The checkpoint just past the Wright Memorial Bridge on Hwy. 158 in Kitty Hawk. (Photo by Kari Pugh of OBX Today.)
Non-resident property owners are prohibited from entering Dare County and the Currituck County Outer Banks, starting tonight (Friday) at 10.
The Dare County Control Group decided to invoke this further restriction on visitors after meeting this evening to receive an update on COVID-19. Currituck County followed suit by amending its declaration of emergency to extend its visitor prohibition to restrict non-resident property owners.
This new measure is being taken in order to reduce “the number of individuals in the county and ultimately [reduce] potential virus spread and the burden on our healthcare system,” according to COVID-19 Bulletin #10 of the Dare County Emergency Management.
Previous restrictions on mass gatherings and visitor entry remain in place.
SOUTHERN SHORESTOWN COUNCIL MEETING CANCELED
The Southern Shores Town Council canceled its March 24 workshop meeting session today, presumably at a special meeting it held at 3 p.m.
The Beacon will not report on today’s Council special meeting, which you may view on a videotape accessible through the Town website homepage. We will tell you that only Mayor Tom Bennett, Mayor Pro Tem Elizabeth Morey, and Councilman Matt Neal attended for the Town Council, and that Interim Town Manager Wes Haskett and Town Clerk Sheila Kane were also present.
The Beacon believes that the holding of a public meeting like this one solely for the purpose of voting upon business that members of the Council have already deliberated upon and decided, outside the purview of public scrutiny, makes a mockery of open meeting laws. Our current state of emergency did not justify the Council’s actions.
At the very least, the so-called “meeting packet” that was posted online hours before the meeting should have contained the exact language that the three Council members planned to approve.
The Beacon also does not believe this meeting should have been held. We are in a critical containment period with the coronavirus, and all infectious disease experts are advising Americans to “shelter in place” now.
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE TAX FILING DATE EXTENDED
The Internal Revenue Service has extended the tax return filing deadline, as well as the tax payment deadline, as The Beacon reported yesterday, to July 15.
In an extraordinary move, Southern Shores Mayor Tom Bennett has called a special meeting of the Town Council tomorrow at 3 p.m. in the Pitts Center in order to cancel the previously scheduled March 24 budget workshop session and to consider adopting a policy that would allow the Town Council to meet electronically.
In a notice posted to the Town website today, but dated and signed by the Mayor yesterday, the purpose of the special meeting is further described as being to consider amending the Town Council’s Rules of Procedure so that either the Mayor alone or any two Council members can cancel or reschedule a meeting during a declared emergency.
That the Mayor would schedule an in-person meeting during the 15-day period that President Trump has asked all citizens to avoid social gatherings of 10 people or more is shocking to The Beacon. It conveys to us a lack of respect for the seriousness of the situation we are all facing and a sense of privilege—that Southern Shores does not have to play by the same rules. See the President’s guidelines, “15 Days to Slow the Spread,” at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/03.16.20_coronavirus-guidance_8.5x11_315PM.pdf.
Last Sunday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that meetings of more than 50 people be canceled or postponed during the next eight weeks. The next day, President Trump issued a recommendation that the number be lowered to 10—until March 31.
This inconsistency between the nation’s highest public-health agency and the White House coronavirus task force is enough to give us pause. Just what does the scientific evidence show?
For weeks, public-health officials have been recommending “social distancing,” encouraging people to maintain a distance of six feet between themselves and others. The transmission of the new coronavirus is not fully understood yet. Any gathering of people should be viewed as an opportunity for viral transmission to occur.
To be safe, we believe municipalities should observe the task force’s recommendations about COVID-19 protection at least until the end of the month—at which time, all recommendations can be reevaluated in light of all new evidence. That the Southern Shores Town Council has chosen to disregard the task force’s advice strikes The Beacon as imprudent and arrogant. Although the health risk to meeting attendees may appear slight to the Mayor, it nonetheless exists.
N.C. law already permits a public body to hold a meeting by “telephone or videoconferencing,” as long as it provides a location and a way for the public to listen to the meeting. The public body may charge each member of the public a fee (maximum of $25) to defray the cost of providing a location and equipment. See N.C. Gen. Stat. sec. 143-318.13(a).
That there is no mention in the Mayor’s notice of how the Town Council would preserve public access to its meetings—which is required by State law—if it were to conduct them electronically, concerns The Beacon. A meeting of elected officials that does not allow the public access and a meaningful opportunity to comment cannot be held.
Of course, the Town Council knows this, and, yet, it is meeting tomorrow to formulate and adopt a policy for electronic meetings in a declared emergency without first hearing from the public. It is highly unlikely that many residents/property owners will attend tomorrow’s meeting. Not only have they been given inadequate notice–one day on the website, at best–they have been placed in the untenable position of possibly risking exposure to the coronavirus if they do attend.
