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 Pages Tagged With: "ocean and coasts"

Economic Analysis for Shoreline Management

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) has commissioned a study to explore the economic benefits of beach nourishment and to begin to develop new approaches to funding projects needed to maintain Delaware’s shorelines. This will be a public process, with public meetings to present information to Delaware residents and


Coastal Zone Act Application Materials

Manufacturing, heavy industry, and bulk product transfer activities since 1971 in Delaware’s coastal zone require a coastal zone permit in addition to other applicable DNREC permits.

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CZA Program 302-739-9283 [modal text=”Get Email Updates” title=”Subscribe to the Coastal Zone Act


Delaware Coastal Zone Act Program

The Coastal Zone Act regulates new and existing manufacturing, heavy industry, and bulk product transfer activities in Delaware’s coastal zone through a permitting system.

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CZA Program 302-739-9283 [modal text=”Get Email Updates” title=”Subscribe to the Coastal Zone Act Email List”


History of the Coastal Zone Act

Then-Governor Russell Peterson and the Delaware General Assembly passed the Delaware Coastal Zone Act (CZA) in 1971. It was signed into law on June 28, 1971. The Act is designed to protect the coastal areas from the impacts of heavy industrialization and bulk product transfer and safeguard their use primarily for recreation and tourism. [column


City of New Castle Ecosystem Assessment and Enhancement Project

The City of New Castle and DNREC have partnered for a study to determine the potential impacts of various sea level rise scenarios on the city’s ecosystems. The Ecosystem Assessment and Enhancement Project is based on the recommendations of a previous city/state partnership. It will evaluate the


Coastal Construction Permits

The DNREC Division of Watershed Stewardship manages permits and approvals under the regulatory programs that govern coastal construction in Delaware.

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Jennifer Luoma Pongratz 302-608-5502
ePermitting Application Instructions


Questions and Answers

A collection of common questions, and answers, about the coastal construction regulatory program.
The Division of Watershed Stewardship’s Shoreline and Waterway Management Section has a series of maps that show the location of the Building Line.


Adopt-a-Beach

DNREC’s Adopt-A-Beach program is a partnership between the Department and Delaware volunteers, working in tandem to protect and enhance Delaware’s beaches.

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Eddie Meade Environmental Scientist 302-608-5500
Going beyond just picking up litter, DNREC’s goals for the Adopt-A-Beach program


Beach Grass Planting

Volunteers are the backbone of Delaware’s shoreline stabilization. Every spring since 1990, except when pandemic conditions prevented it, dedicated volunteers have stabilized Delaware’s sand dunes by planting more than 5 million stems of Cape American beach grass along ocean and bay beaches.
Registration for the 34th Annual Beach


You Can Help Protect Beaches and Dunes

There are several ways property owners and visitors can preserve and protect beaches and dunes.

Contact Us

Shoreline and Waterway Management Section 302-608-5500
Plant Beach Grass Planting ‘Cape’ American beach grass (Ammophila breviligulata)


Beaches and Shorelines

The DNREC Shoreline and Waterway Management Section works to maintain and improve Delaware’s beaches, shorelines and waterways.

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Shoreline and Waterway Management Section 302-608-5500
The section manages the shoreline through regulation of coastal


Coastal Construction

Coastal development adds stress to beach systems, especially to dunes. Dunes and beaches are the first lines of protection from wave action for coastal communities during coastal storms. Dunes also act as storage areas that supply sand to the beach during storms.

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Delaware Beach Building Line Maps

The Regulations Governing Beach Protection and the Use of Beaches (7 DE Admin. Code 5102) establishes a “building line” along the coast and stipulate that no construction may take place seaward of that without a Coastal Construction Permit or Coastal Construction Letter of Approval from the Department. The building line is mapped by the Department


Beaches are a Natural Resource

The sandy beaches along the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay shorelines are valuable natural resources to the State of Delaware. The beaches were created by nature and continue to be shaped by wind and waves. The 1972 Beach Preservation Act (7 Del.C. Chapter 68) provides the authority to DNREC to enhance, preserve, and protect the


The Delaware Bayshore Initiative

Extending from Pea Patch Island in New Castle County to the City of Lewes in Sussex County, the Delaware Bay shoreline is widely recognized as an area of global ecological significance.
Its expansive coastal marshes, shoreline, agricultural lands and forests provide diverse habitat to many species, including


Climate Communications Training

It is possible to facilitate informative and empowering conversations about climate change. In this two-day course, participants will learn about strategic framing – a research based approach to communication that engages audiences in thinking productively about how they can participate in creating or supporting solutions to climate change. Overview This training,


Request for a Coastal Zone Act Status Decision: EdgeGEN

Tangent Generation Resources (edgeGEN) has submitted a request for a Coastal Zone Act Status Decision regarding its proposal to install and operate three 2-megawatt natural gas-fired reciprocating internal combustion engines at the Kuehne Chemical facility at 1645 River Road, in Delaware City.


