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Newsroom
Mountaineer (Waynesville,NC)
October 5, 2005
Elected officials from Waynesville have completed a conservation agreement that will preserve the town's 8,030-acre watershed to protect the town's clean drinking water supply.
Waynesville has entered into a conservation agreement on the forested tract with the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy, the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, the North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund (CWMTF), with the help of several CWMT grants. The agreement was signed Sept 2005.
The watershed is located south of Waynesville in Haywood County and is the source of the town's drinking water supply. By conservative estimates, the value of the town's donation of the conservation agreement exceeds $18 million.
This is a landmark achievement for Waynesville," said Mayor Henry Foy. "This
agreement will enable the town to grow while still protecting the area's ecological diversity, scenic views and primary source of clean, safe drinking water. This is an important step in preserving high quality resource for our children and grandchildren."
The town of Waynesville has the unique distinction of owning its entire watershed the undeveloped land from which hundreds of surface streams and underground springs feed its drinking water reservoir. The water shed earned the highest quality ranking the state can assign a drinking water source and it is part of an area nationally recognized for its diverse wildlife habitat.
The town of Waynesville has the unique distinction of owning its entire watershed the undeveloped land from which hundreds of surface streams and underground springs feed its drinking water reservoir. The water shed earned the highest quality ranking the state can assign a drinking water source and it is part of an area nationally recognized for its diverse wildlife habitat.
The watershed also pro vides dramatic views and numerous scenic overlooks along approximately 10 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway between mileposts 430 and 440 as it runs along the crest of the Balsam Mountains.
"I applaud the leadership of town officials, the dedication of non-profit conservation organizations, and the commitment of North Carolina's Clean Water Management
Trust Fund for working to preserve this valuable natural resource for our citizens," said U.S. Senator Elizabeth Dole. “This project is a great example of public-private partnerships leveraging resources for the good of North Carolinians."
The town began acquiring properties within the watershed around 1913 for the purpose of creating a reservoir that would supply the town with abundant high quality water for residential and commercial needs and for flood control.
Waynesville purchased the few remaining privately held parcels within the watershed between 1997 and 2002 at cost of over $1.35 million using a $500,000 grant from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund, $250,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, $100,000 from the North Carolina Division of Water Resources, and more than $500,000 from the town's water fund.
"Waynesville's leaders are seizing a very important opportunity on behalf of their community at a time when most cities and towns in our state are struggling to protect water supplies from encroaching development," said Bill Holman, executive director of CWMTF. "Land conservation in the watershed is far more cost effective than cleaning up polluted water after the fact, and provides communities with many other public benefits as well."
The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy and the Conservation Trust for North Carolina will share responsibility for regularly monitoring the property to ensure its conservation values, including the pristine water quality, are pre served.
"We are working with experts from Western / Carolina University's Department of Natural Resources Management and the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee to design a sustainable forest management plan for the property that absolutely protects water quality," said Carl Silverstein, Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy executive director.
"Under this agreement the town of Waynesville has chosen a path of great wisdom in the long term stewardship of their community forestland. While eliminating for all time the greatest threat to mountain forests, that of subdivision and development, they have carefully chosen to maintain their options for the management and care of one of the most beautiful and productive forests in the Balsam Mountains," said Paul Carlson, Executive Director of the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee.
A broad-based coalition of state, nonprofit, and local partners began working to design and fund the agreement in 1997. This conservation agreement will protect public health by maintaining a pristine drinking water sup ply. It will also promote the local .tourism economy by preserving stunning Blue Ridge Parkway views. It's clear win-win," said Reid Wilson, Conservation Trust for North Carolina executive director."
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