49,000 Acres of New Wilderness

The plan for WNC’s Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests also protects rivers, allows logging.

Photo Above: Mountain streams and vistas are among the beneficiaries of the North Carolina forests plan.
Photos Courtesy of Mason Cummings.

The U.S. Forest Service, after several years of researching, mapping, planning and talking with community stakeholders, has released its final plan for the more than 1 million acres of the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests in western North Carolina. The plan lays out the framework for every aspect of management—from wildlife habitat and invasive species to intensive visitor use to water quality and logging, and more—for the next 30 years. Among other things, the plan aims for 49,000 acres of new wilderness (the highest form of federal land protection) and nine more river segments designated as “wild and scenic.”

The plan reflects a new Tribal Forest Protection Agreement between the agency and the Eastern Band Cherokee Indians, whose current land abuts the Nantahala. “They look at the management of these areas in a co-stewardship fashion. So including the tribe in these decisions and asking for input and then sharing in the execution of some of the projects,” tribal official Joseph Owle told the media.

Environmental organizations that were engaged in the process over the years expressed dismay, however. They said that despite receiving 14,000 objections from the public to a previous version, the final plan “dramatically expands the amount of logging in these forests and fails to protect more than 100,000 acres of old-growth forests,” according to a joint press release. Sam Evans with the Southern Environmental Law Center said, “… we will certainly oppose any project that will harm old growth, rare species and backcountry areas.”

The plan, environmental impact report and other documentation is available at fs.usda.gov/detail/nfsnc/

The story above first appeared in our May / June 2023 issue.