RECONNAISSANCE GEOLOGY OF THE INNER CONTINENTAL SHELF, 

 CAPE FEAR REGION, NORTH CAROLINA 



by 

 Edward P. Meisburger 



I . INTRODUCTION 



1 . Background and Purpose . 



The construction, improvement, and periodic maintenance of beaches 

 and dunes by placement (nourishment) of suitable sand along the shore- 

 line is an important means of counteracting coastal erosion and enhancing 

 recreational facilities. Both initial beach restoration and periodic 

 renourishment usually involve large volumes of sandfill. However, it has 

 become increasingly difficult in recent years to obtain suitable sand 

 from traditional sources (i.e., lagoons and inland sources) because of 

 economic and ecological factors. 



The problems of locating suitable and economical sand deposits led 

 the U.S. Army Coastal Engineering Research Center (CERC) to initiate a 

 search for offshore deposits of sand. Exploratory efforts to locate and 

 inventory deposits suitable for future fill requirements began in 1964 

 with a survey off the New Jersey coast (Duane, 1969). Subsequent data 

 collection surveys have included the Inner Continental Shelf areas off 

 New England, Long Island, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, the 

 Cape Fear region of North Carolina, south shore of Lake Erie, eastern 

 Lake Michigan, and southern California. This program, initially known 

 as the Sand Inventory Program, is now referred to as the Inner Continen- 

 tal Shelf Sediment and Structure (ICONS) program. 



The type of data collected for ICONS studies is not only useful in 

 locating potential borrow areas but is of further value in providing 

 geological information for the planning, design, and environmental impact 

 evaluation of other coastal engineering works. Moreover, knowledge of 

 the regional framework, history, and processes characterizing this little 

 known part of the coastal zone is necessary for planning and conducting 

 investigations in many areas of coastal zone research. For these reasons, 

 ICONS reports have not been limited solely to an evaluation of sand re- 

 sources but have included information on the geology of the inner shelf 

 as revealed by the basic data sources. Under recently revised procedures, 

 the results of ICONS regional studies will be presented in two separate 

 but complimentary reports--one covering the geological aspects of the 

 inner shelf region, and a companion report covering sand resources in the 

 same region. The Cape Fear ICONS studies are the first to be produced 

 under the revised procedures. 



2. Location and Data Coverage . 



The study area, a part of the North Carolina Atlantic Continental 

 Shelf, lies within about 26 kilometers (14 nautical miles) of the coast 



