Private Land Conservation Updates
Rocky Fork Tract Protected!
December 2008
The Conservation Fund and the US Forest Service purchased the Rocky Fork property, in northeast TN, for $40 million from New Forestry LLC. At 9,624 acres, the Rocky Fork tract, located 30 miles from Johnson City, TN, is only a fraction of the size of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, but advocates say the property's ecological value rivals anything in the Southern Appalachians.
As part of the overall acquisition, The Conservation Fund will eventually transfer its share of the purchase – 7,387 acres – to the state of TN. The US Forest Service acquisition of the remaining 2,237 acres will permanently protect 1.5 miles of the Appalachian Trail that either crosses or borders the property.
Over the last few years, the US Forest Service has ranked Rocky Fork as its number 1 priority for land acquisition in the United States. The property, which is surrounded by national forest, is home to six species of salamanders not even found in the Smokies. It also serves as one of the most important black bear refuges in upper East Tennessee.
The project drew strong political support from US Senators Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker and the US Rep. David Davis, all TN republicans who secured funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for the US Forest Service's share of the acquisition.
On the NC side, the project was supported by US Senator Richard Burr, R-NC and US Rep. Heath Shuler, D-NC. On the state level, the Tennessee Heritage Conservation Trust Fund contributed $6 million towards the purchase.