ENC Regional News

North Carolina has moved up to second in the nation for installed solar power.  Jared Brumbaugh has more. 

The Charlotte Business Journal reports the state added about 115 megawatts worth of new solar capacity to its power grid in the second quarter, bringing the overall total for the state to more than 1.9 gigawatts of installed solar capacity. The primary driver for solar development in the state - Duke Energy - has 35 projects online and 2 under construction.  Spokesperson Randy Wheeless says the number of solar installations will continue to grow.

Well owners living near Duke Energy coal ash facilities have been notified that they’ll receive a permanent alternate drinking water supply.  A letter was sent to about 1,000 households this week.  Jared Brumbaugh has more. 

Gov. Pat McCrory was in Goldsboro yesterday to celebrate the opening of the new Cherry Hospital. George Olsen has more.

Gov. Pat McCrory has declared the month of September North Carolina Preparedness Month. George Olsen has more.

Professional baseball returns to Kinston next year. George Olsen has more.

August 18th marks Marine Corp Air Station’s Cherry Point’s 75th anniversary and there will be a ceremony on the flight line marking the occasion.  Jared Brumbaugh has more.

INTRO – North Carolinians are enjoying the lowest July gas prices in 12 years. George Olsen has more.

Good news for gardeners in the Pitt County area. George Olsen has more.

Public input is being sought on transportation projects planned in and around New Bern.  Jared Brumbaugh has more on the meeting set for Wednesday, June 29th. 

The largest project, carried over from last year, would upgrade U.S. 70 in James City to interstate standards, and include intersection improvements to Taberna Way, Thurman Road, Stately Pines Road and Fisher Ave.  The meeting will also include details on a new roundabout where Broad Street, Neuse Boulevard and Martin Luther King converge. 

A section of U.S. 264 in Beaufort County will be closed for the next six months as a bridge replacement project gets underway.  Jared Brumbaugh has more. 

The new span will replace the current bridge over Pantego Creek constructed in 1950 that is functionally obsolete and structurally deficient.  The project started last week and workers are installing new water and sewer infrastructure at the site now.  In the coming weeks, Resident Engineer for the State Department of Transportation Cadmus Capehart says demolition of the existing bridge will begin.

The saltmarsh sparrow could soon become a lot harder to find along the eastern North Carolina shoreline.  Scientists say the species could be headed for extinction in the next 50 years. 

Researchers at several universities along the East Coast have been tracking saltmarsh sparrow populations and say they’ve dropped about nine percent annually since 1998.  Director of Bird Conservation for Audubon Maryland/DC was involved with the study and says habitat loss due to coastal development and sea-level rise are the main factors contributing to their rapid decline.

Coastal researchers in Beaufort are developing a tool that can alert officials when sharks get too close.  Jared Brumbaugh has more on how drones could be used to spot sharks swimming near popular beach spots. 

Assistant Professor of the Practice of Marine Conservation and Ecology at Duke University Dave Johnston is currently using fixed wing and quad copter drones to study bonnethead sharks to better understand their role in the ecosystem. 

“We fly over these coastal waters, the drones collect imagery, and we’re able to bring that back into the lab.”

You could soon pay a late fee if you’re tardy in renewing your vehicle registration. George Olsen has more.

State archaeologists now have more detailed sonar images to study of the Civil War blockade runner Agnes E. Fry. George Olsen has more.

INTRO – The names of those involved in a Highway Patrol trooper involved shooting Sunday morning in Kinston have been released.

The state’s public schools experienced the first increase in the dropout rate in nearly 10 years. George Olsen has more.

Attendance at North Carolina’s state parks set a new record in 2015. George Olsen has more.