Unicoi, TN - Chances are that if you have outdoor plans this weekend, you have a land trust to thank for preserving outdoor recreation. This weekend, with thousands of people expected on the trails, outdoor enthusiasts are reminding folks to stick to the established trails while exploring in order to protect the ecosystems. Comments from Angela Shepherd, communications director, Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy.
The Appalachian Trail is one of the national treasures that calls Tennessee its home, and this weekend thousands are expected to venture onto the trail to explore all it has to offer. One of the most panoramic sections is on the Tennessee-North Carolina border in the Roan Highlands, and the Volunteer State has the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy to thank for that. S-A-H-C protected a key section of the trail by securing the land in a trust, and Angela Shepherd with the organization says there's one way you can help this weekend.
"You may be tempted to kind of go off the trail, especially if you're seeing large number of people there in front of you, and to kind of, you know, walk alongside, and that can cause issues like people creating inadvertently secondary trails that have some erosion issues."
Shepherd says the need to stay on the trail is necessary regardless of what part of the state you're exploring. Prior to S-A-H-C's involvement, the section of trail was largely located on roads. A report released earlier this month from the Outdoor Industry Association estimates outdoor recreation generates 56-billion dollars for the East South Central economy, and more than seven-billion dollars in the form of state, local and federal tax revenues.
S-A-H-C, in partnership with the U-S Forest Service and Appalachian Trail Conservancy, employs a naturalist who hikes the section of the trail in Roan Highlands. His job is to leave a lasting impact on visitors, according to Shepherd.
"The person in this position spends the weekend hiking back and forth across that stretch of the AT, and they just educate people they meet about 'leave no trace' principles. They talk about the basic ecology of the Roan, what makes it so unique."
The Outdoor Industry Association Report names outdoor recreation as one of the country's largest economic sectors, behind only health care and finance. Shepherd says east Tennessee possesses a large part of that resource.
"We are just blessed with a plethora, really, of natural resources here in this region, and getting outside to enjoy those is just so important, and it's great for families to reconnect, it's great for our own personal health, but keeping in mind that we're kind of part of a bigger sphere."
In addition to staying on the trail. be sure to pack out all trash generated on your hike and avoid picking plants or flowers.
The Appalachian Trail is one of the national treasures that calls Tennessee its home, and this weekend thousands are expected to venture onto the trail to explore all it has to offer. Stephanie Carson has more.
Stephanie Carson reporting.
Shepherd at 828.253.0095. Link to report: https://bit.ly/2p0OtnT
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An update to the Northwest Forest Plan is expected soon, and Washingtonians who enjoy the outdoors are being urged to follow the process closely.
While the plan doesn't specifically mention recreation, the Northwest Forest Plan is the land management plan for millions of acres of forest in the region.
Michael DeCramer, policy and planning manager with the Washington Trails Association, says the U.S. Forest Service should keep in mind the people hiking trails within the plan area.
"Outdoor recreation is the primary way in which the public interacts with those lands. So, this management plan is key to assuring that there's continued conservation of resources, but also opportunities to recreate and enjoy the forests in the Pacific Northwest," he said.
DeCramer added the outdoor recreation economy is also important to the region. It generates more than $26 billion annually in Washington, according to the Outdoor Industry Association.
The Northwest Forest Plan was adopted in 1994 for management of forests in Washington, Oregon and northern California. The U.S. Forest Service is set to release a draft Environmental Impact Statement for the plan amendment next month.
The Forest Service plans to address is the impact of climate change on the region, among other factors.
Betsy Robblee, conservation and advocacy director for Washington-state based group The Mountaineers, said increasingly frequent wildfires are hurting trails. She contributed recommendations with the federal advisory committee on the plan amendment to address this.
"Restore recreation sites after climate-related events and reopen them to the public. One thing that we're seeing is more lengthy closures of areas after wildfire," she explained. "Places can be closed for a number of years for public access."
Robblee encourages people who enjoy recreation to follow along as the Northwest Forest Plan amendment is released, because there will be an opportunity for the public to comment on it.
"It's easy for folks to think, 'Oh, this is all about logging or wildlife, and it doesn't affect me.' But it definitely affects people's recreation experience and the places that they love and care about," she added.
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From power outages to burnt farmland, North Dakota is coming to grips with the impact of several large wildfires that are linked to at least two deaths. The fires intensified this past weekend around the western half of the state, with crews working in recent days to get them under control. Gov. Doug Burgum said when they get the final numbers, it is possible the fires will have consumed as many as 50,000 acres of farmland.
Daryl Ritchison, North Dakota State Climatologist, said windy and dry conditions fueled the devastation, adding that there's no doubt the agricultural community was hard hit.
"Farmers lost cattle. Farmers lost grazing land. Farmers lost houses. Farmers lost their fencing," he continued.
The North Dakota Farmers Union reminds ranchers who lost cattle, pasture and equipment in the fires that the federal Farm Service Agency has resources to help them recover. Information can be found on the USDA website. Meanwhile, the governor has said this could be one of the worst groups of fires in state history when factoring in acreage.
Ritchison suggested it's too early to link this disaster to climate change, noting the state's history with prairie fires, especially this time of year, and added that if there is a silver lining, early warnings to farmers - to pause their fall harvest - appeared to be effective.
"If there's any good in this, I think it could have potentially been even worse considering the wind gusts up to 60, 70 miles per hour, how dry the conditions were, the low relative humidity," he explained.
Globally, scientists say climate change is one of several factors as to why wildfires are becoming more destructive and difficult to contain. It's prompting more calls for state and local governments to become better prepared and alert the public ahead of time. A recent report found that preparation lapses hindered evacuations during the deadly Maui fires in Hawaii last year.
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New legislation making its way through the U.S. Senate would conserve more than 730,000 acres of federal public lands in and around Colorado's Gunnison Basin.
Tony Prendergast, a cattle rancher near Crawford, was one of a number of stakeholders who worked for a decade to shape the legislation. He said farmers, ranchers, hunters, anglers, hikers, mountain bikers, wildlife advocates and others realized the lands were being "loved to death," and if nothing was done, everyone would lose.
"We came together to say, 'Well, how can we work together to protect what exists, and protect it well in the future and into future generations?'" Prendergast explained.
The Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act, led by Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., taps federal wilderness and special management area protections for important fish and wildlife habitat. The bill would also transfer the Pinecrest Ranch into a sovereign land trust for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Six Colorado counties and 16 advocacy organizations support the measure but some in Congress continue to oppose any increased public lands protections.
The measure would not affect water rights or existing land uses, such as mining or oil and gas leases. But Prendergast pointed out the legislation will give land managers the tools they need to mitigate conflicts after a surge in outdoor recreation.
"New mountain bike trails were appearing all the time," Prendergast noted. "The motorized recreation was spreading out across the landscape. Gates were being left open. There would be conflicts, livestock dogs chasing off mountain bikers."
He added the legislation would also allow land managers to prioritize the needs of wildlife during critical times, such as the end of winter when animals are weak and nutrition levels are at their lowest.
"In an area where wildlife is close to having their young, there may need to be closures from dusk to dawn from human activity, so wildlife can have a break," Prendergast added.
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