Rather than rush to judgment tomorrow, the Town Council should plan thoughtfully how the Town can solicit opinions from residents/property owners about meetings by electronic means and investigate the available enabling technology, and then offer residents a choice. (What are the Council’s options in light of N.C. Gen. Stat. sec. 143-318.13(a)? The Council cannot contravene N.C. statute.)
If the past is any indication, however, The Beacon suspects that the policy will already have been written by 3 p.m. tomorrow and will be read into the public record as a motion that will be unanimously approved.
The Beacon believes the Mayor is making an error in judgment in calling this special meeting. We also believe it is premature to consider holding Town Council meetings that are neither urgent nor critical by electronic means.
The Beacon further believes that the Mayor, who unilaterally declares a state of emergency, should not be given unilateral authority to cancel or reschedule a Town Council meeting during an emergency. This represents too much consolidated power for a Mayor in a council-manager form of government. If the authority to cancel or reschedule a meeting is delegated to two Council members, their decision should only be effective with the consent of the Town Manager.
The postponement of the March 24 workshop meeting is an inconvenience. The business on its agenda will hold.
The Beacon reached out to Geri Sullivan, who is on our editorial board and is a former candidate for Town Council, about the possibility of the Council holding meetings remotely. Ms. Sullivan emailed the following thoughtful response:
“I think there could be instances, e.g., emergency meetings to deal with issues during this health crisis via electronic meetings. However, certain items, like budget approval, tax rate increases, non-emergency budget amendments or project approvals, etc., or changes to ordinances should not be addressed during these meetings.
“We should realize that this current health crisis could go on for several months, and our town may have to deal with a number of issues that can’t wait for an open public meeting. Since the town needs to come up with a budget for spending, could they not provide for a three-month budget at the current spending level and extend on a month-to- month basis until it is safe to resume open public meetings?
“Also, is there a way people could dial in (or view online) these meetings while they are occurring? And provide access to an online recording available, just like we broadcast current meetings? And also the public should be notified in advance of such meetings, so they can provide written comments and/or phone in comments during the meeting.”
Ms. Sullivan concludes that a policy for using electronic meetings should be defined to cover only special emergency circumstances, and not normal operations.
In a recently released study of 2,143 COVID-19 pediatric patients in China, researchers at the Shanghai Children’s Medical Center report that 90 percent of children either confirmed or suspected of being infected had “mild” or “moderate” disease, the former often characterized by cold-like symptoms, such as a runny nose.
In the interest of disseminating credible and useful information about COVID-19, The Beacon reports the following recent news:
Researchers at the Shanghai Children’s Medical Center have determined in a retrospective study of 2,143 pediatric patients with either confirmed or suspected COVID-19 that coronavirus infections in children are generally less severe than in adults.
They also raise concern about the vulnerability of very young children, especially infants, and U.S. physicians commenting on their study data suggest that children may play a “major role” in spreading the pandemic virus.
The researchers list a number of limitations in their study, the most critical one, we believe, being that 1,412 patients–or 65.9 percent of the total patients studied–were only suspected of having COVID-19. The infections of the other 731 patients were confirmed by laboratory testing.
The majority of the children with severe or critical illness were in the suspected group, not the confirmed group, raising the possibility that they may have had other respiratory infections than COVID-19.
The 2,143 children that the researchers studied ranged in age from newborn to 18, with a median age of 7. They report that more than 90 percent of the children had “mild” or “moderate” suspected or confirmed COVID-19 disease or were even asymptomatic.
The majority of the cases considered “mild” had typical cold-like symptoms, including “fever, fatigue, myalgia, cough, sore throat, runny nose, and sneezing.” But some of these patients, the researchers report, had no fever and only digestive symptoms, such as “nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.”
Children with “moderate” infection had pneumonia with “frequent fever and cough,” usually a dry cough, followed by a productive (wetter) cough. Some had wheezing, but no obvious shortness of breath.
Only 5 percent of the children had severe infections, which began with respiratory symptoms such as fever and cough, sometimes accompanied by gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea. After one week, the children had more difficulty breathing. Those who became “critical” quickly progressed to acute respiratory distress or respiratory failure and “may also have shock, encephalopathy, . . . heart failure, . . . and acute kidney injury,” the researchers report. One 14-year-old boy died.
A group of seven infants—11 percent of the total number of infants—and two children ages 1 to 5—15 percent of the total—progressed to critical condition, which suggested to the researchers that very young children and infants are more vulnerable than older children.
According to a commentary by physician-editors of Pediatrics, which The Washington Post reported, the study suggests that “children may play a major role in community-based viral transmission.” Their runny noses and gastrointestinal symptoms may make them more contagious.
