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Land
and Water Conservation
Nestled
within some of the oldest mountains on earth, Southwestern
North Carolina possesses a unique -- yet threatened - natural
and cultural heritage.
Whether
one considers the ancient and still-visible Cherokee fish
traps along the upper Little Tennessee River, the virgin timber
of the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, the high- quality waters
of Panthertown Creek, or the intergenerational mountain farms
of Upper Crabtree, the diversity and ecological integrity
of these southern Appalachian highlands is second to none
within in the earth's temperate zones.
Notwithstanding
these superlatives, the ownership and management patterns
of the region's land and water resources represent a dichotomy
of extremes.
From
the conservation perspective, more than 50% of this region
is already in some form of permanent protection - e.g., the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Nantahala and Pisgah
National Forests and two national wilderness areas. Yet, the
area's private land and water currently enjoy very little
protection. Local land use controls (zoning, subdivision rules…)
are practically non-existent outside the region's 16 incorporated
towns.
Pressures
to develop seem insatiable. A full 20% of the US population
and four of the five fastest growing cities in the US are
within a five hour drive. Atlanta, reportedly the fastest
sprawling metropolis the earth has ever witnessed, is only
two hours south. Unplanned growth threatens to overwhelm the
region. Poor air quality and huge stream sediment loads are
but two direct impacts. The spiraling financial costs of residential
and commercial sprawl (public safety, solid waste, water and
sewer, new schools) are growing geometrically, placing extreme
pressures on local government budgets.
The
Southwestern Commission has long championed land and water
conservation by means of more stringent growth management
practices. Historically, our efforts have witnessed very little
success. Public resistance has pushed back most growth management
measures. County driven efforts have mostly failed -- likewise,
state sponsored initiatives.
Since
the turn of the new millennium, however, there has been a
palatable shift in public sentiment here in the southern Blue
Ridge around this issue. People of all brands are publicly
lamenting the loss of rural community. We are struggling with
our fractured connections to the land. Local folks are begging
on our elected officials to enact rules that will more strictly
govern subdivision roads, junkyards, sightseeing helicopters,
and sediment runoff. Our citizens are calling our leaders
to stem the conversion to development of our few remaining
large private land tracts.
The
Southwestern Commission has moved rapidly and deliberately
to support this shift in public sentiment. Between 2001 &
2004 we acted as the authorized agent of Macon and Swain counties
to ensure the permanent protection of the 4,500 acre Needmore
tract along the Little Tennessee River. We teamed with many
partners to permanently protect the 860 acre Rough Creek watershed
near Canton, and the 7,000 acre Allen Creek valley near Waynesville;
also the 1,100 acre Lands Creek watershed in Swain County.
We have adopted additional conservation initiatives for our
current work program.
Partners
in these conservation projects include, among others, the
Land Trust for the Little Tennessee, the NC Chapter of the
Nature Conservancy, the NC Clean Water Management Trust Fund,
the NC Conservation Council, the Conservation Trust of NC,
NC DOT's Ecological Enhancement Initiative, the NC Wildlife
Resources Commission, the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy,
The Conservation Fund, the Fred and Alice Stanback Fund.
The
project list
details many of the higher profile land and water conservation
projects assisted by the Commission.
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