Why MountainTrue Must Fight Racism

When MountainTrue was formed through the merger of the Western North Carolina Alliance, the Environmental Conservation Organization and the Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance in 2015, the organization inherited a broad scope of programs focused on protecting our rivers and public forests, reducing our region’s dependence on fossil fuels and encouraging smart growth to improve the health of our communities and reduce the impacts of development on our natural environment.

In the five years since the merger, the organization has been working on addressing issues of racism and equity: all MountainTrue staff members enroll in the Racial Equity Institute, the Building Bridges program or both; we’ve taken strides to diversify our board and staff; and we’re working to build partnerships with communities that are fighting for equitable access to resources and power.

That process has been coalescing and transformational. If you had asked us five years ago, two years ago or even just a few weeks back about our priorities and responsibilities on race and equity, you would have gotten different answers than today. We’ve been evolving toward a wider focus. Yes to protecting forests and rivers and advocating for better public transit, more greenways, clean energy, and dense development for the environmental benefits, but we are also thinking more broadly about how we can help foster communities where people are truly healthy. And this means communities that are free from racism, and where there is equity in the social determinants of health — housing, transportation, education and jobs.

Racial segregation and poverty are outcomes of bad policy.

Poverty and racial disparities have been sustained through bad policies that have disproportionately impacted people of color. This is clearly evident in the histories of Redlining and Urban Renewal. Redlining was the systemic denial of services, especially home loans, to people in Black communities established by the Federal Housing Administration in 1934 and replicated by private lenders and local governments that established racially-restrictive local zoning ordinances. Through a combination of redlining, deed restrictions, exclusionary zoning and leasing practices, and racism on the part of local governments, Black people were relegated to the poorest neighborhoods with the least public services. And because Black people could not get loans to improve or fix their homes, the quality of housing and other structures in these neighborhoods deteriorated and property values fell such that homeownership for Black families did not allow for the accumulation of generational wealth.

Despite these restrictions, Black communities in Asheville like Hill Street and Stumptown, the East End and the South Side were vibrant, thriving centers of Black life. City planners, however, saw only pockets of urban decay ripe for redevelopment under the guise of “Urban Renewal.” In the years after World War II, the federal government funded a massive building boom through the passage of the Housing Acts of 1949 and 1954, and the construction of a vast network of highways through the Federal Highway Act of 1944. With federal dollars flowing to municipal coffers, cities like Asheville were free to redevelop their urban cores, and it was poorer Black neighborhoods that were targeted. Much of the East End was razed to make way for South Charlotte Street and MLK Drive. In the Southside neighborhood more than 1,000 homes, 50 businesses and seven churches were demolished to make way for more upscale housing. In the Hill Street neighborhood, entire street grids were erased from the map to make way for Asheville’s Cross-Town Expressway.

In towns and cities across the country, vibrant communities of color were destroyed and their residents displaced. Some were forced to live in public housing communities that became pockets of concentrated poverty. Many others had to find cheap housing in the least desirable areas near highways, factories, refineries and landfills.

A View of Eagle Street

A view of Eagle Street looking east from the intersection with Biltmore Ave. This was the vibrant business center of the historically African American East End neighborhood. Photo by Warren Guggeheim circa 1950, courtesy of North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Public Library, Asheville, North Carolina.

HOLC Map of Asheville

After the Great Depression, the U.S. government’s Home Owners’ Loan Corporation set out to evaluate the riskiness of mortgages. Their infamous redlining maps are a portrait of the racism and discrimination that has shaped American housing policy. Source: the Mapping Inequality project at the University of Richmond. https://dsl.richmond.edu/

Displacement for Crosstown Expressway

This photo from Dec. 29, 1958, shows the demolition of buildings for the construction of the Asheville Crosstown Expressway. Asheville Crosstown Expressway. © Asheville Citizen Times via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Construction of the Crosstown Expressway

Aerial photo looking east over the construction of the “Crosstown Expressway” (I-240) in the early 1950s. Photo by Ernest Hamill, courtesy of North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Public Library, Asheville, North Carolina.

Pollution disproportionately affects the poor and communities of color.

