North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 15A - Environmental Quality › Chapter 07 - Coastal Management › Subchapter H - STATE GUIDELINES FOR AREAS OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN › Section .0300 - OCEAN HAZARD AREAS › Section 07H .0304 - AECS WITHIN OCEAN HAZARD AREAS

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
The ocean hazard AECs contain all of the following
					 areas:
(1) Ocean Erodible Area. This
				  is the area where there exists a substantial possibility of excessive erosion
				  and significant shoreline fluctuation. The oceanward boundary of this area is
				  the mean low water line. The landward extent of this area is the distance
				  landward from the vegetation line as defined in
				  15A NCAC
				  07H .0305(a)(5) to the
				  recession line established by multiplying the long-term annual erosion rate
				  times 90; provided that, where there has been no long-term erosion or the rate
				  is less than two feet per year, this distance shall be set at 180 feet landward
				  from the vegetation line. For the purposes of this Rule, the erosion rates are
				  the long-term average based on available historical data. The current long-term
				  average erosion rate data for each segment of the North Carolina coast is
				  depicted on maps entitled "North Carolina 2019 Oceanfront Setback Factors &
				  Long-Term Average Annual Erosion Rate Update Study" and approved by the Coastal
				  Resources Commission on February 28, 2019 (except as such rates may be varied
				  in individual contested cases or in declaratory or interpretive rulings). In
				  all cases, the rate of shoreline change shall be no less than two feet of
				  erosion per year. The maps are available without cost from any Local Permit
				  Officer or the Division of Coastal Management on the internet at
				  http://www.nccoastalmanagement.net.
(2) Inlet Hazard Area. The inlet hazard areas
				  are natural-hazard areas that are especially vulnerable to erosion, flooding,
				  and other adverse effects of sand, wind, and water because of their proximity
				  to dynamic ocean inlets. This area extends landward from the mean low water
				  line a distance encompassing that area within which the inlet migrates, based
				  on statistical analysis, and shall consider such factors as previous inlet
				  territory, structurally weak areas near the inlet, and external influences such
				  as jetties, terminal groins, and channelization. The areas on the maps
				  identified as Inlet Hazard Areas included in the report entitled INLET HAZARD
				  AREAS, The Final Report and Recommendations to the Coastal Resources
				  Commission, 1978, as amended in 1981, by Loie J. Priddy and Rick Carraway are
				  incorporated by reference and are hereby designated as Inlet Hazard Areas,
				  except for:
(a) the location of a former inlet
				  which has been closed for at least 15 years;
(b) inlets that due to shoreline migration,
				  no longer include the current location of the inlet; and
(c) inlets providing access to a State Port
				  via a channel maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
In all cases, the Inlet Hazard Area shall be an extension
					 of the adjacent ocean erodible areas and in no case shall the width of the
					 inlet hazard area be less than the width of the adjacent ocean erodible area.
					 This report is available for inspection at the Department of Environmental
					 Quality, Division of Coastal Management, 400 Commerce Avenue, Morehead City,
					 North Carolina or at the website referenced in Item (1) of this Rule.