“Prolonged shedding in nasal secretions and stool has substantial implications for community spread in day-care centers, schools, and in the home,” write Dr. Andrea Cruz, a pediatrician at the Baylor College of Medicine, and Dr. Steve Zeichner, a University of Virginia immunologist.
The one clear takeaway from the study—remember, it is only ONE study, and it has its limitations—is that the new coronavirus causes severe disease across the age spectrum. Children are not immune, as some earlier reports seemed to suggest.
IRS OFFERS TAX RELIEF
The Internal Revenue Service is offering taxpayers an extension of the tax payment deadline from April 15 to July 15. The IRS has not changed the income tax filing deadline. You must still file your return by April 15, but you may defer payment of your tax until July 15.
The IRS has established a special section for “Coronavirus Tax Relief,” which you may access here:
The N.C. Dept. of Revenue has given notice that it will provide penalty relief to taxpayers affected by COVID-19 who cannot meet their filing or payment deadlines. To obtain this relief, you must fill out a “Request to Waive Penalties” form (NC-5500). For more details, see: https://files.nc.gov/ncdor/documents/files/2020-3-17-Important-Notice-COVID.pdf
CORONAVIRUS HOTLINES
For information about COVID-19, especially its symptoms, you may call:
Dare County COVID-19 Hotline: (252) 475-5008
N.C. Coronavirus Hotline: (866) 462-3821
The Beacon welcomes emails about community news related to the coronavirus shutdown that you would like to share. Please email us at ssbeaconeditor@gmail.com.
I thought I would offer you a different image this morning than the CDC’s illustration of the coronavirus, so I posed my two metal flying pig sculptures on my back deck. They seem apt symbols for the improbable situation that we are all living through. (For all the landscapers out there, that is wildlife habitat behind the pigs.)
Yesterday The Beacon published a link to a list compiled by Outer Banks This Week of restaurants that are offering takeout and/or delivery of food orders during the COVID-19 shutdown. The list contained only names, no telephone numbers, service hours, or other details.
Both OBX Today and The Outer Banks Voice have been busy soliciting emails from restaurant owners and otherwise gathering detailed information about the services restaurants will be offering. Their lists may be accessed as follows:
The Voice’s list also includes some retail businesses that are not restaurants.
Needless to say, you will find out all you need to know about your favorite restaurants when you call to place an order.
APRIL 3 BULK WASTE PICKUP SET
While our immediate collective future seems uncertain, strange, and slightly ominous, aspects of our daily lives remain predictable and normal. The garbage, for example, is still being collected on Mondays, and the springtime bulk waste pickup will occur in April. The Town has announced a collection date of April 3.
For a list of approved and unapproved items for the pickup, see:
The big no-nos are televisions and building supplies.
As The Beacon previously reported, Dare County is holding three household hazardous waste collections this year. The Northern Dare beach collection will occur on Thursday, May 28, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Kitty Hawk Recycling Center on Bob Perry Road. (See The Beacon, 3/12/20.)
The Beacon will publish a post targeted to news related to COVID-19 later today.
If you are a permanent resident of Dare, Currituck, Hyde, or Tyrrell county, you do not need an entry permit to enter Dare County.
Dare County is reporting that no one with proper identification—either a valid N.C. driver’s license with an address in one of the local counties or a government-issued identification card with a local address—will be denied entry.
If you are a non-resident property owner in Dare County, you will be permitted to enter the county if you show a current tax bill or parcel data sheet with a current matching government-issued identification card. You, too, do not need an entry permit.
Since the entry system was launched yesterday at 1 p.m.–an hour before the restriction on visitor entry took effect–Dare County Emergency Management has reportedly processed over 9,000 entry permits. The high volume of applications has caused users many difficulties, however, and the County is asking people who do not need a permit immediately to wait and apply when they do need one.
To expedite the checkpoint process, the Dare County Sheriff’s Office has asked all commercial traffic entering the county to use the right lane, and all non-commercial, “regular” traffic to use the left lane.
As of 11:30 a.m. today, no one had tested positive for COVID-19 in Dare County, according to Dare County Emergency Management.
County public health officials are continuing to encourage members of the local community to practice “social distancing,” which means staying a minimum of six feet away from other people whenever possible.
They are also advising people to avoid discretionary travel, shopping trips, social visits, and social gatherings in groups of more than 10 people.
Southern Shores Town Councilman Jim Conners contacted The Beacon today with information about how residents may purchase groceries and order prescriptions without visiting the retail stores. Mr. Conners emailed the following:
Recently I visited or called the following stores to see if they delivered prescription drugs or groceries:
Order prescription drugs, and CVS will mail them to you within one to two days
Dare County Social Services also has provisions for delivering prescription medications and other services that can be used by “homebound” residents, Councilman Conners says.
Mr. Conners further notes that Walmart and Home Depot have provisions for ordering goods online and then delivering them to buyers via FedEx or UPS.