These neighborhoods where the air is thicker with automobile exhaust, smog and fumes, and the soil and water are more likely to be poisoned with lead, heavy metals and other industrial pollutants have been dubbed “sacrifice zones.” The higher concentrations of pollution in these areas have an enormous effect on human health and childhood development and perpetuate the cycle of poverty. For instance, generations of poor kids who grew up near highways breathed air thick with the exhaust of leaded gasoline, and, even now, children in these neighborhoods are more likely to have high blood lead levels because the soil near these roads is still contaminated. Lead has been linked to reduced IQs, attention problems and aggressive behavior, and has been identified as a possible cause of the crimewave that besieged the nation from the mid-sixties through the early nineties.

It would be a mistake to reduce this oppression to simply matters of historical mistakes, market demand and geography. Redlining was explicitly racist, as was the targeting for destruction of poor and communities of color by mid-twentieth century urban planners. Similarly, proximity does not fully explain why Black and Brown communities suffer higher levels of air pollution. The National Center for Environmental Assessment finds that Black and Latino people are exposed to about 1.5 times and 1.3 times more particulate matter, respectively, than White people and that emissions are generally higher from factories located in communities of color than those located in wealthier White neighborhoods. Decisions are being made to site more polluting factories in poor neighborhoods than rich neighborhoods, and then to run the factories in Black and Brown neighborhoods dirtier. This is more than economic oppression. It’s environmental racism and it’s a dynamic that has been repeated time and again — famously in the financial decisions that lead to the Flint, Michigan water crisis and the state’s negligent response. Poor people are exploited for profit, and Black and Brown people most of all.

Protesters Demand Clean Water for Flint

Flint residents protest outside of the Michigan State Capital in January 2016. By Shannon Nobles / Amsterdam News

No zone should be sacrificed.

The society that we now inhabit is one where Black and Brown people have fewer opportunities, are more likely to live in areas that are polluted and dangerous, and are more likely to be trapped in cycles of poverty. To make matters worse: layered on top of this structural racism is a brutal criminal justice system, a broken healthcare system, an anemic educational system, crumbling infrastructure and growing food insecurity. In each and every regard, the consequences of these systemic failures fall heaviest on poor Black, Indigenous, and people of color.

Set to topple all these fragile civic institutions is the leviathan threat of Climate Change, which, if left unchecked, will flood our lowlands and mountain valleys in wet years and burn our mountaintops in drought years. Already, the outlines of this dystopia are clear: people and communities with resources will be better positioned to adapt, fortify and recover from disasters. Poorer communities will be sacrificed, largely abandoned by our federal government like New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, the American citizens of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, the Black neighborhoods of Houston that were flooded by industrial pollution during Hurricane Harvey, or the towns in Eastern North Carolina where homes were flooded with water tainted by millions of gallons of animal waste during Hurricane Florence.

But acting on climate change is not simply altruism, because the security of wealth will be fleeting. Climate Change is proceeding at a pace that has taken scientists by surprise and contributes to a wide spectrum of related maladies such as water shortages, crop destruction and the spread of diseases such as COVID-19. The climate challenges laid out in the October 2018 IPCC report will be insurmountable for a nation that is depleted and divided. Time is running out: to avoid climate catastrophe, we must stop sacrificing our most vulnerable populations, unite and act now.

Aftermath of Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy ravaged large portions of the Northeastern United States, damaging homes in poor, working class and wealthy communities, illustrating that no one is immune from the effects of climate change. Photo Courtesy of Marine Expeditionary Force by Cpl. Bryan Nygaard. (2012)

Our conscience demands action and unity.

The wider movement needed to repair our country, protect our environment and take on climate change must be multicultural and firmly committed to dismantling racism and all systems of structural oppression. This was the strategic rationale of Martin Luther King’s Poor People’s Campaign — which he described as “the beginning of a new co-operation, understanding, and a determination by poor people of all colors and backgrounds to assert and win their right to a decent life and respect for their culture and dignity” — and later of Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition. Both civil rights leaders understood that an anti-racist movement in which White participation is based only on notions of altruism of charity will exhaust itself and fail to create the mass politics needed to win lasting systemic change.

It’s been two years since the 2018 IPCC report was published warning of dire circumstances of not taking bold, swift action to curtail climate catastrophe. It has been nearly 40 years since Professor and NASA scientist James Hansen gave Congressional testimony about the threat of global warming. In that time our elected leaders have failed to meet the challenge head on. Worse, they’ve scoffed at proposals of the magnitude needed to address the climate crisis head on.

