((PKG)) SAVING FORESTS AND JOBS
((Banner: Saving Forests and Jobs))
((Reporter/Camera: Steve Baragona))
((Adapted by: Zdenko Novacki))
((Map: Middlesboro, Kentucky))
((Pop-Up Banner: The Nature Conservancy, an
environmental group, recently bought land to preserve both
nature and jobs))
((NATS))
((Stuart Hale, Manager, Nature Conservancy Forest))
We are here, kind of, right on the border of Tennessee and
Kentucky, looking at the entire property. It's about a 100,000
acres [40,000 hectares]. The property is used primarily for
forest management, carbon sequestration, outdoor
recreation, and then, of course, supports a wealth of
biodiversity.
((NATS))
((Terry Cook, Director, Tennessee Nature Conservancy))
To get to scale, you've got to think about conservation in a
completely different way. Buying a piece of property and just
locking people out is probably a non-starter. We are in one
of the poorer areas in the nation, right, and the landscapes
are part of the local culture and heritage.
((NATS))
((Spencer Meyer, Highstead Foundation))
((Mandatory Chyron: Skype logo))
Hungry people make lousy conservationists. And so, if there
aren't jobs that still are relevant on the ground, then deals
like this just don't work. They might work in the short term,
but they'll collapse in the long term if they don't have strong
local support.
((NATS))
((Stuart Hale, Manager, Nature Conservancy Forest))
We see some oaks around which is really good. We like
those. There's a nice big poplar growing over here. And
then, mixed in, there's a handful of these beech and maples
and other trees that we may not be as interested in or may
not be as well suited to this site.
((NATS))
((Stuart Hale, Manager, Nature Conservancy Forest))
It's a huge economic driver. Everybody, from the loggers in
the woods cutting the trees down, to the truck drivers hauling
that to the sawmills, to the folks manufacturing at the
sawmills, to the convenience store clerks that those guys
stop and buy a soda pop from. It's a major part of the
economy.
((NATS))
((Terry Cook, Director, Tennessee Nature Conservancy))
To make these types of projects work from a business
aspect, you really have to think of it not just from a
conservation, but you've got to add a business dimension to
it. One, these properties, a 100,000 acres, it takes quite a
bit of money coming together to be able to, sort of, pull a
project like this together. It also has to generate revenue
and it has to have the support from local citizens and
politicians, our state agencies and our federal agencies. So,
there are a lot of people that we have to work with to be
successful.
((NATS))
((Terry Cook, Director, Tennessee Nature Conservancy))
When we think about conservation priorities, we really are
thinking about what are the challenges to nature and
people? Where can we make impact in terms of conserving
our landscapes, securing our water, and doing that to benefit
people as well?
((NATS))