Thank you, Councilman Conners.
The Beacon welcomes other information about local delivery and pick-up services that residents may use to avoid potential exposure to the coronavirus. We anticipate that supermarkets, pharmacies, and other essential providers will be changing their practices to accommodate the current situation.
RESTAURANTS OFFERING TAKEOUT AND DELIVERY
Outer Banks This Week has compiled lists of local restaurants that are offering either carryout food service alone or both carryout and delivery. The Beacon has not called the restaurants listed to confirm that the services are being provided.
Local writer Hannah Lee Leidy publishes Outer Banks This Week, which is online at outerbanksthisweek.com.
In or near Southern Shores, Coastal Provisions is reportedly offering carryout food service, and Cosmos’s Pizzeria and the Black Pelican are offering both carryout and delivery.
Among the many articles I have read about symptoms of the new coronavirus, I found this one published in The Washington Post today among the most enlightening because it describes progression of the disease in a healthy 54-year-old woman:
Many people have seasonal allergies at this time of year, and we are still experiencing the cold and influenza season. While there is a risk involved in self-diagnosing without the advice of a physician, there is also a risk involved in assuming respiratory symptoms signify the worst and over-burdening the local health-care system. We believe the more credible information people have, the better.
RECYCLING UPDATE: MARCH 30 MEETING OF COUNTY, TOWN OFFICIALS EXPECTED TO BE CONDUCTED REMOTELY
A major meeting scheduled in Manteo March 30 of State, Dare County, and town officials and representatives to discuss “different options to move forward” in the current recycling crisis is likely to be held remotely, according to Sandy Skolochenko, a community development specialist with the N.C. Dept. of Environmental Quality.
The meeting may be held as a Webinar conference, Ms. Skolochenko said today.
As The Beacon previously reported, the State Division of Waste Management has granted a “temporary exemption” to Southern Shores and other Dare County towns, enabling them to contract with Bay Disposal & Recycling to transport their recyclables to a waste-to-energy incinerator in Virginia, in lieu of recycling them.
Bay Disposal has been taking the loads of Outer Banks recycling that it collects to Wheelabrator in Portsmouth since last December, when Tidewater Fibre Corp. (TFC) stopped accepting them at its materials recycling facility in Chesapeake. Materials recycling facilities like TFC’s receive, separate, and prepare recyclables for marketing to end-user manufacturers.
(For background, see, e.g., The Beacon on 1/18/20, 2/14/20, 3/12/20.)
Ms. Skolochenko described the State’s regulatory exemption as a “temporary holding pattern,” which is in effect until April 15.
N.C. law prohibits the disposal of plastics and aluminum cans in landfills, as well as in incinerators.
Nags Head Town Manager Cliff Ogburn is coordinating the March 30 meeting, she said, which should be open to the public and to the media, regardless of what form it takes.
The Beacon will update this story when more information becomes available.
In response to updated guidelines from the CDC to avoid discretionary travel, the Dare County Control Group has made the decision to restrict visitor access to Dare County beginning today, Tuesday, March 17 at 2:00 p.m.
While there are currently no individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 in Dare County, officials weighed the potential benefits for community health along with the tremendous impacts these restrictions have on our community.
Beginning at 2:00 p.m., checkpoints will be established at entry points to Dare County and no visitors will be allowed access. Permanent residents, non-resident property owners and non-resident employees of Dare County businesses may review entry guidelines at www.darenc.com/entry. Reentry permits from previous years will not be accepted. Staff is working to activate the online permitting system by 1:00 p.m. to apply. We anticipate an influx of users when the system becomes available. To prevent a system overload, if you need an entry permit, please wait and apply closer to the date of your anticipated arrival.
Personnel working at the Emergency Operations Center are available to answer COVID-19 related questions using a dedicated phone line. Please call 252.475.5008. Personnel anticipates a high volume of calls. If you reach a voicemail, please leave a message and your call will be returned as soon as possible.
For regularly updated information on COVID-19 in Dare County and information about how to protect yourself, your family and our community, visit www.darenc.com/covid-19.
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Dare County Emergency Alerts Network.
Because this affects me personally, I will be unable to follow up on this report immediately. I will be back online as soon as possible with additional information.
This is an illustration of the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 created by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Governor Roy Cooper is expected to announce today an executive order to close all North Carolina restaurants and bars to dine-in customers starting at 5 p.m., according to a report by OBX Today. The order will allow these establishments to continue taking takeout and delivery orders, however.
In other news, the Southern Shores Town Council has given notice on the Town website that it will hold its 9 a.m. March 24 budget workshop as previously scheduled, despite the states of emergency declared yesterday by Dare County and the Town to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
The County’s state of emergency restricts mass gatherings of 50 people or more.