Poor People’s March at Lafayette Park

Demonstrators participating in the June 18, 1968 Poor People’s March on Connecticut Avenue, Washington, D.C Courtesy Library of Congress.

We have our work cut out for us. MountainTrue and its members must commit to the work of dismantling structural racism and uniting our communities in the fight for justice and survival in the face of climate change. Neither cause can succeed on its own; all are interconnected. We know that we don’t have all the answers, but we’re ready to stand shoulder to shoulder with communities fighting for justice.

As an organization, MountainTrue is committed to fighting racism and economic inequity, because meeting our core mission of protecting communities and the environment requires it. This means we must be ready to take on fights that are beyond the scope of traditional environmentalism. We will live our values and use our influence and institutional power to win a more equitable future, and we invite you, as a MountainTrue supporter, to join us.

Fall Native Tree and Shrub Sale

A key component to a healthy stream or lake and good water quality is native trees and shrubs. Streamside buffers provide a wide variety of functions, including filtering pollution from runoff; trapping excess soil and taking up nutrients; keeping water temperatures cooler; helping prevent erosion and loss of land; and providing food and shelter for wildlife. MountainTrue staff and volunteers spend a good deal of time removing nonnative invasive plants from along streams and the lake shoreline to ensure that the native vegetation stays healthy and functions to protect water quality. Learn more about the functions of riparian buffers here.

Many of the harmful invasive plants that we work so hard to eradicate are unknowingly planted by residents in landscaping – sometimes miles away from the water!

In order to raise awareness about the beautiful, resilient plants that are native to our Southern Appalachian Mountains and to provide a little funding for our ongoing invasive plant eradication efforts, we are again holding a Native Tree and Shrub Sale this fall. Choose from 36 species of native trees and shrubs, ranging from large shade trees, native ornamentals, pollinator species, and those particularly beneficial to wildlife.

All plants are quality local nursery stock.
1-gallon – $12
2-gallon – $15
3-gallon – $20

2020 Tree-Shrub species price list
2020 Tree-Shrub descriptions for sale
2020 Tree Sale Printable Order Form

Orders will be accepted through Wednesday, November 4, while supplies last. You must pay for the order at the time you submit it in order to secure your species and size of choice. Then, pick up your order from the MountainTrue Western Regional Office parking lot in downtown Murphy on Saturday, November 14 between 9:00am – 1:00pm.

Here are two ways to complete your order:

Order online using the form below and pay with any major credit card.
Use our printable paper order form. Mail the order form with a check payment to: MountainTrue, 90 Tennessee St., Suite D, Murphy, NC 28906.

Plants that are found here inspire a “sense of place” and pride in our mountain communities and promote wise stewardship and conservation of natural resources. For questions related to these or other native and invasive plant species, contact program coordinator, Tony Ward at tony@mountaintrue.org.

September 2020 E-Newsletter

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September 17, 2020

Make Sure Your Vote Counts This Fall

The fate of North Carolina’s environment will be heavily impacted by the General Election, and the pandemic and possible delays in the postal system create unique challenges for voting this year. To make sure your vote is counted, we’re asking you to make sure your voter registration is up to date and to cast your vote as soon as possible.

In North Carolina, October 9 is the deadline to update your registration online or by mail. Make sure you and your friends and family are registered by then. Online voter registration is available and free through the DMV website here, or you can fill out a registration form here to submit by mail or drop off directly at your local Board of Elections office.

Not sure if your registration is current? Check your voter registration status by entering your name in the NC voter lookup tool. You can also register for the first time or update your registration and vote all at once during the Early Voting period from October 15-31.

RSVP for MountainTrue’s Virtual Annual Gathering!

For this year’s Annual Member Gathering, we’ll be gathering virtually on Zoom to celebrate recent accomplishments and honor recipients of this year’s MountainTrue awards – such as it is in 2020! While we wish we could all be in person to celebrate, we sincerely hope you will join us for this hour-long program. Following the program, there will be optional small group discussions with fellow members and MountainTrue staff on issues like the Nantahala-Pisgah Forest Management Plan, stormwater infrastructure and solar energy. RSVP today to come together!

