News

State officials are taking steps to stay on top of the drought in North Carolina that's becoming more and more severe. The North Carolina Drought Management Advisory Council met July 21st in Williamston face-to-face in an acknowledgement of the severity of the issue. The focus of the meeting was mostly on the drought's impact on agriculture in the eastern part of the state. A recent federal map classified most of eastern North Carolina in the "severe" drought category. Ten counties in the southeast were listed in the "extreme" drought category. Spokeswoman for the State Division of Water Resources Sarah Young says the last time we saw extreme drought conditions was in December of 2008.

Chatham county officials take a step toward protecting the area's natural resources today. The Comprehensive Conservation Plan for Chatham County is the first of its kind in North Carolina. An event being held in Pittsboro this afternoon will unveil details of the voluntary program. Leigh Ann Hammerbacher works for the Triangle Land Conservancy which contributed to the plan.

North Carolina State University sociologist Michael Schwalbe’s new book, “Smoke Damage: Voices from the Front Lines of America’s Tobacco Wars,” (University of Wisconsin Press/2011) is a collection of portraits of people whose lives have been changed by tobacco. The images and the stories that accompany them span a wide range of ages, social classes and professional disciplines, from lawyers and farmers to disease survivors. The intimate photos tell a story not captured by statistics, but the book is not merely sentimental.

A sulfur-melting plant proposed near Morehead City has provoked a public outcry. Tom Pasztor, Senior Director of Corporate and Government Relations for the Potash Corporation says they need the plant in order to produce fertilizers, agricultural feed and industrial products. The Potash Corporation is the parent company of PCS Phosphates. PCS already uses sulfur to produce fertilizers and agricultural feeds at a facility in Aurora, North Carolina. The plant would allow them to melt dry sulfur that arrives at the port.

North Carolina's U.S. senators say they're on board with a new proposal to decrease the national debt. A bipartisan proposal released Tuesday from a group of six senators would attempt to cut the deficit by $4 trillion over the next decade. The plan from the so-called "Gang of Six" cuts spending from the defense budget, Medicare and Medicaid. It also increases some tax revenues. Democratic Senator Kay Hagan says she supports the proposal.

When Marcia Owen began the Religious Coalition for a Nonviolent Durham in 1992, it was a traditional gun-control advocacy group. Over time, Marcia realized that new laws weren't going to address the root causes of the violence plaguing the Bull City. Instead of working for Durham's underserved communities, she began working with the people who lived in them. That particular method of social engagement is what Dean of Duke Chapel Sam Wells has been advocating in his theology for years. Wells and Owen have co-authored a new book called “Living Without Enemies: Being Present in the Midst of Violence” (IVP Books/2011).

A Durham company is planning to build a plant in Henderson that will produce one-of-a-kind solar modules. 

Water contamination at Camp Lejeune is the subject of a public forum today in Wilmington. Experts estimate close to a million people at Camp Lejeune might have been exposed to contaminated water between the 1950's and 1980's. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry will host the session. Previous meetings have been held at the agency's headquarters in Atlanta. But they're holding the meeting in Wilmington because of the large number of affected residents in North Carolina.

It’s been a difficult off-season for fans of NC State’s men’s basketball team. Alumnus Sidney Lowe was forced to resign as head coach in March. And last month, another former star, Lorenzo Charles, died in a bus accident.

On the court, the Wolfpack is trying to find its way under a new head coach. Mark Gottfried says he’s taking the team’s rebuilding effort one step at a time.

Thousands of jobs are on the chopping block at Cisco Systems.  But analysts wonder if that’s enough to turn the company around.   Inge reports.

The 6,500 lay-offs at Cisco are no surprise.

Emily Chang - Bloomberg TV:  "Reports of impending layoffs have been circulating for weeks at the networking giant looks for ways to slash a billion dollars."