The Council’s budget workshop meeting is top-heavy with business, including consideration of a potential beach nourishment project and potential no-left-turn weekends this summer; the Town pay study; and capital street projects.
AT THE PRESS BRIEFING: Dr. Mandy Cohen, Secretary of the NCDHHS, reported that 1,100 people have been tested in North Carolina for COVID-19, and 40 of them have tested positive. No one has died from the virus.
Most of the confirmed cases of COVID-19 are in Wake County, which is where Raleigh is located. No cases have been reported in Northeastern North Carolina.
Dr. Cohen said that the criteria for testing a person for the coronavirus are the following: 1) a fever; 2) a cough; and 3) a negative flu test. No longer is contact with a person who has been in an epidemic area a prerequisite to a test.
The shelves on the bath tissue aisle at Food Lion in the Marketplace are empty, as locals prepare for COVID-19-related self-quarantining by stocking up on toilet paper. You will not find any tissue across the street at Harris Teeter, either. The Beacon did not check Walmart or CVS Pharmacy for supplies.
Mayor Tom Bennett announced a state of emergency in Southern Shores today shortly after Dare County declared a county-wide state of emergency in order to allow the County and individual towns to implement quickly restrictions necessary to thwart the spread of the new coronavirus known as COVID-19.
“I believe it essential to take as many proactive measures as we can in dealing with the potential impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19),” the Mayor said in a letter to the community.
So far, no COVID-19 cases have been confirmed on the Outer Banks. Thirty-three people have tested positive for the virus in North Carolina.
The World Health Organization has declared COVID-19, which poses the most dire health risk to elderly people and people with underlying medical conditions, a worldwide pandemic. Some nations, including Italy, Germany, Ireland, and Denmark, are in lockdown, tightening their borders and severely restricting the movement of their own citizens.
Effective immediately, the Southern Shores Town Hall is closed to the public. The Town announced today that all business will be conducted by telephone, email, fax, or other “virtual means to the greatest extent possible.”
A notice posted on the Town website further states that all meetings of “all appointed Town advisory boards, commissions and committees will be modified to reduce vulnerability of people and property” of Southern Shores.
Town staff will be in contact with groups expecting to meet on Town property to “outline meeting procedures going forward.”
Tonight’s Planning Board meeting, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center, has been canceled.
Adhering to the guidance that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provided yesterday, Dare County’s state of emergency restricts “mass” gatherings of 50 people or more.
A mass gathering does not include groups of people in medical facilities, libraries, shopping malls/centers and other retail establishments, restaurants, factories, office environments, or other spaces where people may be incidentally gathered. The restriction apparently applies to organized meetings and events in which more than 50 people may be expected to gather.
The Dare County Control Group made the decision to declare the County’s state of emergency after meeting this morning. Officials of the Control Group are adhering to guidance and recommendations issued by the CDC and the N.C. Dept. of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS). The Control Group said that it will continue to meet and provide updates on a daily basis.
You may access updated County information at darenc.com/covid19 or sign up to receive news directly from the County at darenc.com/enotify.
Dare County has set up a telephone hotline for information about COVID-19 testing and symptoms, travel restrictions, preparation efforts, and prevention suggestions at (252) 475-5008. It will be staffed daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; those hours may be extended, the County said, depending on the call volume.
N.C. Governor Roy Cooper previously ordered the closure of all State public schools, effective today, and restricted mass gatherings of 100 people or more, when the CDC and the NCDHHS had so advised. So far, the Governor has not imposed travel restrictions in North Carolina.
According to the County, the following facilities will be closed until further notice beginning at 2 p.m. today: the Dare County Center, the Thomas A. Baum Senior Center, the Fessenden Center, all Dare County libraries, and all County parks and recreation facilities. You will find a complete list of cancellations and closures at www.darenc.com/closures.
Dare County offices will remain open, but in-person contact may be limited. The County suggests that, before you visit one of its offices, you check its website or call ahead to confirm that face-to-face services will be provided, or if you will have to communicate online or over the telephone.
PLEASE NOTE: This article may be revised as further information becomes known.
Dare County’s glass crusher was in operation last Thursday, when The Beacon visited.
In 2018, Dare County’s glass crusher handled 500 tons of glass, reducing bottles and jars to piles of fine sand and a pebble mulch that are free to the public.
Five hundred tons, according to Doug Huff, the county’s Solid Waste Superintendent. That is a lot of wine, beer, and liquor bottles.
For more than a decade, Dare has been the only county in North Carolina with its own mechanized glass pulverizer. The machine is the crown jewel of the county’s recycling operation, which The Beacon recently toured with Mr. Huff and Dare County Public Works Director Shanna Fullmer. Southern Shores Civic Assn. president Rod McCaughey came along for the ride, at The Beacon’s invitation.