MountainTrue Launches New Web Resource on Racial Equity

Flint residents protest outside of the Michigan State Capital in January 2016. Photo by Shannon Nobles

Like many organizations, MountainTrue is taking a hard look at the role we should play in the national dialogue on race and equity. We’re evaluating our current suite of programs to see where we can create more intersections on issues of environmental justice and where we can better partner with communities of color. And in order to help dismantle the existing framework of systemic racism, we’re exploring how we can address discrimination outside of the narrow confines of traditional environmental advocacy. We’ll be documenting this work, discussing environmentalism in the context of race, and hosting virtual, small group discussions on a new section of our website. We invite you to check it out at mountaintrue.org/equity

MountainTrue Calls For Duke’s 15-Year Energy Plan To Address Climate Change, Protect Low-Income Ratepayers

This month, Duke Energy released its Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), which presents six scenarios for how Duke Energy may source energy over the next fifteen years. Most of the scenarios lock in decades of coal or gas production, and we believe the plan’s consideration of renewable energy sources creates a false dichotomy between transitioning to renewable energy and protecting ratepayers from rising costs. MountainTrue is part of a statewide coalition calling for the NC Utilities Commission to approve an IRP with these 10 principles for the sake of our climate and communities.

“The wildfires and bright orange skies on the West Coast are a sobering reminder that devastating impacts of climate change are already happening,” says MountainTrue’s Energy Organizer Eliza Stokes. “It is urgent that Duke Energy gets serious about using their power to reach 100% renewable energy in North Carolina in the time frame that climate science requires.” Read more on the Blue Ridge Public Radio website here.

Take Action: Call On Congress to Include Stormwater Infrastructure Funding in Stimulus Package

As Congress deliberates on additional economic relief efforts, we are calling on our region’s elected officials to support funding for expanded stormwater infrastructure. In the process, Congress can create new green jobs, protect our rivers and help preserve recreation-based economies all at once.

Our nation’s stormwater and sewer infrastructure is in desperate need of modernization, especially in the face of heavier rain events due to climate change. Join MountainTrue in calling for Congress to triple its annual appropriations for the Clean Water State Revolving Funds and explore additional investments in our nation’s drinking water and sewer infrastructure systems.

Take Action

Public Comments Win A Stormwater Task Force For Asheville

French Broad Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson takes water samples at Nasty Branch in Asheville’s Southside Neighborhood. Photo by Karim Olaechea.

The French Broad River is dirty and only getting dirtier. Due in large part to failing sewer and septic systems that overflow during storms, the French Broad has consistently seen high levels of E. coli – a type of bacteria found in human and animal waste. More than half the sites we tested in the French Broad Watershed last year failed to meet the safe standard for E. coli held by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and this year none of Asheville’s sites met the safety standard on average. The worst results were at Nasty Branch, which receives over half of downtown Asheville’s stormwater and flows through the historically African-American Southside neighborhood before discharging into the French Broad.

To address these problems, we launched a campaign calling on the City of Asheville to join local clean water advocates in setting up a Stormwater Task Force. We called for the task force to analyze where and how the City’s sewer and septic systems were failing and to create an action plan to respond. After over 800 people submitted public comments, the City finally agreed.

“We’ve been moving in the wrong direction on water quality for the French Broad River, and things will only get worse as climate change causes heavier and more frequent storms,” says French Broad Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson. “We hope this task force means the City is ready to take this issue seriously.” MountainTrue will work to ensure that the task force comes up with effective recommendations and that the City follows through on them. To learn more about our next steps for clean water advocacy, visit iloverivers.org.

One Step Closer to Fending Off the Asphalt Plant Proposed for East Flat Rock!

The Henderson County Planning Board met on August 20 to consider SE Asphalt’s rezoning application to build an industrial asphalt plant at the intersection of Spartanburg Highway (US-176) and US-25, across the street from a low-income mobile home park and surrounded by hundreds of single family homes, small farms, and the Green River Game Lands. MountainTrue’s Green Riverkeeper and hundreds of local residents organized as Friends of East Flat Rock oppose this rezoning and the construction of the new asphalt plant, and in a small victory, the board voted to recommend denial of the rezoning request! The application will be heard next by the Henderson County Commissioners on October 1 at 6:00 PM. Keep speaking out!