Resilient Community Partnership: Atlantic Coast Communities and Lewes

DNREC’s Delaware Coastal Programs (DCP) office has partnered with a group of seven unique coastal municipalities on a comprehensive assessment of impervious surface coverage. The project will produce community-specific strategies for reducing existing and future impervious surface coverage and increasing stormwater infiltration. Local Leadership
Presentations


Delaware Coastal Programs Federal Consistency Determinations

Federal Consistency Determinations have been submitted to the Delaware Coastal Management Program for two proposals from the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service.


Delaware Coastal Cleanup

Trash on our beaches and in our waterways isn’t just unsightly – it’s also potentially dangerous to marine life and in some cases harmful to water quality. The annual Delaware Coastal Cleanup offers volunteers an opportunity to help make a difference for Delaware’s shoreline and waterways while joining an international effort to clean up the


Coastal Programs Federal Consistency Certifications: Sussex County Airport Terminal Replacement

The Delaware Coastal Airport at 21513 Rudder Lane, Georgetown, is proposing the demolition of an existing 6,500 square foot hangar/office facility and the construction of a new approximately 20,000 square foot aircraft hangar with associated parking spaces.


Application for a Coastal Zone Act Status Decision: DP&L LNG Facility

Delmarva Power & Light Company has applied for a for a Coastal Zone Act Status Decision as to whether they must apply for approval to develop a satellite liquefied natural gas facility, at their property on River Road, in New Castle, Delaware.


Public Hearing: Coastal Zone Regulations

DNREC and the Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board will jointly conduct a public hearing on proposed amendments to the Regulations Governing Delaware’s Coastal Zone on June 24, 2019, at 6:00 P.M., at the DNREC office at 391 Lukens Drive, New Castle.


Federal Consistency Certifications for Scott Boat Lifts L&R Canal

Federal Consistency Certifications have been submitted to the Delaware Coastal Management Program for Scott Boat Lifts for the proposed installation of two new boat lifts in existing boat slips and four new pilings adjacent to the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal at 618 Pilottown Road, Lewes.


Public Meeting Notice: Delaware Coastal Programs

A public meeting will be held, as part of the federal performance evaluation of the Delaware Coastal Management Program, at 5:30 pm on Monday, May 20, 2019 in the DNREC State Street Commons Training Room (First Floor), at 100 W. Water Street, Suite 6A, Dover, Delaware.


Coastal Program Federal Consistency Determination: DP&L Drainage Pipe Installation Newark

Division of Climate, Coastal, & Energy Start Date: 3/4/2019 End Date: 4/3/2019
Federal Consistency Certifications have been submitted to the Delaware Coastal Management Program for the following: DP&L Drainage Pipe Installation Newark (2019.0043)


Coastal Program Federal Consistency Determination: Christina Apartments

Division of Climate, Coastal, & Energy Start Date: 3/4/2019 End Date: 3/24/2019
Federal Consistency Determinations have been submitted to the Delaware Coastal Management Program for the following: Christina Apartments Smyrna DE (2019.0045)


Coastal Zone Conversion Permits Open Houses

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control is seeking input on the preliminary recommendations made by the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act Regulatory Advisory Committee.
February 25, in Claymont February 26, in Delaware


CZCPA Work Groups

Four Work Groups were formed to provide technical support to the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act (CZCPA) Regulatory Advisory Committee (RAC). This page contains information about each of the four Work Groups, including focus areas and meeting materials. Due to the complex nature of many topics addressed in the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act,


CZCPA Regulatory Advisory Committee

In June 2018, DNREC assembled the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act (CZCPA) Regulatory Advisory Committee (RAC) to provide guidance and feedback to DNREC on the development of regulations under the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act. This page contains all information and materials from Committee meetings, including the RAC’s final recommendations.
Regulatory


New Castle Resilient Community Events

The public participation portion of the City of New Castle Resilient Community Partnership included a series of public meetings at which residents and stakeholders were able to brainstorm and contribute their input to the partnership. March 14, 2018 Resilient Community Partnership Public Workshop
City of


Resilient and Sustainable Communities Summit

Nearly 200 people attended the first annual Delaware Resilient and Sustainable Communities Summit at the Del Tech Conference Center on November 27, 2017. The event drew a diverse audience from throughout Delaware, including representatives from 22 towns, 16 Nonprofit and Community Groups, 15 Federal and State Agencies, 14 professional services companies, six county and regional


Resilient and Sustainable Communities League

The Delaware Resilient and Sustainable Communities League is a group of 14 member organizations that coordinate together to help assist Delaware’s communities as they adapt to the impacts of climate change and work towards a more sustainable future.
The Delaware Resilient and Sustainable Communities League now has its very own website!


Past Projects and Fellows

The DNREC Coastal Management Program and the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve are dynamic, evolving programs whose focus remains on the balance between the use and protection of Delaware’s coastal resources. This is an archive of information about some past projects.

