100-year storm, such as Hurricane Hazel, has the 

 capacity to flood coastal North Carolina up to an 

 elevation of about 11 feet, according to coastal 

 engineer Jerry Machemehl of NCSU. Machemehl is 

 continuing work this year to map the coastal areas 

 susceptible to flooding and wind damage from storms 

 of varying intensities. In addition, Machemehl will 

 spell out safe construction features for the coastal 

 area. This information, along with maps delineating 

 the hazard areas, will be published for the public this 

 year. 



Currents and waves affect everything from erosion 

 to offshore dumping of sewage. In recent years 

 researchers have concentrated on the currents and 

 waves well off North Carolina's shore. There is, 

 however, much to be learned about the nearshore 

 area of the ocean. Two groups of researchers are 

 beginning work this year to better define and predict 

 what's happening with waves and currents in the 

 nearshore ocean— from the surf up to 20 kilometers 

 offshore. 



At NCSU oceanographers Ernie Knowles and Bob 

 Weisberg are analyzing data on waves to predict 

 nearshore ocean conditions in response to such fac- 

 tors as storm's. That information should be of use to 

 fishermen as well as coastal engineers. 



But in order to assess the mass movements of 

 water in the nearshore area, new instruments must 

 be developed. Oceanographer Tom Curtin and 

 engineer Yates Sorrell of NCSU this year are at- 

 tempting to develop an inexpensive device to measure 

 more accurately nearshore currents. Experiments 

 will be carried out off Nags Head to test the in- 

 strumentation. Once the devices are developed, it will 

 be possible to calculate the transport and mixing of 

 any pollutant discharged into or entering a region. 

 The device will be useful to communities considering 

 ocean outfall of treated sewage. 



Carolina Beach a month after Hurricane Hazel 



Estuarine studies 



Estuaries, by definition, are mixing zones, where 

 ocean water meets fresh water. But they also are 

 among the most biologically productive areas on the 

 coast. They provide nursery grounds for countless 

 species of fish and shellfish, sinks for runoff from the 

 mainland and buffers against the torrents of coastal 

 storms. In North Carolina there are more than two 

 million acres of estuarine water, making the state's 

 coast one of the most unique in the nation. 



Unfortunately like many important natural 

 systems, estuaries also are very vulnerable to the ef- 

 fects of pollution. Last year nearly a fourth of the 

 state's shellfishing waters were closed due to pollu- 

 tion, much of it a result of man's activities. Trans- 

 lated into dollars and cents, such closures can mean 

 tremendous economic loss. 



This year Sea Grant is funding eight research pro- 

 jects dealing with the state's estuarine resources. 

 Taken together, these projects will help provide a 

 clearer understanding of the estuarine environment 

 and how it can be protected from unwise use. 



Results of a Sea Grant study started several years 

 ago by soil scientist Bobby Carlile of NCSU are 

 already helping. Two alternative septic waste dis- 

 posal systems designed by Carlile have made safe 

 development possible in coastal areas such as Hyde 

 County where nearly 90 percent of the soils are un- 

 suitable for conventional septic systems. This year 

 Carlile is continuing his work with the new systems. 

 He's looking at ways to rejuvenate failing conven- 

 tional systems and plans to devise a formula for 

 predicting how well different soil types can handle 

 disposal loads. 



The effects of pollution aren't limited to water 

 quality. Pollution affects the quality and safety of 

 shellfish as well. In earlier studies microbiologist 

 Mark Sobsey of UNC-CH found that bacterial stan- 

 dards used in testing shellfish quality weren't ade- 

 quate for detecting viral contamination. Now he 

 wants to find out what sort of relationship exists be- 

 tween sewage contamination and virus levels in 

 shellfish and surrounding waters and sediments. Ul- 

 timately that information may make it possible for 

 health authorities to establish shellfish standards 

 based on enteric virus levels. Sobsey also will be 

 testing methods for removing viruses and bacteria in 

 shellfish taken from polluted waters by transferring 

 or "relaying" them to clean waters. 



Like Sobsey, microbiologists, Barney Kane and 

 Donald Jeffreys of ECU have found that bacterial 

 standards are not always the best measure of 

 shellfish quality. In the case of the brackish water 

 Rangia clam, they found that the clam has a 

 naturally high level of harmless bacteria. In the past 

 the high bacterial content has kept the clam from be- 

 ing marketed. 



Now the researchers think the clam is safe enough 

 to market from a bacteriological standpoint but they 

 worry about problems with taste. Though harmless, 

 the bacteria in the clam give it a "musty" flavor. 



