Trees Down on Conservation Easement

Downed Trees: Contractor Cuts Into Protected Woods

BY TOM EMBREY: STAFF WRITER

Some West End residents are concerned over damage inflicted by a utility company contractor to ecologically sensitive areas.
Landowners said contractors from Progress Energy carelessly and needlessly cut down trees and destroyed preserved wetlands and other sensitive areas when crews were surveying portions of their property for a proposed power line route.

"There were a lot of trees unnecessarily cut during this surveying," property owner Mike Wilson said. Wilson and Jesse Wimberley are the principal owners of the land.

Mike Hughes, a spokesperson for Progress Energy in Raleigh, acknowledged the situation and admitted the error.

"It appears that our contractor left significantly more damage than normal and significantly more damage than expected," Hughes said.

Hughes said the contractors were conducting a centerline survey, and it is common to clear trees on property to do such a survey. He said that cutting trees is kept to a minimum necessary to complete the survey.

In this case, a wetlands area on Wimberley's property was damaged when heavy equipment operators got stuck there.

"This is one of the most unique ecosystems in the United States," Wimberley said.

Wilson and Wimberley alleged that Progress Energy did not perform any type of environmental study of the land prior to starting work.

Hughes said Progress Energy has apologized for the error and is working with the property owners and other state and federal agencies to mitigate the situation.

"We want to make sure it is resolved in the best way possible," Hughes said.

The work was being done as part of Progress Energy's attempt to plan a 34-mile route for a new high-transmission line from Rockingham to West End. Construction on the line is slated to begin in 2009, with completion set for 2011.

Wimberley said he uses his land as an agritourism site. He conducts tours of the land and is active in trying to preserve its intricate and diverse ecosystem that is unique to the Sandhills.

Wimberley and Wilson are actively trying to bring back the red-cockaded woodpecker to western Moore County. They say the property is a prime site for the nesting and foraging of the species.

Wimberley, Wilson and other property owners said they were not told that their property was along Progress Energy's chosen route. They said they were notified that part of their land was being considered and that workers would be meeting with them to survey possible sites. They were not told that the land was slated for immediate destruction.

Wilson and Wimberley said they found out about the survey work from a neighbor, Johnny Pigg.

"My son told me at 10:30 at night when I got home from work one day," Pigg said, "He said, 'Somebody was in here cutting trees on our land. I could see the trees falling from the house,'" Pigg said.

Pigg said he investigated his son's claims and discovered heavy equipment he described as a skid loader with a grinder. After finding the equipment, he notified Wimberley.

Downed trees and tracks left by the heavy equipment are visible on the property.

Hughes said the situation arose because of a "communication breakdown."

Wimberley accused Progress Energy and its contractors and subcontractors of lying to him.

"Why I find this so egregious is that I had taken steps to contact Progress Energy and say, don't you bring equipment out here. This is a protected area." Wimberley said. "I put a conservation easement on this land to protect it from this very activity."

SOS, Progress Energy

RIPARIAN PROTECTION AREA DESTROYED BY PROGRESS ENERGY

Save Our Sandhills (SOS) is a new grassroots organization dedicated to protecting the Sandhills environment. SOS has been called into action upon learning that Progress Energy, in its quest to plan a new power line route from Richmond County to West End, has carelessly bulldozed ecologically sensitive areas without completing any sort of Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Two major landowners in Moore County, Jesse Wimberley and Mike Wilson, both involved in long-range planning for their community, were recently notified by surrounding neighbors that bulldozers with grinding machines had been clearing a 15-foot wide swath through their lands, and were now stuck in their wetlands. Both were shocked. Both have treasured their land as being ecologically valuable natural areas. Both tracts are in the Drowning Creek watershed, which makes them vitally important for protection of Moore County’s and Southern Pines’ water supplies.

Wimberley, a well-known environmental educator and champion of good stewardship practices in critical natural areas in Moore County, has assisted the Sandhills Area Land Trust (SALT) in protecting over 2000 acres in the Drowning Creek watershed through the Ecosystem Enhancement Program (EEP). EEP is a state wetlands mitigation program funded by the NC Department of Transportation and carried out in coordination with the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). Wimberley’s own family land which was partially destroyed by Progress Energy is protected under the EEP program. Mitigation sites for EEP must be “the best of the best”. Wimberley’s land, known as Lighterwood Farm, is definitely in that category. It has been showcased for touring groups of nature lovers and schoolchildren on a regular basis. His farm is used for agritourism and is in Moore County’s Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) program. Its precious wetlands are now permanently scarred by Progress Energy’s bulldozers.

These landowners were not told that their lands had been among Progress Energy’s chosen route. They were notified that part of their land was being considered, and workers would be meeting them to survey possible sites. They were not told that their land was slated for immediate destruction.

Progress Energy is dealing heavy-handedly in this situation as if it is a foregone conclusion that eminent domain will prevail in these specific cases. Where are the results of their environmental impact studies? Where is the list of site selection criteria? (Landowners have been unable to acquire a copy.) Where are the results of contact with DENR, with the Corps of Engineers, with the Moore County Planning Department, or with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service? Landowners have been unable to determine that any of these contacts were made. What takes place on this land, located in one of the headwater areas of Drowning Creek will affect the ecosystem downstream. It should be noted that Drowning Creek is one of North Carolina’s premier blackwater streams.

While Progress Energy should upgrade its infrastructure, these upgrades must not occur until all environmental impacts have been documented and/or mitigated. Affected landowners have the right to due process and to question any specific measures taken in the implementation of eminent domain. Progress Energy must work responsibly and responsively with landowners and with county, state, and federal officials as it plans for future energy needs.

A press conference can be arranged on site at your convenience. Please contact Joe McDonald, member of Save Our Sandhills, regarding arrangement at 910/281-5271 or at joemc@mindspring.com.

Interview Contacts:

Jesse Wimberley 910/603-1052
Mike Wilson 910/673-3505
Richard Perritt (Sandhills Area Land Trust) 910/695-4323