Environmental Education Center

GRIFTON — What once may have been thought of as useless land will become an Environmental Education Center meant to better inform students and community groups on the importance of wetlands.

The intersection of Little Contentnea Creek and Contentnea Creek will soon see some clean-up in what eventually will become an Environmental Education Center through joint efforts between the Soil and Water Conservation District, Pitt County as well as partnering agencies.

The area suffered flooding during Hurricane Floyd and was a part of the buyout program offered by FEMA. Pitt County obtained the property at the Creek and later decided the parcel next to it would be useful for the project as well. According to Pitt County Assistant County Manager John Bulow, the county is still in the process of purchasing the parcel located next to the buyout property, which Bulow says is owned by an Ayden resident and contains a boat ramp. In the future, Bulow sees the Center as a plus for students to learn more about the environment and hopes to provide limited access from the boat ramp in the future. However, Bulow says homeowners will have access to the ramp. 

“The site has a lot of potential for the future,” Bulow said. “We want to preserve this area for everyone to use and we want to clean up damages storms have done over the past 10 years.”

Bulow said the project is funded by grant money and there are no Pitt County funds involved. So far ,a $25,000 grant from the Clean Water Trust Fund has been awarded for the Center as well as $10,000 from the Global Transpark, $2,000 from the Resource and Conservation District and $1,000 from the Soil and Water Conservation District.

Bulow also said he believes the education center will be a plus for Pitt County as well as the local towns involved.

“It’s a really good project,” Bulow said. “It’s coming along real good. It promotes business for everybody.”

The Soil and Water Conservation District will take part in developing the Education Center.

Brian Evans, Soil and Water Conservation District’s Technician, says they sponsor environmental field days throughout the year and feel this project will help educate the groups that participate.

“When we found this property, we found it had a lot of key components we were looking for,” Evans said.

Although the Center will be a great attraction to school and community groups, Evans says he has no intentions of this becoming a public park. Evans said the Education Center would be controlled and groups wanting to participated would have to schedule a time to come in.  

Evans said the only building that will be put on the site would possibly be a shelter, to give groups somewhere to work and stay out of the sun. Evans said he didn’t want to disturb any part of the environment by placing building. An innovative, environmentally friendly restroom may be added at a future date, Evans said.

For now, Evans said his group is focusing on cleaning up and acquiring grant money to fund the Center. After the clean-up, Evans says the Education Center will be ready to be utilized.

“Mother nature provides a majority of the resources you need and we have those resources now,” Evans said. “We’re to the point we could utilize it as an education center now, with limitations.”

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