June 18-28, French Broad Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson lead a group of paddlers down the entire French Broad River to help raise awareness of issues currently facing the river. Along the way, we took water samples, checked fish health, and toured a sewage treatment plant. To read more about our trip, and to learn about how you can participate next year check out www.savethefrenchbroad.com!

Hartwell Carson, the French Broad Riverkeeper, paddled in with his position’s past, present and future today as the Western North Carolina Alliance (WNCA) announced that the Waterkeeper Alliance has placed the Riverkeeper’s license with the 28-year-old grassroots environmental advocacy group.

As the WNCA made its announcement at the Asheville Outdoor Center, Carson paddled to the event in his new canoe, joined by Donna Lisenby, the Upper Watauga Riverkeeper and member of the Waterkeeper Alliance board of directors. They joined Phillip Gibson, chairman of the WNCA, who served as the original French Broad Riverkeeper from 2001 to 2006 before being succeeded by Carson.

From the Mountain Xpress:
by Brian Postelle on 03/17/2010

  Thanks to some help from the Western North Carolina Alliance, a former UNCA environmental program and lab may re-emerge. The Environmental Quality Institute — closed in 2009 after budget cuts ousted it from campus — will be reborn as an Alliance program.

The two groups recently announced that the Alliance will help the institute establish itself as a freestanding nonprofit. Last fall, after the UNC budget approved by the N.C. General Assembly mandated $1.28 million in cuts for UNCA, the institute closed. Despite arguments that it was sustained largely by grant funding, EQI was one of a handful of campus programs cut.

From the Mountain Xpress:
by Brian Postelle on 03/11/2010

The Asheville Design Center recently met with the N.C. Department of Transportation to discuss progress on the I-26 connector. The group emerged with news on the status of the alternative 4B it championed for the project. Among those revelations is a shortened, less expensive bridge and the news that noise studies indicates 4B will be quieter than other plans.

The Western North Carolina Alliance invites you to an evening around the campfire with America's best known conservationist, John Muir and President Teddy Roosevelt on Thursday, October 7 at the Asheville Community Theatre.

Founder of the Sierra Club, leading naturalist, dedicated mountaineer and wilderness explorer, author, philosopher, and story-teller, Muir is also credited by many Americans as the architect of our National Park system. 

John Muir and his legacy have influenced the preservation of our country's natural environment far beyond what most of us can imagine.

Tickets are $20 for WNCA members, $25 for non-members, $30 at the door.

Purchase your tickets now for the John Muir event, click the read more link.

Join us for our Annual Meeting at the Southern Energy and Environment Expo on August 21!

We will be voting in new board members, awarding the Esther Cunningham Award for environmental excellence within the community, announcing programmatic updates, taking input for our 2011 work, and discussing a possible name and logo change.

Also during the Expo, check out an invasives workshop by our ecologist Bob Gale at 10:30 and a Muddy Water Watch training with French Broad Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson from 1:30-6.  Click here for more information about the Muddy Water Watch program.

When/Where: Southern Energy and Envioronment Expo at the WNC Agriculture Center Saturday 

                    August 21, 2010, 11:30am-1:30pm

                    The meeting will be held in the Pony Express Cafe, adjacent to the Davis Arena.

                    To learn more about the 20+ workshops on Saturday, go to www.seeexpo.com.

Cost: $10 for admittance into the Expo, and we will be taking donations for lunch.

We would love for you to join us for some of our upcoming events this summer! Contact Elle@wnca.org for more information!

June 18-28

 Save the French Broad Paddle Trip
Go to www.savethefrenchbroad.com to register! 

August 14
Snorkeling Trip in the Little Tennessee River 

August 21
WNCA Annual Meeting at the SEE Expo 

October 7

John Muir Performance 

Western North Carolina Alliance (WNCA), in partnership with  the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) and Equinox Environmental Land Consultation and Design, invites the public to join them this spring as the group removes invasive exotic plants along the Appalachian Trail (AT).
        Upcoming opportunities to participate in these outings include:
•       April 17 and 18 – Stecoah Gap Inventory
•       May 1 and 8 – Lemon Gap Inventory
•       May 15 and 22 – Sam’s Gap Inventory
•       May 29 – Roan Mtn. Inventory
Participants will be trained through a workshop that outlines the threats of invasive exotic plants, identification of the 15 most threatening species, and tools and techniques used to control invasive plant populations.

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