FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions

Caswell Beach is home to a 10-acre parcel of Maritime Forest, located along Caswell Beach Road. (§98.01) 

The maximum fine for violation of Ordinance §98.01 exceeds $50 and is $500 for each individual violation. Damage or removal of each piece of vegetation is a separate violation and will be subject to a $500 fine. Violations of this Ordinance may result in the town applying to the appropriate division of the General Court of Justice for an injunction or order of abatement. Should the town take the steps required to execute the order of abatement and restore the property to its prior condition, the town shall have a lien against the property for its cost incurred by executing the order of abatement. Violation of this Ordinance is a misdemeanor offense.

A Maritime Forest provides protection from storms, buffers temperatures and provides habitat for wildlife.  As the second line of defense from adverse hurricanes and nor’easters, the Maritime Forest is vital in protecting the Town from wind and water damage and assisting in keeping the land from washing into the ocean during even minor storms. According to NOAA, Maritime forests protect our shorelines from ongoing movement of the coast. They also act as a primary watershed. Within the Maritime Forest sand and salt in the wind prunes the terminal buds in the canopy top encouraging lateral growth which gives the forest the windswept look. The streamlining of the canopy profile assists growth in several ways:

• The profile deflects wind up and over the forest preventing trees from being uprooted during a storm.
• The canopy provides shelter to the understory plants and protects them from large temperature fluctuations reducing soil heating during the day and cooling at night.
• Trees in the windward side show increased lateral growth making them denser overall than interior trees. Because they are denser, they collect the majority of salt spray deposits protecting the interior trees from salt spray. This allows the interior trees to become more like mainland trees in height.

In 2018, Caswell Beach Plantation (which consists of four property owner associations) along with the Town of Caswell Beach put measures in place to protect this area to keep it “as pristine and natural as possible” The Town Commissioners codified protection of this area through Ordinance § 98.01 Protection And Maintenance Of Areas Zoned Conservation, which provides guidance on areas identified for conservation.