By NC Coastal Land Trust
The North Carolina Coastal Land Trust (Coastal Land Trust) announced that it has reached its goal to raise nearly $8 million to purchase and protect the South End of Topsail Island. More than 760 donors contributed a total of about $1.5 million to the Save the South End campaign. The Coastal Land Trust secured the rest of the funding needed through grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, North Carolina Land and Water Fund, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Over the next three months, the Coastal Land Trust will complete the due diligence associated with purchasing the South End and placing it in permanent conservation protection. Once the purchase is completed this spring, the Coastal Land Trust will own and manage the property for up to one year before ultimately transferring it to the State of North Carolina to be managed by the Division of Coastal Management.
Background
The South End, also known as ‘The Point’, is a special place. The property features sound-to-sea frontage along the Atlantic Ocean, New Topsail Inlet, and Banks Channel and hosts an expanse of pristine dunes, beach, estuarine wetlands, and maritime shrub forest providing habitat for a diversity of coast-centric wildlife. Loggerhead sea turtles annually make their epic crawl up the beach to lay their eggs, Wilson’s Plovers nest among the dunes, and Willets skitter and forage along the intertidal flats. Seabeach amaranth, a rare sand-binding coastal plant, dots the open beach. More than 30 different priority (declining) bird species have been documented there. The South End is unparalleled in coastal conservation values and is currently unprotected from future residential development.
The urgency to conserve this natural treasure led the North Carolina Coastal Land Trust to embark on an ambitious campaign in March of 2024. The Coastal Land Trust negotiated and signed a contract to purchase this property, marking a pivotal step towards its permanent preservation. However, this endeavor came with a daunting challenge – raising nearly $8 million by March 2025 to complete the acquisition.
About the NC Coastal Land Trust
The North Carolina Coastal Land Trust enriches North Carolina through conservation of natural areas and working lands, education, and the promotion of good land stewardship in our coastal communities. Founded in 1992, the Coastal Land Trust has protected more than 91,000 acres of places with scenic, recreational, historic, and/or ecological value. www.CoastalLandTrust.org. NC Coastal Land Trust Completes Fundraising Campaign for South End of Topsail Island By NC Coastal Land Trust.
Photo by Gavin Shwahla