Broad Riverkeeper David Caldwell Identifies Harmful Algal Blooms in Moss Lake

Moss Lake during normal water conditions (left) compared to the algal bloom (right).

While taking water samples this summer, Broad Riverkeeper David Caldwell noticed that Moss Lake was very green and cloudy. He conducted additional tests that showed high dissolved oxygen and pH readings, both of which are indicators of an algal bloom.

The following Monday, David received a call from a Moss Lake resident who had noticed many dead fish in the water. David notified the NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and they sent a staff member out to take water samples in and above the lake. DEQ sent reports back confirming that it was a harmful algal bloom. In follow-up conversations after these reports came out, David learned that the same resident who reported the dead fish had noticed similar conditions at the lake at least twice since then, and once with a very foul odor.

As algal blooms become more and more common due to rising temperatures and an increase of nutrients in our waters, Riverkeepers across the state believe that more study and analysis of them must be done. We would also like for the residents at Moss Lake to take more of a lead in identifying and reporting possible algal blooms. Residents should contact DEQ immediately if the water turns really green, because the life cycle of these blooms can be really quick – as short as a couple of days. Read more about algal blooms and the incident at Moss Lake here.

First Annual Broad River Fishing Tournament Results

Matthew Frazier, the Broad’s Best Angler of 2020!

Thanks for making our first ever Broad River Fishing Tournament such a great success! We’re excited to announce our first-ever Broad River Fishing Tournament! After 10 days of phenomenal fishing and careful deliberation, the results are in:

Broad’s Best Angler 2020: Matthew Frazier wins with a three fish total of 52 inches combined: 19.5″, 16.5″, and 16″, all smallmouth bass!
2nd Place: Fitz McMurry with 50.5 inches combined with three nice smallmouth bass: 17.5″, 16.5″, and 16.5″!
Biggest Bass: Matthew Frazier: 19.5″ smallmouth bass.
Biggest Panfish and Biggest Catfish: David Caldwell with a 7″ Spotted Sunfish and 11″ Bull Catfish. Can’t beat the Riverkeeper!
Most Unusual Fish: Ladonna Dedmond with a very nice 16″ largemouth bass with a distinctive black stripe.

Well done and congratulations to this year’s expert anglers! Let’s do it again next year!

Update on Pollution from Tryon International Equestrian Center

You might recall that this summer, MountainTrue reported severe and illegal sediment pollution flowing from the Tryon International Equestrian Center into White Oak Creek, a tributary of the Green River. On September 2, we followed up by meeting with the President of the equestrian center to discuss their past and ongoing impacts on water quality and measures that need to be implemented to protect clean water. We will also be following up with a site visit at the facility to inspect and assess the existing stormwater management system, discuss necessary improvements and remediation needs and solidify commitments to protect water quality moving forward.

We will continue to hold this polluter and all polluters accountable, and we thank all of our supporters and community members that report pollution issues to us.

Sediment Pollution from Poultry Operation in Broad River Watershed Results in Enforcement Action

A concerned resident shows the depth of sediment accumulation from poultry farm construction.

This summer, a concerned resident noticed heavy sediment pollution flowing into a small stream that usually runs clear downstream of the construction site for a new poultry facility in the Broad River Watershed. The resident contacted our Broad Riverkeeper David, who reported the issue to the NC Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ). NCDEQ visited the site and issued a Notice of Violation, requiring the company to:

Immediately stabilize the site and install proper erosion control measures
Explain why adequate sediment and erosion controls were not installed to protect surface waters
Explain why culvert installation and stream bank stabilization impacts occurred without prior authorization with 401 WQC and 404 permit
Remove all fill material and restore the stream to pre-existing conditions

This is what happens when polluters are held accountable, and why it’s so important for the public to notice and report pollution. If you see something, say something!

Welcome Back Grace Fuchs as AmeriCorps Water Quality Administrator!

We are so pleased to welcome back Grace Fuchs for a second term as AmeriCorps Water Quality Administrator in our Southern Regional Office! Grace did a great job organizing volunteers for our water quality monitoring programs and educating youth about water quality issues, and her perspective has been a huge asset to our team as we’ve adapted our programs over the course of the year. We’re so excited to see what Grace will bring to her second year of service!