“We want to do everything possible to work with local government entities on responsible recycling efforts,” Mr. McCaughey told The Beacon.
The SSCA owns and manages extensive open spaces in Southern Shores. It is also a voice for its membership, Mr. McCaughey said, in “the health and welfare of our community as a whole.”
According to County Manager/Attorney Bobby Outten, Dare County purchased its glass crusher in 2008 after the State of North Carolina began requiring holders of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Commission permits to recycle all recyclable beverage containers.
Needless to say, the Outer Banks has many restaurants, convenience stores, and other retail and entertainment establishments that have ABC permits to sell wine, malt beverages, and mixed drinks on their premises. At the urging, and with the powerful assistance of former N.C. State Senator and Senate President Marc Basnight, according to Mr. Outten, the County and the Dare County Tourism Bureau got out in front of the new State law.
The total cost associated with the glass crusher was $225,000, Mr. Outten said, of which the county paid about half.
The glass crusher itself cost about $120,000, which was covered by a state grant.
SOUTHERN SHORES RECYCLABLES GOING TO AN INCINERATOR NOW
As The Beacon has previously reported, Bay Disposal and Recycling, with whom Southern Shores has a three-year contract for curbside recycling pickup that it signed in June 2018, is no longer hauling its loads to a materials recycling facility, also known as a materials re-use or recovery or reclamation facility. Such facilities are referred to as MRFs, an abbreviation pronounced as murfs.
MRFs receive, separate, and prepare recyclables for marketing to end-user manufacturers. There is no MRF in northeastern North Carolina. The closest MRF to the Outer Banks is Tidewater Fibre Corp. (TFC) Recycling’s MRF in Chesapeake, Va.
Last December, however, TFC stopped accepting Bay Disposal’s collected recyclables at its facility. Since then, the Powells Point-based hauler has transported all of its loads to a waste-to-energy facility in Portsmouth that incinerates them.
None of the items that you currently place in your recycling receptacles, which you then wheel to the roadside for the Wednesday morning pickup, are actually being recycled. They are being burned.
This is true of all unsorted so-called “single-stream” recycling that Bay Disposal collects, whether it is from curbside cans or from bins at county and town recycling centers, such as at the joint Dare County-Kitty Hawk Recycling Center, located at 4150 Bob Perry Road in Kitty Hawk.
The N.C. State law that imposed a duty on ABC permittees to recycle and took effect in 2008 also prohibits the incineration of recyclable beverage containers sold by ABC permittees, as well as aluminum cans. Clearly, this is precisely what is happening now with such Outer Banks recyclables.
The N.C. Dept. of Environmental Quality is temporarily allowing Bay Disposal to transport recyclables to Wheelabrator, the energy facility, while it investigates other solutions. This is strictly a short-term arrangement.
(For background, see The Beacon, 12/7/19, 1/3/20, 1/9/20, 2/3/20, 2/14/20.)
DARE COUNTY’S CRUSHER AND OVERALL RECYCLING OPERATION
One obvious solution for glass products that Outer Banks consumers and businesses have been putting in single-stream recycling is to arrange for their transport to the Dare County public works facility for pulverization in the glass crusher. The facility is located at 1018 Driftwood Drive, just outside of downtown Manteo, off of N.C. Hwy. 64.
There is consumer and commercial demand for crushed glass sand or pebbles, which may be used in road and sidewalk construction, on driveway surfaces, and in landscaping projects, as well as in candles, lamps, stained-glass windows, jewelry, and other art objects.
People interested in obtaining some of the sand or mulch must call ahead and put their names on a list, according to Ms. Fullmer. They will be notified when they can pick up their treasure. (Call (252) 475-5890).
In the off-season, the Public Works Director said, the crusher operates about once per month. During the summer, its use increases to about once per week, she estimated.
Hammers inside the glass crusher pound about five tons of glass per hour.
Employed with the county public works department since 1996, Ms. Fullmer previously served as Solid Waste Superintendent and interim director before being named to her current position in October 2018.
In announcing her appointment, Mr. Outten noted her “can-do attitude” and described her as “working daily” to make the public works department run “more efficiently.”
We would just call her a dynamo. She has the high energy and know-how to get things done.
Ms. Fullmer presides over a large domain—what with trash collection for Manteo, the unincorporated Dare County areas, and the Town of Kitty Hawk; annual large-item pickups; maintenance and landscaping of all county facilities; special waste-disposal programs, mosquito control, etc., etc., in addition to myriad recycling operations—that includes the county’s 900-acre landfill in Stumpy Point, which she encouraged me to visit.
Ms. Fullmer assured me the landfill is pristine and nothing like the towering, malodorous landfills that conceal dead bodies on true-crime shows.
