This Land, Your Land

Cape Hatteras National Seashore is recruiting volunteers to help prevent incidents of vandalism, crime and damage to park resources and property this summer. Volunteers will be trained to assist the National Park Service in assuring compliance with beach resource closures, monitoring areas of concern that are experiencing crowded conditions, and helping ensure a safe visit for park visitors, a news release says.

The park wants to recruit volunteers from the surrounding communities who spend time on the beach. The program will also ask visitors to report inappropriate activities. Those interested should contact Ocracoke Park Ranger Bill Caswell at 252-928-5111, ext. 26.

Community leaders, park user groups, and park staff have discussed ways to prevent vandalism and unauthorized entry into resource closures, which leads to closure expansions. Under a U.S. District Court approved consent decree, Cape Hatteras National Seashore closes many areas for breeding shorebirds from mid-March to mid-to-late-August and for nesting turtles as late as early November.

The Beach Access Report list of "resource closures" is updated each Thursday.