RALEIGH, N.C. (July 31, 2006) — State and federal environmental officials have scheduled three workshops in August to help local leaders better understand laws and issues regarding aquatic ecosystems that may affect development projects.

By educating local leaders, state and federal officials hope to raise awareness about the importance of protecting aquatic ecosystems, including threatened and endangered species.  By doing that, officials hope to help local leaders streamline environmental review of development projects. By law, state and federal agencies must oversee any building and construction near rivers, streams, lakes or wetlands.

“Federal laws protect these species,” said Melba McGee, environmental review program manager with the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources. “But unfortunately concerns about aquatic ecosystems are not always factored into a project time line.” 

The workshops will target city and county planners, elected officials, town managers and developers.

The workshops will be held from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on the following schedule: Aug. 17 at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville; Aug. 24 at The Summit at Haw River State Park near Browns Summit; and Aug. 30 at River Park North in Greenville (this workshop is full). Registrants can check-in beginning at 8:30 a.m. the day of each workshop. The cost per workshop is $10 and includes lunch and a copy of “Swimming with the Current – A Guide to Help Local Governments Protect Aquatic Ecosystems While Streamlining Environmental Review.”

The workshops’ sponsors include the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the N.C. Department of Transportation, N.C. DENR, N.C. Natural Heritage Program, N.C. League of Municipalities, N.C. Association of Environmental Professionals and the N.C. Office of Environmental Education.

These workshops will explain the importance of aquatic ecosystems and cover topics such as how aquatic ecosystems affect peoples’ health and the economy. Workshop speakers also will discuss the laws protecting certain species and how to integrate conservation into development projects and land-use planning. There also will be case study presentations and a panel discussion.

For more information, call (919) 707-0224 or visit the Wildlife Resources Commission’s Web site, www.ncwildlife.org/planningworkshop. You can find registration forms on the Web site. Checks should be made payable to NCWRC –Division of Inland Fisheries.