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Contact:	Derb Carter SELC Attorney 919-967-1450
	Chris Canfield Audubon North Carolina 919-929-3899

October 25, 2006, Chapel Hill–The U.S. Navy and environmental groups represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center have reached a settlement on proposed Military Operations Areas (MOAs) to be located in Eastern North Carolina that would impact wildlife in and around four National Wildlife Refuges. The Southern Environmental Law Center represented the National Audubon Society, Defenders of Wildlife and the North Carolina Wildlife Association in the settlement.

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As part of the settlement, the Navy agreed to withdraw its plans for a MOA that would have overlain parts of Mattamuskeet, Swan Quarter, Pocosin Lakes and Alligator River National Wildlife Refuges. The environmental groups agreed to not oppose a proposed MOA over the Core Banks. The compromise will allow the Navy to access existing military airspace over Pamlico Sound from the Atlantic Ocean but will not result in expansive new military airspace that would impact the hundreds of thousands of waterfowl that winter in and around the wildlife refuges.

“This settlement will allow the Navy to access existing military airspace for its important training while avoiding an unnecessary and significant expansion of military airspace over some of the nation’s most important wildlife refuges,” said Chris Canfield, Executive Director of Audubon North Carolina.

In July, 2005, U.S. District Court Judge Terrence Boyle ruled that the Navy had failed to properly assess the environmental impacts of the proposed MOAs and had erred in its conclusion that the MOAs had no significant impact on waterfowl or wildlife refuges. Boyle ruled that should the Navy proceed with plans for a MOA, it would need to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act and prepare an environmental impact statement.

“This is the first of two essential steps by the Navy needed to protect the wildlife and refuges of eastern North Carolina. The second step is to withdraw or find a new location for the proposed outlying landing field,” said Derb Carter, Senior Attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center.

The new MOAs were proposed by the U.S. Marine Corps, a division of the U.S. Navy. If established, the Mattamuskeet MOA would allow approximately 7.5 hours per day of combat training and maneuvers as low as to 3000 feet above ground level. The MOAs were proposed at the same time as the US Navy’s proposed Outlying Landing Field, and the two proposals would impact the same natural areas and wildlife.

If approved by the Federal Aviation Administration, the Navy will be allowed to fly approximately six flights per day at low altitudes and high speeds in the airspace across the Core Banks as a result of the settlement. The Navy may in the future propose a new or modified MOA in the region but must fully comply with NEPA and the court’s order.

Audubon is dedicated to protecting birds and other wildlife and the habitat that supports them. Our national network of community-based nature centers and chapters, scientific and educational programs, and advocacy on behalf of areas sustaining important bird populations, engage millions of people of all ages and backgrounds in positive conservation experiences.

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