The Project

The Sandy Mush Collaborative Forest Restoration Project is a pilot program focusing on how to implement community forestry practices within communities threatened by forest degradation. This project aims to increase capacity to restore native species habitat and improve forest stewardship. Our goal is to foster healthy and resilient forests that protect environmental values, cultural heritage, economic opportunities, and quality of life for community residents. We will achieve our goal by:

  • Restoring native species habitat on conservation lands by funding stewardship projects on Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy properties. This work includes controlling non-native invasive plants and enhancing forest health.. Management on conservation lands is important as these areas are often permanently protected and have a lasting positive impact on the community at large.  

  • Creating opportunities to connect landowners with resources to restore their forest.  This includes developing forest stewardship plans, hosting landowner workshops, providing time with professionals who can assist with technical services, and connecting landowners to funding opportunities. 

  • Building on community by implementing goals laid out in the Sandy Mush Forest Restoration Coalition Action Plan and adapting to landowner needs. This will be accomplished through community projects and collaborative actions.

  • Monitoring results. This includes keeping track of the acreage in conservation as well as making sure landowner objectives are met.

 

Year One Accomplishments (2019-2020):

  • Non-native invasive species control on eight Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy properties

  • Formation of the Sandy Mush Forest Restoration Coalition

  • Creation of an Action Plan by the Coalition

Year Two Accomplishments (2020-2021):

  • Non-native invasive species control and monitoring of SAHC properties

  • Non-native invasive species control on Sandy Mush Gamelands

  • Stewardship incentives offered for landowners

  • Landowner workshops offered

  • Website creation

 
The focal region of the Sandy Mush Collaborative Forest Restoration Project

The focal region of the Sandy Mush Collaborative Forest Restoration Project

Why Sandy Mush?

Sandy Mush occupies a 51,000-acre watershed-level geography in western North Carolina and is a high-priority area for the conservation of natural and cultural heritage. As a focal area for timber production, much of the forestland in Sandy Mush has been heavily harvested in the past and needs some degree of forest restoration to promote biodiversity and ecosystem health. With limited economic resources, many landowners don’t have the disposable income necessary to invest in forest stewardship activities. Sandy Mush is a very ideologically diverse community, with a combination of both newer landowners and long-time farming families that hold varied goals for their forestland. While many families living within the greater Sandy Mush watershed have resided in the community for generations, both newcomers and longtime residents have a strong sense of place that drives their passion for being good stewards to their land.

Our Partners

This project was founded by three conservation groups in Western North Carolina: EcoForesters, the Forest Stewards Guild, and the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. It is currently spearheaded by EcoForesters and SAHC. Together these partners work together to seek solutions and learn more about how to help with the stewardship of an area with high conservation and cultural value.

EcoForesters is a non-profit professional forestry organization dedicated to conserving and restoring Southern Appalachian forests through education and stewardship. EcoForesters achieves its mission with boots on the ground stewardship and engaging with landowners to accomplish planning and management objectives.

Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy works to conserve the unique plant and animal habitat, clean water, farmland, scenic beauty, and places for people to enjoy outdoor recreation in the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee for the benefit of present and future generations. They achieve this by forging and maintaining long-term conservation relationships with private landowners and public agencies, owning and managing land, and encouraging healthy local communities.