North Carolina Coastal Zone Management Program

Program Overview

The North Carolina Coastal Management Program was approved by NOAA in 1978 and is administered by the Division of Coastal Management within the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. The primary authority for the coastal management program is the Coastal Area Management Act.

North Carolina’s coastal zone includes 20 coastal counties that in whole or in part are adjacent to, adjoining, intersected, or bounded by the Atlantic Ocean or any coastal sound.