BUXTON, N.C. — In September, the scene of the Buxton formerly used defense site off Old Lighthouse Road was an eyesore. Now, someone who wasn't aware of the work that's been done might wonder why the area is closed.
As of the most recent update, the Army Corps of Engineers has removed more than 24,000 gallons of petroleum impacted soil and water, more than 138,000 pounds of concrete and more than 2,000 feet of pipes, metal cables and wires.
“We're very happy and they have made just a tremendous amount of progress down there. There's nothing on the beach whatsoever," said Brian Harris, who is a member of the Buxton Civic Association.
Watch previous coverage: Clean-up efforts progressing at Buxton formerly used defense site
Harris and his fellow Buxton Civic Association members pushed for the structures to be removed from the area, which initially wasn’t the Army Corps of Engineers Plan. Citing that they would only be removing structures that were contaminated. That changed when the agency realized the soil samples they needed to excavate, lied underneath most of the wreckage.
“There's a lot of stuff farther back, but you know, they're dealing with what they can now and getting the beach back to where we can get it open," said Harris.
A survey is now open to gauge public interest in establishing a Restoration Advisory Board. The board would allow for more community involvement in the future of the project, something the civic association wishes had been established decades ago.
Watch previous coverage: Questions remain over approach to clean-up of former military facility in Buxton
“That is a federal EPA guideline when they deemed that a flood site in (19)98, it should have been implemented there. There was tons of things fell through the cracks. The community obviously would have cared if that group would have been offered in (19)98. This outcome would have been way different than what we're seeing right now," said Harris.
Though this is one of the issues the Buxton community is facing right now, another, similar to Rodanthe, is the erosion threat of oceanfront structures.
“We're seeing the beach front, the erosion rate speeding up. We really need to do something before the beach nourishment in 2026," said Harris.
As the waves crash up against the pilings, that time is something these houses do not have.
