On December 23, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina acquired 35 additional acres along Paddy’s Creek, increasing protection of the Lake James watershed. With this purchase, the conservancy has now helped protect more than 11,000 acres surrounding Lake James, including 235 acres in the Paddy’s Creek watershed. This newest property includes open pastureland, forested buffers along one-third mile of Paddy’s Creek and a small tributary stream.
This purchase was made possible by multiple private donors, as well as through grants from the Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group and Duke Energy’s Catawba-Wateree Habitat Enhancement Program. A consortium of 18 municipal water suppliers (plus Duke Energy) that produce drinking water from the Catawba River and its lakes, the Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group established a small grants program in 2021 to fund source water protection projects like Foothills Conservancy’s Paddy’s Creek acquisition.
This parcel is the latest of many Foothills Conservancy projects in the area. Upstream from the new acquisition, the conservancy holds a conservation easement on private land, and immediately downstream is Whippoorwill Dairy Farm, part of the 78-acre two-parcel project Foothills Conservancy acquired in 2016, which was subsequently transferred to Lake James State Park ownership.
Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina is a nationally accredited regional land trust that inspires conservation in Western North Carolina by permanently protecting land and water for the benefit of people and all living things. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Foothills Conservancy serves eight counties: Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Lincoln, McDowell, and Rutherford, in three major river basins: the Broad, Catawba, and Yadkin. Information about Foothills Conservancy, including ways to support its work, can be found online at www.foothillsconservancy.org or by calling 828-437-9930.
Photo courtesy of Foothills Conservancy
