Agreement would keep Hatteras beaches open to drivers

An agreement filed Wednesday maintains off-road vehicle access in Cape Hatteras National Seashore while providing protection for vulnerable shorebirds and turtles, apparently side-stepping beach drivers’ worst fears of closed beaches.

Pounded out after two weeks of negotiations, the agreement was finalized after Dare and Hyde counties and the Cape Hatteras Access Preservation Alliance voted to approve it.

A federal judge still has to sign off on the agreement.

The biggest change is that night driving will be restricted from May 1 to Nov. 15 at potential turtle nesting areas and allowed only by permit at other times. It will also significantly increase the buffer zone for unfledged piping plovers.

If approved by the judge, the consent decree will settle a lawsuit filed in October by the Defenders of Wildlife and the National Audubon Society against the National Park Service.