"Treat the Earth well. It was not given to you by your parents. It was loaned to you by your children”
~ Kenyan Proverb
Western North Carolina has many opportunities for sustainable living to show our
appreciation for the abundance of natural beauty this area is lavished with.
With the proliferation of developments around WNC we also have the responsibility to
protect our land for future generations.
Many people are re-discovering the possibilities of living OFF GRID using Solar,
Wind or Micro-Hydro energy to power highly efficient modern homes.
Natural building suppliers, eco-friendly homes, organic grocery stores as well as local
retailers which offer eco-friendly fashion and toys are all part of the green movement,
a reflection of the residents of WNC. Many land owners have placed portions of their
holdings in conservation easements to protect it from unnecessary urban sprawl
and future development.
Green Real Estate Opportunities in WNC
The North Carolina Solar Center, the State Energy Office, NC Department of Administration, and local building professional organizations have developed The NC HealthyBuilt Homes Program.
"This Program provides a certificate for homes meeting "green home guidelines" built by residential builders who practice sustainable, high performance building strategies making the home a comfortable, healthy and affordable place that reduces energy and water usage, promotes renewable energy use and helps protect the land where the home is built. In a HealthyBuilt Home, building materials and processes are selected to reduce pollution and the waste of natural resources during the manufacturing and construction phases and throughout the life of the home. The builder is encouraged to provide homeowner education about the high performance features of the home and provide local resources for "green" living." (from http://www.healthybuilthomes.org)
To receive information about green/healthy built homes, please fill in form:
To learn more about the effort of sustainable building and living here in WNC visit :
What is a Land Conservancy? A land conservancy is a non-profit, tax- exempt organization that preserves significant lands primarily by lasting conservation agreements with landowners or acquisition through purchase or gift. Land conservancies focus on the land and water resources of greatest importance to local communities. They are run by small, professional staffs and volunteer boards of directors drawn from the communities. Land conservancies help ordinary people do extraordinary things.
“This decade is viewed as the last chance to protect large tracts of undeveloped land in Western North Carolina,” said Carl Silverstein, Executive Director of Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. “In the face of unprecedented growth and skyrocketing land values, we are racing to protect land that maintains the region's character we all treasure. This year sets us on track to meaningfully safeguard the Southern Blue Ridge mountains.”
Developed land has increased 77 percent in Western North Carolina in the last two decades. The region's population continues to soar with three million more people living in North Carolina than in 1970, and the mountains are predicted to lose another 490,400 acres of forests, farms, stream banks and wildlife habitats by 2022 — a size almost as large as the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Meanwhile, the sharp increase in property values in the last five years has escalated the need for funds to protect these properties. Land trusts are often faced with protecting land valued $10,000 to $20,000 an acre.
“The stakes could not be higher, as North Carolina's number two economic engine – tourism – depends on the state's unspoiled naturally beauty” said Susie Hamrick Jones, Executive Director of Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina. The Blue Ridge Parkway draws approximately 18 million visitors from around the world to Western North Carolina alone each year, contributing $2 billion a year to the regional economy.
“This decade is also a time of opportunity as more and more landowners are interested in conserving their land from mountain cove farms endeared by generations of the same family, to world-renowned biological hotspots,” said Kieran Roe, Executive Director of Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy.
From Blue Ridge Forever, January 16, 2007
More Resources for Sustainable Living