Hurricane Ophelia has placed our island in jeopardy. We are very fortunate to receive man-made sand dunes as a temporary measure of beach restoration, but it is time to unite as a people and look towards a more permanent solution to our problem.

As long as we all remain silent, the politicians won't help us. We need to be heard as a large group so that action will be taken to preserve our eroding beaches.

In February (2006) a lobbyist, Connie Wilson, hired by the North Carolina Travel Industry Association (NCTIA) met with several homeowners on North Topsail Beach. We were informed that North Topsail Beach, being in a CBRA zone, is not eligible for federal assistance for the beach re-nourishment project that is scheduled in the future. The Federal government will not allocate funds for dredging in CBRA zones. Since NC law does not allow anything other than dredging as a solution to erosion, North Topsail needs to find a different solution. It is the intent of the NCTIA to urge the NC Legislature to enact a law so that a permanent beach restoration project would be required for North Topsail beaches.

NCTIA wants to help restore and preserve North Topsail Beach but will pay for the lobbyist only as long as there are enough interested people who want to save our beaches. These interested people will have to make phone calls or e-mail our representatives. Some volunteers will need to go to Raleigh and appear before the State Legislature.

If we want to save North Topsail Beach, we need to take action now. We need to gather names and e-mail addresses as quickly as possible so we can all stay informed and know when to e-mail and or make calls which we were told may be a dozen times over the course of changing the law.

We thank you for your time. It’s time to protect our properties and our livelihood! Let’s all work together!