We walked on crushed glass when we crossed the public works facility grounds to witness up-close the operation of the mighty crusher. Mr. Huff picked up a handful of the sparkling glass under foot to prove that it was neither sharp nor jagged and, therefore, would pose no threat of injury.
The gray beast itself is a noisy, but efficient machine with a 20-foot-long conveyor belt that transports the bottles, which have already been broken down into pieces, to the inner workings where the pulverization hammers do their work. It screens out wine bottle corks, beer bottle caps, and other debris so that the residue of the process is just glass, which is deposited in two piles on the ground: one, the fine glass sand, the other, the pebble mulch. (See the photo above; the piles are on either side of the shovel.)
Dare County has separate bins for glass at its drop-off recycling centers, which are located, in addition to the Driftwood Drive site, in Buxton and Rodanthe. Its shared drop-off center in Kitty Hawk also has a bin for glass only and is within easy driving distance of Southern Shores. Only pre-sorted glass makes its way into the crusher.
Besides glass, the county public works facility has separate bins for sorted corrugated cardboard, paper, and large metal (not aluminum cans), for which, Ms. Fullmer said, there are markets. She described the recyclables that Dare can sell as “very basic stuff,” and said its profits have fallen off steeply in recent years.
Two years ago, Ms. Fullmer explained, Butler Paper Recycling in Suffolk paid the County $180 per ton for its paper recyclables. Today, the price is only $20 per ton.
“Recycling has never been a moneymaker,” Mr. Huff observed, but its value to the natural environment and the U.S. quality of life is priceless.
(Please note: The Beacon was earlier misinformed by a source about Dare having recycling markets for aluminum cans and plastics. It does not.)
The County makes some money off of recycled tires, thanks to the State’s Scrap Tire Disposal Act, which requires counties to provide for the disposal of scrap tires within their geographic boundaries. A scrap tire disposal tax is applied to the sale of all new tires, and the N.C. Dept. of Revenue distributes these tax proceeds to counties, proportionately.
In 2018, according to Mr. Huff, Dare County processed 750 tons of scrap tires, transporting them to a recycler in Cameron, N.C.
A CULTURAL CHANGE IS NEEDED
Although the County’s drop-off recycling centers accept single-stream recycling, it is going exactly where your curbside recycling is going now: to an incinerator.
Even before TFC stopped taking single-stream recyclables from the Outer Banks, it was having to deal with contamination in the product—which meant that recyclables were being rejected and ending up in landfills.
Contamination means both that consumers are inadequately cleaning accepted recyclables, as well as improperly including in the stream items that are not recyclable or that interfere with MRF processing, such as plastic bags, string, wax-covered food cartons, and styrofoam. (Ms. Fullmer and Mr. Huff say they have seen trash such as soiled diapers, used hypodermic needles, and other disgusting waste in single-stream recycling.)
Dare County Manager Bobby Outten said there have been discussions on the county and state level for the past two years about what to do with recycling—ever since China enacted its “National Sword” policy and banned importation of plastics and other recyclable materials from overseas because of their contamination.
“Sorting on the front end is easier and cleaner” and vital, said Ms. Fullmer, who explained that professionals in the solid waste management industry were always dubious about single-streaming, which may not survive shifts in the marketplace.
As we have previously reported, China is not the only game in the world—India, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia have stepped up to try to fill the voice—but The Beacon believes the future of waste management in the United States rests in large part with reforming our throwaway culture and reducing American reliance on plastic containers, especially the omnipresent plastic water bottle.
It may be up to the grass roots to start the reformation, which could begin simply at the supermarket, when you reach for bottled water and other beverages. Think glass, not plastic or aluminum.
Locally, until a better option presents itself, you also can help by sorting your glass and corrugated cardboard from the rest of your no-longer-recycled recyclables and transporting these products to the Kitty Hawk recycling center. The Beacon is still trying to figure out how to consolidate paper recyclables–newspapers, magazines, paper bags, printer paper, and other products–and arrange for their regular transport to Manteo.
The Dare County/Kitty Hawk center is attended and is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday. The center also accepts old furniture, electronics, and white goods. If you live in Southern Shores and would like to drop off a large item, you will need to obtain a permit from the Town, which Interim Town Manager Wes Haskett said costs $50. (I have had no trouble leaving old televisions and computers there.)
The Manteo recycling center is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday. Upon arrival, you drive in and back to the rear of the grounds, where you will find the appropriate bin for disposing of your recyclables.
We have learned recently that a multi-town meeting to discuss local recycling options will be held in Manteo on March 30. When further details become available, we will pass them along.
HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECTION DAYS SCHEDULED IN MAY
One further note: Thanks to Ms. Fullmer, Dare County will be hosting household hazardous waste collections in three locations this year. The Northern Dare beach collection will occur on Thursday, May 28, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Kitty Hawk Recycling Center on Bob Perry Road.
