Enviva Forest Conservation Fund Announces Its 2022 Grant Recipients

The recipients of the 2022 grants were revealed today by the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund (the Fund). The initiatives supported this year will help preserve more than 3,000 acres of environmentally fragile bottomland hardwood forests in the coastal lowlands of Virginia and North Carolina. 
 
Over the past seven years, the Fund has granted 29 projects a total of more than $3,100,000 in grants, not counting those that were announced today. When these initiatives are finished, it is anticipated that 33,000 acres will be preserved. The forests preserved as a part of the Fund contribute to the filtration of drinking water, the purification of the air, the protection of buildings from storms, and the provision of habitat for a variety of wildlife species. In addition, these forests create jobs and economic opportunities for rural families and private landowners. 
 
According to Thomas Meth, president of Enviva, “the fund is well on its way to fulfilling its initial goal of protecting approximately 35,000 acres of delicate bottomland hardwood forests throughout South Carolina and Virginia.” With more than three years left in the programme, the Fund “is positioned to supersede our commitment to long-term investments in forest management for generations to come” and collaborate with an increasing variety of conservation organizations.

Enviva Forest Conservation Fund

The recipients of grants from the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund in 2022 include:

The Bowers Tract, which consists of 244 acres of forest and 60 acres of agricultural upland fields, is up for sale, according to the Tar River Land Conservancy. The majority of the property, 54 percent (219 acres), is located within Swift Creek’s 100-year-old floodplain. 
 
Three Rivers Land Conservancy: In Montgomery County, North Carolina, Three Rivers Land Conservancy plans to buy 440 acres of bottomland hardwood forest close to the Little River and Uwharrie National Forest. On the site are the Little River Buffer and Cliffs natural areas. This forest area is home to the Northern Long Eared Bat, which is federally endangered, as well as the endangered Oak Toad, Alewife, and Blue Back Herring. 
 
The Turner Tract, which is situated along the Nottoway River at Cary’s Bridge and is considered to be one of Virginia’s most gorgeous rivers, is what the Virginia Outdoors Foundation is looking to purchase. This parcel includes hundreds of acres of working land along with 134 acres of bottomland hardwoods (111 acres of general hardwoods and 23 acres of Cypress-Tupelo that will be certified as “old growth”). 
 
The Conservation Fund will preserve 1,915 acres along the Nottoway River in Sussex County, Virginia, that are primarily made up of native bottomland hardwoods, wooded wetlands, and loblolly pine. With 3.5 miles of frontage along the Nottoway where the Roanoke Logperch and Dwarf Wedge Mussel are found, this project will expand the corridor of protected property along the Nottoway River. Additionally, the property has 2.5 miles of Black Branch Swamp frontage, which is home to 400 acres of bottomland hardwoods and over 220 acres of forested wetlands. A habitat for threatened species like the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker will be created on the land through sustainable forest management and the restoration of native longleaf pine and pine savanna.  
 
Ducks Unlimited: In two distinct parcels, the Crawford Tract and the Gasking Swamp Tract, in the North Carolina counties of Bertie and Gates, Ducks Unlimited hopes to purchase a total of 292 acres. The Red-Cockaded Woodpecker calls the Crawford Tract home, and it will extend the Chowan Swamp Game Land, which is bordered by it on three sides and is one of North Carolina’s most significant river basins for anadromous fish. The Gasking Swamp Tract would increase the size of the nearby Bertie County Game Land, which aids in preserving a section of the minor creeks, floodplain wetlands, and Significant Natural Heritage Areas of the Cashie River Swamps. These areas are designated as “Global Important Bird Areas” and offer crucial black bear migration routes along the Cashie River.