Ducks Unlimited recently worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to repair a storm-damaged coastal impoundment on the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in North Carolina. Approximately 500 acres of coastal wetland habitat were enhanced through this project. DU staff repaired a breach in the perimeter levee and replaced an old pump station to restore management capabilities on the unit. The impoundment was also dredged to remove displaced dike material from the wetland. That material was then used to repair the breach, and staff installed a new bulkhead and aluminum water-control structure.

Pea Island NWR is located on the north end of Hatteras Island, a coastal barrier island that is part of the famed Outer Banks. The area was historically a hub for commercial fishing and market hunting as well as farming and livestock production. Today, the refuge is home to more than 365 species of birds, including large seasonal concentrations of ducks, geese, swans, wading birds, shorebirds, raptors, and neotropical migrants.