Three Rivers Land Trust, formally known as The LandTrust for Central North Carolina, has been the awarded a grant from The Cannon Foundation of $200,000 to go toward the conservation of 4,700 acres and 76 miles of shoreline along the Yadkin River. This conservation project is also referred to as the “Save the Yadkin” Campaign.

With this gift, the Land Trust has raised more than $5.6 million, leaving an additional $2.1 million shy of the $7.7 million goal for phase one (2,300 acres).

The Land Trust is raising funds for the conservation of these lands, but the lands will be owned by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (WRC) and will stay in the game lands program. The public has had access to these lands for more than 30 years for hiking, hunting, fishing and paddling, and if the Land Trust and WRC are successful in raising the funds, this public access will remain in perpetuity.

The clock is ticking on the time remaining to purchase the lands. They must be acquired by September 2019, as per the relicensing settlement agreement signed by Alcoa and other parties. If the Land Trust and WRC are successful in acquiring these lands on High Rock Lake, they will have two additional years to purchase an additional 2,400 acres on the eastern shore of the Tuckertown Reservoir.

“Conservation projects don’t get any bigger and the stakes don’t get any higher,” said Three Rivers Executive Director Travis Morehead. “These properties represent 7.5 percent of the game lands available in the Piedmont, with 80 percent of the state’s population within a 100 mile drive of these lands.”

The acquisition of these lands conserves habitat, connects conserved areas and wild places, provides access for the public and helps to sustain the local outdoor recreation, tourism and forestry economies.

To contribute to this conservation project, contact the Land Trust at 704-647-0302 or donate online at www.threeriverslandtrust.org/alcoa-lands-conservation/.

For more information about this project, or to learn how to support Three Rivers Land Trust in its mission to conserve other special lands in the central Piedmont, visit www.threeriverslandtrust.org or contact Crystal Cockman at crystal@threeriverslandtrust.org or at 704-647-0302.

About Three Rivers Land Trust
Three Rivers Land Trust works with private landowners and public agencies to conserve natural, scenic, agricultural and historic places in a 10-county region of the central Piedmont. Since 1995, The Land Trust has worked to offer options to landowners who want to save their lands for future generations to enjoy.