Law Center Names 10 Most Endangered Places in the South

The Southern Environmental Law Center said the 10 most endangered places were chosen from among hundreds that are impacted by the center's law and policy work in the six states of Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama.

SELC's deputy director Jeff Gleason says the region is the fastest growing region in the United States. "In many respects, the South is also a testing ground for the nation's most pressing environmental issues, including energy, global warming, drought, land conservation, and biological diversity," he said.

One of the areas most threatened by development is Weeks Bay, Alabama on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. The forested wetlands, marshes, and swamps of Weeks Bay have qualified as one of only three areas in Alabama to receive the designation of Outstanding Natural Resource Water.

Tidal channel on Weeks Bay (Photo by Littoraria)

Along the shores of Weeks Bay are wetland forests of cypress, bayberry, and tupelo, as well as upland woods of pine and oak. Nineteen federally protected species inhabit the area, among them the Florida black bear, the marsh rabbit, and the wood stork.

The SELC points out that the bay's clean, shallow waters are a nursery for shrimp, blue crab, and other shellfish that support Alabama's $450 million commercial fishing industry.

But like much of the Gulf coast, the Mobile Bay area is growing quickly and development already has consumed thousands of acres of wetlands.

Located in Baldwin County, which lacks strong zoning laws, Weeks Bay and its tributaries are vulnerable to development and the infrastructure that supports it. Emerging threats include increased polluted runoff from pavement and construction sites and a proposal to build a new wastewater treatment plant in the Weeks Bay watershed.

For their part, the Baldwin County Commissioners have written a Baldwin County Strategic Plan for 2006-2016. They say, "The major themes for this strategic plan are managing growth, protecting our environment and building the infrastructure of roads and services required to respond to our community’s growth."

The Strategic Plan acknowledges that, "Failure to preserve and protect our natural resources would erode our way of life, and adversely impact our economy, water quality, inland and coastal waterways, forests and green space, wetlands, and wildlife."

Still, the SELC is concerned about the conservation of Weeks Bay. Working with the Mobile Baykeeper and other partners, SELC says it intends to protect Weeks Bay by ensuring thorough enforcement of state and federal environmental laws and by advocating stronger local controls to prevent degradation of the bay and its biological diversity.

During the next 12 months the places on the SELC's list of endangered areas will face a series of decisions that will either raise or lower the bar nationwide on critical issues like air quality and clean water.

"Our region will either protect - or lose - areas of our native forest, coastline, and rural countryside," said Gleason. "How the South accommodates growth and development while preserving our precious natural heritage could set a model for the rest of the country."

Gleason says the South disproportionately contributes to global warming. "If our six-state region were viewed as a country, we would rank seventh in the world for output of carbon dioxide. Reducing carbon emissions in the South is a critical part of any comprehensive global warming solution."

Top Ten Endangered Areas in the South for 2009:

1. Clinch and Powell Rivers (Virginia) Issue: Construction of a new coal-fired power plant in Wise County will accelerate mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia, and further increase mercury levels in the Clinch and Powell rivers.


2. Interstate 81 Corridor (Virginia) Issue: Virginia officials are reexamining a plan to widen all 325 miles of I-81 to perhaps eight lanes to support long-haul truck traffic - a plan that would cost billions of dollars and cause tremendous harm to communities and historic, scenic, and environmental resources.


3. Marine Waters (Virginia) Issue: Virginia is the first state in our region to begin the process of opening up its marine waters to offshore drilling for oil and gas. The benefit of this short-term supply of energy is dramatically outweighed by the harm to the environment and communities.


4. Globe Forest (North Carolina) Issue: Destruction of rare, old-growth forest in the Southern Appalachians.


5. Pamlico River (North Carolina) Issue: The single largest destruction of wetlands in North Carolina's history will occur if a phosphate mining company gets permission to expand its operations on the river's banks.


6. Great Pee Dee River (South Carolina) Issue: Santee Cooper, a state-owned utility, is proposing to build more coal-fired power plants with outdated technology that would dump an additional 300 pounds of mercury into an already mercury-overloaded river.


7. Johns Island (South Carolina) Issue: A $420 million highway proposal threatens to bring large-scale development to this historic community, transforming the island into a sea of condos, mega-stores, and traffic.


8. Salt Marshes (Georgia) Issue: Large-scale development on biologically rich islands and tidal waters.


9. Weeks Bay (Alabama) Issue: Unchecked development and weak regulation threatens an area so unique it is one of only three in Alabama to receive the designation of Outstanding Natural Resource Water.


10. Cherokee National Forest (Northeast Tennessee) Issue: The U.S. Forest Service is moving forward with its plans to log several areas of this remarkable landscape, endangering trout, unbroken wildlife habitat and rare species.

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2009. All rights reserved.