The Southside Project, scheduled to begin this year, will be the subject of a meeting between leaders of the US Forest Service and the Chattooga Conservancy on Friday morning.
After a petition to stop the forestry project garnered more than 1,100 signatures in just eight days, Chattooga Conservancy Executive Director Nicole Hayler was notified that USFS officials were willing to discuss the project further. The meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Friday at the USFS Supervisor’s Office in Asheville.
“The Southside Project was originally crafted using a forest plan written way before much of the science we now have,” Hayler said. “This contemporary science underscores the need to shift forest management to emphasizing the principles of conservation biology, that stresses the value of protecting old-growth forest to mitigate the effects of climate change, preserving biological diversity, and restoring native forests in a connected pattern across the landscape to allow the migration of species as habitats shift with a warming climate.”
The Southside Project was initially proposed in 2017, with an objection process that carried into 2018 and a final decision to move forward made in 2019. The project targets a number of forested areas in southern Macon and Jackson counties, with plots targeted on Brushy Mountain, areas adjacent to Granite City and along the Round Mountain Spur of the Foothills Trail.
The Chattooga Conservancy has objected to the project from the beginning and specifically asked that areas of old-growth forest be taken out of the project if it does move forward. The conservancy contends that the project would also eliminate habitat areas for the rare green salamander and have a negative impact on native trout habitats.
“We have one last chance to persuade the Nantahala District Ranger, Troy Waskey, and James Melonas, Forest Supervisor of the Nantahala-Pisgah National Forest, to withdraw the Southside Project as it’s currently designed,” Hayler said. “We are hopeful that they will listen to our concerns and reconsider the project as a whole, or at least work with us to identify areas to remove from the project.”
Hayler noted that neither Waskey or Melonas were in their current positions within the US Forest Service when the Southside Project was being developed, which she hopes will lead to them being open minded about reviewing the project before implementing it as it was written.
“We have faith that these new National Forest leaders will step up and revisit the Southside Project, and finally listen to the public to make things right,” said Buzz Williams, founding member of the Chattooga Conservancy. “At stake is literally the well-being of future generations, who will be severely impacted if we miss the chance to work together for better science-based forest management.”