A Buxton collection will take place at the Dare County transfer station there on May 29 from 2 to 4 p.m., and the Manteo collection will be May 30, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the public works facility.
This program is the brainchild of the dynamo Public Works Director, who smartly decided that you need a place to dispose safely of the following materials:
*Paint, polishes, and varnishes, as well as paint-related materials
*Turpentine
*Aerosol cans
*Adhesives
*Motor oil
*Antifreeze
*Fuel additives
*Household cleaners
*Herbicides and insecticides
*Gasoline
*Batteries (regular and automotive)
*Mercury
*Pool chemicals
*Fluorescent light bulbs
*Automotive fluids (brake, transmission, etc.)
For more information about these drop-off days, contact Mr. Huff at (252) 475-5843.
The Dare County public works facility in Manteo and the recycling center in Kitty Hawk accept batteries and used motor oils throughout the year. Check with the public works department before you make a trip to one of the county’s other recycling centers: (252) 475-5890.
When the Dare County Board of Commissioners meets at 8 a.m. Friday for a special retreat to begin fiscal year 2020-21 budget discussions, members of the Southern Shores library committee will be there.
You could not keep them away. It would be difficult to find a more organized, purposeful, and determined town group. And now these go-getters are seeking your support for the new “Northern Dare” library in the form of emails to the commissioners and signatures on a petition.
“We’re in the budget discussions,” committee member Lilias Morrison reported to the Town Council at its meeting last week. “We’re not in the budget.” (See The Beacon, 3/8/20.)
“So much depends on public support now,” she said at a committee meeting last night.
To get into the Dare County budget, committee members recognize that they need to continue to advocate and to secure public support for the library, which would serve the towns of Duck, Southern Shores, and Kitty Hawk, and the Martin’s Point community.
Dare County currently has library branches in Manteo, Hatteras, and Kill Devil Hills. There also is a Currituck County branch library in Corolla.
According to Dare County Librarian Jonathan Wark, Ms. Morrison said, the county library system has 1800 members who reside in the 27949 zip code.
Ms. Morrison appeared before the Dare Commissioners on Feb.18 to present the committee’s proposal for the library, which would be located in a 2,570-square foot building owned by TowneBank at 6 Juniper Trail in Southern Shores.
“The commissioners were very attentive and interested,” she told the gathering last night.
The potential library space was formerly occupied by Vandeventer Black law firm. The bank has offered to rent the building to the county for $1 per year for 10 years.
Before contacting TowneBank, Ms. Morrison explained, the committee investigated space in the Marketplace, Southern Shores Crossing, and the Harris Teeter shopping center. Members did their shoe-leather research before TowneBank came through with its generous offer, for which it asks in return some acknowledgment as a benefactor.
The library committee is hopeful that county employees will have compiled cost figures for library shelving, equipment, and other expenses for the commissioners to consider Friday. The committee has already secured an estimate for adapting the Juniper Trail office building into a library of $150,000 to $175,000.
According to the county website, Dare County’s FY 2019-20 budget was $168,817,454. Ms. Morrison said that the budget for all of its libraries is about $1 million.
In addition to housing books, periodicals, and other standard library acquisitions, the Northern Dare Library would have computers and meeting space for adult and children’s programs, including speakers and tutorials. Ms. Morrison specifically mentioned the scheduling of adult wellness and enrichment programs that are popular at the other Dare County library branches.
Committee member Loretta Michael said she could envision library walls covered with notices of community events and happenings and referred to the proposed educational resource as a potential “center of the community.”
The committee urges you to email a letter expressing your support and interest in the Northern Dare Library to the Dare County commissioners, who may be contacted, collectively, at DCBOC@darenc.com, or individually, as follows:
Chairman Robert Woodard: woodard@darenc.com
Vice Chairman Wally Overman: wallyo@darenc.com
Commissioner Rob Ross, who is the Commission’s library liaison: rob.ross@darenc.com
Commissioner Steve House, who represents Duck, Southern Shores, and Kitty Hawk: steve.house@darenc.com
Ms. Michael suggests that you mention in your email specifically how you and the community would benefit from a library in Southern Shores. She has prepared some sample wording, which you may access at file:///C:/Users/Annsj/AppData/Local/Temp/suggested%20wording.pdf.
(The Beacon does not know how many of the committee members may be former teachers or librarians, but committee chair Michael Fletcher was wearing a Library of Congress sweatshirt last night–a gift from his librarian daughter, who works there.)
Ms. Michael is also circulating a petition in support of the new library. You will find a copy of the petition at the Town Hall reception desk, along with brochures about the Northern Dare Library. You also may arrange to sign the petition by contacting Ms. Michael at ljbobx@charter.net.
Please direct any general inquiries about the library proposal to Lilias Morrison at liliasm7@gmail.com.
The Southern Shores Beacon 