Fourth Annual Native Tree and Shrub Sale

MountainTrue’s western regional office is holding our 4th Annual Native Tree and Shrub Sale! Choose from 36 species of native trees and shrubs ranging from large shade trees to native ornamental shrubs. Descriptions for the various plants indicate that there are good pollinator and wildlife species on the list. All plants are quality nursery stock ranging in size from one to three gallon potted trees.

Orders are being accepted now through November 4. You must pay for the order at the time you submit it to secure your species and size of choice. Then make plans to pick up your plants from the MountainTrue office parking lot in Murphy, NC on Saturday, November 14 between 9AM and 1PM. Why so late? The dormant season is the best time to plant woody trees and shrubs so that they can develop a strong root system before putting energy into flowers, leaves and fruit in the spring.

Place your plant order today!

Conservation of Chestnut Mountain Leads to Plans for a New Park in Haywood County

The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy (SAHC) recently acquired 448 acres of land at Chestnut Mountain in Haywood County that will eventually be turned over to the Town of Canton to manage as a nature park. MountainTrue has served on an advisory committee of community members to help guide this process, including public input. The property, located just a mile east of Canton’s border, features sources of clean water and forested habitat in an important wildlife corridor. One day, this land may also offer an important recreation destination along the proposed Hellbender Regional Trail. Equinox environmental design firm is leading a public input process to help identify the best uses and highest outdoor recreational needs for the area.

New Partnership for the Return of Native Plants to Bryson City’s Island Park

The interior of Island Park is covered with a wide variety of nonnative invasive plants, including kudzu.

MountainTrue has recently formed a partnership with the Tuckasegee River Alliance to implement a river park along the Tuckasegee River in Bryson City. Our role is to guide the removal of non-native invasive plants that are covering Island Park and dominating the riparian area along the river downtown, and to return native plant species to these same areas. Our Western Region Program Coordinator Tony Ward is currently developing a phased implementation plan for this work. Then, later this fall and winter, the Alliance and MountainTrue will jointly host volunteer workdays to start tackling the plant removal and planting. Stay tuned for upcoming dates for work days.

Note: Island Park is currently closed to the public until flood damage repairs and debris removal can be completed.

Events Calendar

September 14-20: 33rd Annual Big Sweep
The 33rd annual Big Sweep cleanup has gone virtual and is running until September 20 at 8PM. To participate, pick up trash along your local waterway or neighborhood, and post photos of the trash you collect with the hashtag #WNCBigSweep2020.

September 17, 6 PM: Creation Care Alliance Gathering
All congregations, individuals and clergy are invited to join this virtual gathering to connect with one another, discuss Creation Care concepts in regionally-based small groups and learn from Asheville Design Center Director Chris Joyell of the Asheville Design Center about urban development, economics and racism.

September 20, 12-6PM: Sarah Sweep
All are welcome to join us to clean up this lovely section of the First Broad River that Sarah Spencer held dear to her heart. Due to COVID-19, you must provide your own shuttle this year.

September 23, 12-1PM: MountainTrue University: Faith, Ecology & Race
Join us for a conversation between Reverend Tami Forte Logan, Missioner of Faith 4 Justice Asheville, and Reverend Scott Hardin-Nieri, Director of the Creation Care Alliance. They will explore how each of their programs addresses faith, ecology and race, as well as how their efforts promote justice in our community.

September 26, 9AM-12PM: E-bike Tour of Downtown Asheville
Ride along on our electric bike tour of Asheville led by Chris Joyell, Director of MountainTrue’s Asheville Design Center. As we pass through downtown, the Southside and the River Arts District, Chris will share his extensive knowledge about Asheville’s urban core, including stories of how redlining has shaped our city and the highlights (and lowlights) of Asheville’s bike infrastructure.

September 27, 8-11:30PM: Moonlight Paddle on the Broad River
Join our Broad Riverkeeper David Caldwell for a moonlight paddle on a flat water section of the Broad River. As we go, David will talk about the history of the Broad River and his work to protect it. We will start from and return to the same point to avoid the need for shuttling vehicles as a precaution against COVID-19.

Sundays October 4-25, 6:30-8PM: “This Changes Everything” Documentary Study
Land of the Sky United Church of Christ and the Creation Care Alliance are hosting a four-week movie discussion group. We will create community, watch portions of the film and explore connections across economics, climate change, racism and our spiritual lives.

