Displaying items by tag: land conservation in smokies

The Maryville-based Foothills Land Conservancy has acquired 600 acres on the border of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Oliver Tract is named for the family of John Oliver, one of the first white settlers in the area. The property could one day be incorporated into the national park. Foothills Land Conservancy

Historic conservation project preserves one of the largest remaining privately held tracts bordering the Smokies, sets stage for future inclusion in national park

Allison Lester is the director of media relations at Fletcher Communications.

TOWNSEND — After months of goal-setting, planning, fundraising, partnership-building and anticipating, Foothills Land Conservancy (FLC) has officially completed the acquisition of the Oliver Tract, securing more than 600 acres of forestland bordering Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Townsend and Cades Cove.

The closing represents one of the most significant conservation achievements in East Tennessee in nearly two decades and protects a landscape that conservation leaders describe as both ecologically important and deeply rooted in the history of the Smokies.

FLC intends to transfer the property to the National Park Service following completion of the federal review and acceptance process, ultimately adding the tract to the boundaries of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Large, privately held properties directly adjacent to the park have become increasingly rare. The Oliver Tract contains contiguous forestland, wildlife habitat, migration corridors, watershed resources and scenic ridgelines that connect seamlessly with existing protected lands inside the park.

“This is exactly the kind of project Foothills Land Conservancy was created to accomplish,” said Mark Stevans, executive director of Foothills Land Conservancy. “Opportunities to protect land of this scale, in a location this important, simply do not come along very often. The Smokies are part of the identity of East Tennessee, and preserving this landscape is an investment in the future of our region.”

The tract takes its name from John Oliver, one of the earliest permanent European settlers of Cades Cove and a central figure in the area's history. Preserving the property helps protect not only important natural resources but also a landscape connected to the cultural heritage of the Great Smoky Mountains.