In an eleventh-hour bid to protect stands of old growth trees in sensitive natural areas deep in the Nantahala National Forest, conservationists on April 30 called on the U.S. Forest Service to scrap what they call a bad plan based on outdated science that does not consider climate change.
The group, led by Chattooga Conservancy Executive Director Nicole Hayler, gathered at the Forest Service headquarters in Asheville to present a petition more than 1,300 names strong to reconsider the Southside Project, which they say is rife with issues and which they ve been fighting for years.
The project calls for commercial logging dispersed throughout an analysis of more than 29,000 acres in southeastern Macon County and southern Jackson County, just east of Highlands.
By NATALIE B. COMPTON | The Washington Post | Published: April 15, 2021 If you ve been to Yellowstone during peak tourist season, you d think the national park system has an overtourism problem. But it s not that too many people are going to the parks - it s that too many people are going to a specific few parks at the same time. Last year, just six parks brought in a quarter of the entire system s 237,064,332 visitors. It s like going to a movie for the seven o clock show on Saturday night and expecting to get a good seat - it s not going to happen, says the National Park Foundation s chief executive, Will Shafroth. If you want to go to those places, you need to be thoughtful about what time of year, what time of day, what day of the week.
Prescribed burns planned
Over the coming months, the U.S. Forest Service plans to conduct six prescribed burns in the Cheoah and Tusquitee Ranger Districts of the Nantahala National Forest in Clay, Cherokee and Graham counties. These low-to-medium-intensity burns aim to create healthier, more resilient forests that are better able to support wildlife while also reducing the risk of wildfire.
Planned burns in Cherokee County:
• Hanging Dog Campground and boat ramp, 1,000 acres.
Planned Burns in Clay County:
• Fires Creek, 8,100 acres
• Buck Creek, 350 acres
• Meeting House area, 2,100 acres.
• Shell Stand/Cook Branch area, 1,100 acres
• Cheoah Ranger District Office, 20 acres
The dates and actual units burned will depend on weather conditions. Crews will wait for proper wind and humidity conditions to conduct the burns, and burns will occur only when environmental conditions permit. Some roads or trails may be closed to ensure safety while the bur
Carolina Journal is taking a brief look at each new member of the General Assembly 10 in the Senate and 11 in the House. We look at where they’ve been, what they’re doing now, and what we might expect them to do as lawmakers.
The 2021-22 session began in late January. Expect COVID-19 and the ongoing fallout from the pandemic to be top priorities for lawmakers, who are crafting a new budget for the biennium. They’ll also draw new legislative and congressional maps for the next decade based on fresh census data. Each legislator, too, has their own priorities.