S? Li 



NOV 30 19/6 



NOVEMBER 1976 



1235 Burlington Laboratories 

 NCSU, Raleigh, N.C. 27607 Tel: (919) 7S7-2U5U 



Slipping Away: Erosion on the Estuarine Coast 



Robert Leigh got a good buy on his shore front 

 home. At least he thought it was a good buy until 

 he discovered his 75 by 125 foot lot was slipping 

 into Albemarle Sound. 



"I've probably lost 30 feet in the last eight 

 years," Leigh said. "What am I doing about it? 

 Well, a man came the other day and estimated it 

 would take $3,000 to protect my property. I can't 

 afford it." 



So Leigh is dumping leaves and dirt and old logs 

 in front of his home and hoping he can sell it before 

 the next northeaster hits. 



"I'm moving to the other side of the county," he 



said. "I like the water and all but I can't keep 

 dumping money into this." 



Next door, Leigh's father-in-law Marvin Water- 

 field is also fighting loss of his land. He has lost at 

 least 60 feet in the last 12 years — and that in an 

 area where a lot 75 feet wide by 150 feet deep sells 

 for $10,000. 



Farther north, John Stallings, farm manager for 

 Avoca Farms in Merry Hill, is facing a similar 

 problem. And he's almost convinced he can't stop 

 the erosion of the farm's two and a half miles of 

 high shoreline. 



(See "Sad Tales," page 6) 



