High Quality Waters by the N.C.Division of Water Quality. Bogue Sound provides important habitat for many other commercially and recreationally valuable fisheries, including oysters, blue crabs, shrimp, flounder, sheepshead, spot and croaker, as well as a myriad of species that support the estuarine food chain, such as mud snails, worms, and amphipods. Although Bogue Sound is classified as high quality waters and provides important habitat, the waters and habitat have suffered from stormwater runoff from nearby roads and parking stormwater areas. Stormwater runoff carries bacteria, chemicals, and other trash into adjacent creeks, rivers and sounds. This polluted runoff can create health risks for those who eat shellfish and other fish from affected waters and also for those who swim, boat or fish in those waters.

 Since 2004, other projects like this located along Bogue Sound aimed at completing the habitat restoration included the construction of offshore gapped breakwaters and stone sills for erosion control, the planting of submerged aquatic vegetation, the placement of concrete oyster reef domes and oyster cultch bags as experimental sills, and the construction of a wetland to help treat stormwater runoff from adjacent parking areas. By pre-treating stormwater runoff from the adjacent campus and roads, the restoration project helps to decrease pollution entering Bogue Sound. Improved water quality provides benefits for human health and protects numerous species of aquatic and estuarine plants and animals. The project also stabilizes and restores an eroding shoreline, providing wetland nursery areas in coastal marsh and intertidal sandy beaches.

Technical Details

The primary objective of the shoreline protection plan was to develop a design for replacing the existing shore protection, which was comprised of concrete fill bags and broken concrete with a protective environmental edge composed of beaches, dunes and tidal marshes. The planning and design process enabled by the grant resulted in the development of a comprehensive restoration plan for over 3,000 linear feet of shoreline on Bogue Sound. Following deliberation by the Steering Community, it was determined that the project should be limited to include only the western most 1,200 feet of the Cartert Community College (CCC) shoreline (Station 0+00 to 12+00). The preferred plan consisted of: two headland breakwaters with beach nourishment and marsh and dune vegetation, a spur to allow an appropriate transition with the boat ramp pier and bulkheads, and a reach with sills, interfaced with approximately 100 foot lengths of experimental structures.

Created:

6,400 sq. feet subaqueous land

18,600 sq. feet intertidal (non-vegetated)

9,600 sq. ft. intertidal (vegetated)

27,900 sq. ft. Backshore/dune

5,700 sq. ft. SAV

Funding

Funding agencies and partners for this project include NCCF, NOAA, NC Clean water Mgmt Trust Fund, NOAA, NFWF, RAE.

With the assistance of the North Carolina Coastal Federation, CCC, and its partners, The North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Institute of Marine Sciences (UNCIMS) applied for a grant from the North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund.

The college retained Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB) and Coastline Design, P.C. to prepare plans and specifications for the sustainable shore protection strategy.

Estimated costs:

Site characterization: $12,000

Sustainable shoreline design: $12,500

Permitting: $7,000

Bid documentation preparation and review: $2,500

Total Project Cost: $34,000

Location