Contact: Tad Boggs
Date: April 27, 2000 Phone: (919) 733-5612
Gov. Hunt Unveils Plan For United Effort To Conserve Open Space
RALEIGH - Gov. Jim Hunt today announced details to advance the state's Million Acres initiative, an aggressive plan to build public-private partnerships to conserve one million acres of open space and farmland over the next 10 years to benefit North Carolina's environment and quality of life.
"We need to coordinate this effort with local governments, business leaders, developers and conservationists," Hunt told a gathering to celebrate land acquisition in Cleveland County to connect to Crowders Mountain State Park in Gaston County. "We'll protect our waters, from mountain streams to coastal sounds, and our wetlands, nature's own water treatment plants. We'll preserve the family farms that feed our people, and the forests that lift our spirits."
In January, Hunt outlined his challenge at the launch of a year-long study of growth management issues by the General Assembly. Hunt today detailed specific steps to be taken this year, including:
· Legislation he will send the General Assembly next month to establish the Million Acres goals into law.
· Establishment through Executive Order of a Million Acres Advisory Panel to coordinate all
aspects of the initiative.
· Proposals in the budget Hunt will submit to the legislature next month to increase funding for farmland preservation to at least $1 million, and to create computer databases of land-use maps to track the program's progress.
Hunt also endorsed a plan to increase funding in the state Clean Water Management Trust Fund by $70 million over three years, an increase from $30 million now generated annually. The plan, proposed by Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight, would allow the state to increase acquisition of critical greenspace for water-quality protection.
The announcement came at a ceremony near the site of the new Kings Mountain Corridor. The corridor, which will be created when 1,300 acres are added to Crowders Mountain State Park later this year, connects 15,000 acres of conservation lands and links three parks along the North Carolina-South Carolina border.
North Carolina's economic vitality has encouraged unprecedented growth and the state's population is expected to increase by 26 percent (2 million people) by 2020. Urban areas in the state have increased by 88 percent since 1985 and more than 156,000 acres of farmland and forests per year were lost to development between 1992 and 1997.
Hunt has provided strong leadership in protecting North Carolina's environment and natural resources. During his administration, the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund and the Clean Water Management Trust Fund, which generate $54 million per year for state and local parklands and water quality protection efforts, were created and funding for the Natural Heritage Trust Fund has been increased by over 40 percent. Hunt also helped create the Wetlands Restoration Fund, which dedicates about $3.8 million each year to wetlands preservation and stream restoration projects each year.
Hunt also has directed the formation of other state-government initiatives, Clean NC 2000 and NC Project Green, to help protect the environment. Clean NC 2000 helps protect the state's rivers, lakes and roadsides from litter, while NC Project Green involves state agencies in devising ways to carry out the state's business in an environmentally friendly manner. Hunt's leadership also helped bring about the passage last year of the most sweeping air quality legislation in the state's history, and this year, the Hunt administration is working with the General Assembly, business leaders, environmental groups and local governments to examine growth issues and the state's role in planning for managed growth.
Details on the Million Acre Plan are available on the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources website at: www.enr.state.nc.us/ENR/.
# # #
Return to Press Release Page.