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The Delaware Coastal Management Program

From the Delaware Bay to the Atlantic Ocean, Delaware’s coastal resources contribute to its economy, environment, and quality of life. DNREC’s Delaware Coastal Management Program (DCMP) is a networked program that works to preserve, protect, develop, enhance, and resolve conflicts related to the state’s coastal resources. The Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) of 1972


Green Eggs and Sand

Green Eggs and Sand is an innovative workshop experience and set of curriculum modules designed to explore the Atlantic Coast horseshoe crab (HSC)/shorebird phenomenon and management controversy.

Contacts

Laurel Sullivan Education Coordinator, DNERR 302-735-3412 Karen Byrne


Coastal Zone Conversion Permits

The 2017 Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act amended the Coastal Zone Act to allow the reuse of 14 grandfathered sites of heavy industry use within Delaware’s Coastal Zone. The Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act required DNREC to develop regulations (7 DE Admin. Code 101) for the issuance of conversion permits and to set fees


St. Jones Reserve

The St. Jones Reserve component of the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve (DNERR) is located on the north shore of the St. Jones River, off Kitts Hummock Road, south of Dover in Kent County and includes a portion of Delaware Bay. The St. Jones Reserve is on the Delaware Bayshore Byway and includes a Visitor


Blackbird Creek Reserve

The Blackbird Creek Reserve component of the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve (DNERR) is located upstream from Delaware Route 9 at Taylors Bridge in Townsend, New Castle County. The Blackbird Creek Reserve is on the Delaware Bayshore Byway and includes trails, pavilion and canoe/kayak launch.


Blackbird Creek Fall Festival

The Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve (DNERR) offers a day of free family fun at the Blackbird Creek Fall Festival every October.
2023 Blackbird Creek Fall Festival Oct. 21, 2023



Delaware Bay Horseshoe Crab Spawning Survey

Citizen scientists and state researchers have surveyed the horseshoe crabs spawning along Delaware Bay beaches since 1990. The data they have collected has been key for scientists in monitoring changes in numbers of spawning crabs in the Bay.

Contact

dnerrhscsurvey@delaware.gov 302-739-6377



Delaware Sea Level Rise Advisory Committee

The Delaware Sea Level Rise Advisory Committee was created in 2010 to bring together to investigate the state’s vulnerability to sea level rise and to provide recommendations about how to best prepare for higher sea levels.
Adapting to Sea Level Rise Delaware Sea Level Rise Advisory


Climate Change and Sea Level Rise Perceptions

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) has initiated a series of public perception surveys to measure the Delaware public’s knowledge of, and interest in, the issues of climate change and sea level rise. The latest survey was conducted in November and December 2019. Surveys were also conducted in 2009 and 2014.


Adapting to Sea Level Rise

Sea level rise affects more than beaches and oceanfront land owners. Sea level rise can increase the height of storm waves, making more areas vulnerable to storm damage. Sea level rise can inundate and flood low lying areas, causing losses to tidal wetlands, habitat, and agricultural areas. Sea level rise also can cause higher water tables and salt


Nature-Based Solutions for Coastal Hazards

This course, from the NOAA Office of Coastal Management, prepares planners and communities for planning and implementing green or natural infrastructure projects to reduce coastal natural hazards. Nature-based solutions, sometimes called “green infrastructure,” incorporate the natural environment and constructed systems that mimic natural processes in


Facilitation Basics for Coastal Managers

This two-day instructor-led course from the NOAA Office of Coastal Management is designed to increase participants’ ability to plan and facilitate a meeting (or a series of meetings) that minimize conflict and enhance problem solving. Collaboration is often cited as a good way to address coastal resource management issues, but the collaborative process is


Creating a Flood Ready Community

This course, presented with the University of Delaware Institute for Public Administration, reviews the multiple sources of flood risks to Delaware communities that can be addressed and mitigated through planning, codes, and ordinances.
This training covers floodplain requirements for municipalities. It presents


Register for Coastal Training

Coastal training and education programs are open to all, but registration is required. Registration is through the Delaware Learning Center, unless otherwise noted. Please login (see below) to the Learning Center then select the training from the My Training widget on the Welcome Page and follow the registration process. Or search for the course title in


Slaughter Beach Resilient Community Events

The public participation portion of the Slaughter Beach Resilient Community Partnership included a series of three public meetings at which residents and stakeholders were able to brainstorm and contribute their input to the partnership. July 22, 2017 Resilient Community Day Public Workshop Town of Slaughter Beach residents and stakeholders were invited


Resilient Community Partnership: New Castle

The City of New Castle, like other low-lying Delaware communities, is vulnerable to natural hazards from multiple sources. New Castle is particularly at risk due to its location along the Delaware River, which makes it susceptible to upstream flooding, downstream tidal surge, and combinations of the two. A significant portion of the City is





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