N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-131

Resources belong to public; stewardship of conservation agencies; grant and delegation of powers; injunctive relief

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(a) The marine and estuarine and wildlife resources of the State belong to the people of the State as a whole. The Department and the Wildlife Resources Commission are charged with stewardship of these resources.

(b) The following powers are hereby granted to the Department and the Wildlife Resources Commission and may be delegated to the Fisheries Director and the Executive Director:

(1) Comment on and object to permit applications submitted to State agencies which may affect the public trust resources in the land and water areas subject to their respective management duties so as to conserve and protect the public trust rights in such land and water areas;

(2) Investigate alleged encroachments upon, usurpations of, or other actions in violation of the public trust rights of the people of the State; and

(3) Initiate contested case proceedings under Chapter 150B for review of permit decisions by State agencies which will adversely affect the public trust rights of the people of the State or initiate civil actions to remove or restrain any unlawful or unauthorized encroachment upon, usurpation of, or any other violation of the public trust rights of the people of the State or legal rights of access to such public trust areas.

(c) Whenever there exists reasonable cause to believe that any person or other legal entity has unlawfully encroached upon, usurped, or otherwise violated the public trust rights of the people of the State or legal rights of access to such public trust areas, a civil action may be instituted by the responsible agency for injunctive relief to restrain the violation and for a mandatory preliminary injunction to restore the resources to an undisturbed condition. The action shall be brought in the superior court of the county in which the violation occurred. The institution of an action for injunctive relief under this section shall not relieve any party to such proceeding from any civil or criminal penalty otherwise prescribed for the violation.

(d) The Attorney General shall act as the attorney for the agencies and shall initiate actions in the name of and at the request of the Department or the Wildlife Resources Commission.

(e) In this section, the term "public trust resources" means land and water areas, both public and private, subject to public trust rights as that term is defined in G.S. 1-45.1.

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a county or city may adopt and enforce ordinances as provided in G.S. 153A-145.3 or G.S. 160A-205, respectively. (1965, c. 957, s. 2; 1973, c. 1262, s. 18; 1987, c. 641, s. 14; 2013-384, s. 4(b); 2015-70, s. 2.)

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 4 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1980–2025 · leading case: Town of Nags Head v. Cherry, Inc.

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Town of Nags Head v. Cherry, Inc. (2012) ncctapp · cites it 18× “See N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-131 (2009); Fabrikant, 174 N.”

In Re the Appeal From the Denial of the Application to Dredge (1980) nc · cites it 6× “Since the purpose of the act is to conserve our estuarine resources, G.S. 113-131 and 132, the denial of permits under G.”

Nies v. Town of Emerald Isle (2015) ncctapp · cites it 4× “113-131 or any other provision of law, a city may, by ordinance, define, prohibit, regulate, or abate acts, omissions, or conditions upon the State's ocean beaches and prevent or abate any unreasonable restriction of the public's rights to use the State's ocean beaches.”

State of N.C. v. E.I. Du Pont De Nemours & Co. (2025) ncbizct · cites it 6× “10 (quoting N.C.G.S. § 113-131(d)) (emphasis in original) (footnote omitted).”

— N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-131(d) — 1 case

State of N.C. v. E.I. Du Pont De Nemours & Co. (2025) ncbizct “10 (quoting N.C.G.S. § 113-131(d)) (emphasis in original) (footnote omitted).”

— N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-131(e) — 1 case

Nies v. Town of Emerald Isle (2015) ncctapp “113-131 or any other provision of law, a city may, by ordinance, define, prohibit, regulate, or abate acts, omissions, or conditions upon the State's ocean beaches and prevent or abate any unreasonable restriction of the public's rights to use the State's ocean beaches.”

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