RALEIGH, N.C. (April 20, 2011) – Camp Out-Door-Rageous is an outdoor, outrageous and free weeklong summer program for boys and girls, ages 13 to 17. The program is scheduled for July 25-29 at the Centennial Campus Center for Wildlife Education. The daily camp time is 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Pre-registration is required and now being accepted. “Camp Out-Door-Rageous is a hands-on experience, offered by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, that builds self-reliance and teaches new outdoors skills,” said Kelsey Obernuefemann, an educator at the center. “While conducted in a fairly urban setting on the Centennial Campus of N.C. State University, the camp offers plenty of opportunities for learning about conservation through outdoor skills at nearby Lake Raleigh and surrounding woodlands.” Campers will build a fire without matches, trap and release some wild animals, catch and cook a fish and learn how to shoot a bow and arrow. A

RALEIGH, N.C. (April 20, 2011) – The Woodlands at Davidson, a 50-acre residential neighborhood located near the Town of Davidson, recently earned the first Wildlife Friendly Development Certification in North Carolina through a voluntary new program that encourages wildlife habitat conservation and the use of environmentally sound construction practices for new and existing residential developments. The Wildlife Friendly Development Certification Program is a green-growth initiative launched last fall by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, the N.C. Wildlife Federation and the N.C. chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects to formally recognize developments that meet sufficient criteria that assess wildlife habitat conservation and the use of environmental construction practices for residential developments.    The Woodlands earned the certification after developer John Robbins incorporated several wildlife-friendly features

EMERALD ISLE, N.C. (April 15, 2011) – The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and the Town of Emerald Isle celebrated the opening of the Emerald Isle Boating Access Area —the largest public boat launch facility on the North Carolina Coast —during a grand opening ceremony Friday morning. The Emerald Isle Boating Access Area, on N.C. 58, has four launch lanes, parking for 18 single vehicles and 112 vehicles with trailers.  The town eventually plans to construct additional park amenities. “We are grateful for this partnership with the Town of Emerald Isle that has allowed us to build this coastal region site,” said Erik Christofferson, chief of the Commission’s Division of Engineering Services. “The four launch lanes and ample parking will allow boaters from across the state more convenient access to Bogue Sound and the Intracoastal Waterway. We are grateful to all the partners that contributed to this pro

EMERALD ISLE, N.C. (April 13, 2011) – The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has completed construction on the Emerald Isle Boating Access Area and is opening the site to the public Friday afternoon, April 15. The Emerald Isle Boating Access Area, on N.C. 58 between mile markers 17.5 and 18, has four launch lanes, parking for 112 vehicles with trailers and parking for 18 single vehicles. The town eventually plans to construct additional park amenities. “We are grateful for this partnership with the Town of Emerald Isle that has allowed us to build this coastal region site,” said Erik Christofferson, chief of the Commission’s Division of Engineering Services. “The four launch lanes and ample parking will allow boaters from across the state more convenient access to Bogue Sound and the Intracoastal Waterway. We are grateful to all the partners that contributed to this project.” The Wildlife Commission paid for the const

RALEIGH, N.C. (April 11, 2011) – Becoming an Outdoors Diva is a free weeklong summer program for young women, ages 12 to 17, at the Centennial Campus Center for Wildlife Education on July 11-15. The daily camp time is 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Learning to be an outdoors diva means activities like catching and cooking your own fish, shooting a bow and arrow and building a fire the old-fashioned way – no matches allowed. This is the first year for the program, modeled on Becoming an Outdoors-Woman, an international program of hands-on learning and outdoors experiences sponsored in North Carolina by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. “The program is intended to build self-reliance and confidence, as well as introduce young women to a wide variety of outdoor activities,” said Kelsey Obernuefemann, an educator at the center. “At the end of the week, the campers will compete in an ‘Amazing Race’ competition using th