ECONOMIC ALLIANCE OF NORTH CAROLINA 



There are plenty of groups to represent the pocosins and 

 the piping plovers, but who speaks for the developer, the 

 banker and the homebuilder? 



"Someone has to create a voice that can strike the 

 balance," says Ken Stewart, director of the Economic Alliance 

 of North Carolina. 



While environmental watchdogs are guarding the coast, 

 the alliance is watching the watchdogs. And when the 

 Environmental Management Commission, Corps of Engineers 

 and Coastal Resources Commission meet, the alliance is there 

 too. 



Stewart says many environmental groups are "extreme" in 

 their positions. The alliance, he says, figures compromise and 

 leniency into its stance from the beginning. "We take the 

 middle ground and fight for it tooth and nail," he says. 



"We're not opposed to oceanfront setbacks or strong limits 

 on oceanfront (shoreline) hardening structures," says Stewart, 

 who is a former director of the state's Division of Coastal 

 Management. "What we are opposed to is excessive regula- 

 tions of any of these things that don't have technical founda- 

 tion, that don't consider the effects on private property rights 

 and economic development." 



The alliance names among its members Weyerhaeuser and 

 the developers of Landfall and Bald Head Island. But Stewart 

 says there are many developers who "would not be welcome" 

 in the organization. 



N.C. MARINA ASSOCIATION 



Construction of new marinas is often the catalyst for the 



creation of citizen advocacy groups opposing development. 



The N.C. Marina Association is a voice for the other side. 



"The Marina Association is strongly in favor of a good 

 environment," says executive director Susan Hebert. "But we 

 also think regulations shouldn't kill small business." 



The association keeps abreast of proposed policies and 

 regulations governing marinas and seeks to represent and 

 promote the marina industry. 



Hebert says marinas probably get picked on by environ- 

 mentalists "because they are highly visible and they border on 

 industrial." 



SOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER 



The natural resources of North Carolina and five other 

 southern states have a legal leg to stand on, thanks to the 

 Southern Environmental Law Center. 



A substantial portion of this non-profit, public-interest law 

 firm's legal resources is dedicated to coastal work, says Lark 

 Hayes, director of the North Carolina office. 



"Our relationship with coastal groups has enabled us to 

 play an active role in most of the important coastal issues, 

 including wetlands protection, maritime forest preservation, 

 coastal water quality and offshore oil drilling," says Hayes. 



The center is the pro bono counsel for the environment. 

 Sometimes this means simply giving advice and counsel about 

 strategies. Other times, "it means taking on a major legal 

 battle to protect a special area or to get an important issue of 

 coastal law resolved," she says. 



SELC has 1,900 individual members and relies on founda- 

 tion grants for sustenance. El 



Our story includes only a sampling of the established environmen- 

 tal, conservation and development groups in North Carolina. Many of 

 them have literature and newsletters to keep the public apprised of 

 coastal issues. Below are the contacts and numbers for the ones we 

 mentioned: 



N.C. Coastal Federation. Todd Miller, 919/393-8185 



Hewlett's Creek Watershed Association, Betsey Talley, 919/791-4103 



Pamlico-Tar River Foundation, Dave McNaught, 919/946-7211 



LegaSea, Michael Egan, 919/473-5888 



Ocracoke Committee, Charles Runyon, 919/928-5811 



Carteret County Crossroads, Charles Runyon, 919/728-8769 



Sunset Beach Taxpayers Association, Minnie Hunt, 919/579-2124 



Penderwatch and Conservancy, Howard Sterne, 919/270-9733 



Friends of Hatteras Island, Ricki Shepherd, 919/986-2703 



Friends of Roanoke Island, Sybil Basnight, 919/473-6365 



N.C. Wildlife Federation, Michael Corcoran, 919/833-1923 



N.C. Environmental Defense Fund, Doug Rader, 919/821-7793 



Nature Conservancy, Katherine Skinner, 919/967-7007 



Siena Club, Ray Lee, 919/830-0312 



Audubon Society, Walker Golder, 919/256-9783 



Economic Alliance of N.C, Ken Stewart, 919/256-2881 



N.C. Marina Association, Susan Hebert, 919/249-0200 



Southern Environmental Law Center, Lark Hayes, 919/967-1450 E2 



COASTWATCH 7 



