Christmas arrived a little early this year for fly fishers in the area. Our present was too big to fit in a stocking or under a tree, and it was certainly too big to wrap.
It consisted of almost 10,000 acres of forest hard up against the Tennessee-North Carolina line in Unicoi and Greene Counties known as the Rocky Fork Tract. It’s named for one of East Tennessee’s best wild trout streams, Rocky Fork.
On Monday, The Conservation Fund and the federal government closed a deal to purchase this unique property. For half a century, the area has been private property held by timber interests that were willing to grant the public access by leasing it to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency for use as a Wildlife Management Area.
When the owners, New Forestry LLC, placed the land up for sale, public access was threatened by the possibility that developers would turn it into an exclusive playground.
That possibility didn’t meet with universal disapproval in Unicoi County, even though many of its citizens had fished Rocky Fork for much of their lives.
Unicoi County has a hard time funding basic services because more than half of its land is owned by the federal government. It can’t collect property taxes on federal land, and the payments that the government makes to the county in lieu of taxes are small compared to what could be assessed on developed property.
Rocky Fork is the classic dilemma. Natural resources aren’t resources if they can’t be used. Resources consumed are gone forever. The solution for Rocky Fork might be one way to solve the dilemma. No one will be completely satisfied, but everyone might benefit.
The U.S. Forest Service will add 2,237 acres of the tract to the National Forest. It has agreed to give the county comparable acreage from its existing holdings that is suitable more for development.
It’s a trade that in the end might prove to be the best solution.
The remaining portion of the land most likely will transfer over time to the state. It can be used to create a recreational magnet that will draw visitors and enhance the value of all private property in the county.
Rex Boner, vice president of The Conservation Fund, understands how this works: “We’ve made a commitment to this community – that together we will forge a solution that enhances the local environment and the economy.”
It must work. It’s the only way we can hold on to what we have and have what we need.
ffadvice@aol.com
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