October 8, 6-7PM: Virtual Green Drinks with Danny Bernstein
Virtual Hendersonville Green Drinks welcomes author Danny Bernstein to discuss her newest book DuPont Forest, A History. DuPont Forest protects thousands of acres of trees, five lakes and more than 100 miles of multi-use trails. Danny will discuss how it took the generosity of a multinational company, Southern Appalachian grit and local activism to make these benefits available to all.

October 17, 9AM-4PM: Fall Scenic Hike
Join MountainTrue’s Ecologist and Public Lands Director, Bob Gale, for a gorgeous and educational hike on the Pilot Cove Loop Trail through Pisgah National Forest. This hike offers breathtaking views of the fall foliage, and if we’re lucky, we’ll catch glimpses of the monarch butterfly migration.

October 21, 6-7PM: Virtual Annual Member Gathering
For this year’s Annual Member Gathering, we’ll be gathering virtually on Zoom to celebrate recent accomplishments and honor recipients of this year’s MountainTrue awards – such as it is in 2020!

November 1, 10AM-4PM: Whiterock Mountain Hike
Join us for a hike on the Bartram Trail, one of North Carolina’s premier long distance trails. We’ll tackle a 4.6-mile lightly-trafficked section near Highlands that provides spectacular views into the Tessentee Valley of Macon County. On this stretch we’ll summit Jones Knob and Whiterock Mountain.

November 7, 9-11:30AM: Lake Chatuge Shoreline Cleanup
MountainTrue will host the 11th Annual Lake Chatuge Shoreline Cleanup in conjunction with Georgia Rivers Alive! The event will kick off at the Towns County Swim Beach Pavilion with breakfast and coffee, and volunteer coordinators will lead teams of 5-10 to clean up designated trash sites along the shores of Lake Chatuge. We’ll meet back at the swim beach pavilion at 11:30 for prizes.

November 7, 10AM-November 8, 5PM: Overnight Paddle on the Broad River
Join us for an overnight paddle exploring the Broad River as it winds through the foothills of the Blue Ridge. We’ll spend two days on the river and camp for one night on the Broad River Greenway.

You’re Invited to MountainTrue’s Annual Gathering on October 21!

Join us online – we still want to see you, even if it’s only your head, neck and shoulders!

Each year, MountainTrue hosts a gathering of our members to recognize and honor outstanding volunteers, vote on new board members, and reflect on a year of hard work and – hopefully – some big wins! This October 21st, while we cannot gather in person, we hope you’ll join us online to celebrate another year of protecting the places we share.

With Each Other Even If We Can’t Hug Each Other:
MountainTrue’s 2020 Virtual Annual Gathering
October 21, 6-7 pm
RSVP through the form below to get the link to join.

If you are having any trouble accessing the meeting, please contact Adam Bowers at 828-680-0738 or at adam@mountaintrue.org

Check here to confirm that your membership is current, and if you are not a member you can join or renew when you RSVP using the form below!

Where MountainTrue Has Been and Where We’re Going

MountainTrue, like most environmental organizations, has a membership, board, and staff that are largely white. Efforts to diversify, while challenging for any traditional environmental group, are particularly challenging for us given that our mountain region is 89% white. This, however, cannot be an excuse for non-action. It just means we need to work harder to diversify our staff, board and membership and to focus our programs in ways that will particularly benefit people of color and help redress systemic racism.

While we have taken steps to diversify and add new areas of focus to our program work, we have not done enough. We are just now coming to understand and accept how we, as individuals and as an organization, have benefitted from systemic racism – our staff is largely made up of privileged White people and our funding comes from foundations, businesses, and individuals that have accumulated wealth within a system of discrimination and, sometimes, at the direct expense of people of color. Likewise, understanding the role we should play in breaking that system and instead advancing equity has been a slow journey. What appears below is an attempt to illustrate that journey, at least in part, while also recognizing we can and need to do more. We invite our members and supporters to join us in our journey.

Where We’ve Been:

Mayor Bellamy and children of Klondyke helped the Asheville Design Center break grown on a new playground in October of 2012.

In terms of diversifying our program work, we have primarily worked on urban issues that are relevant to Asheville’s African American community, including the following:

In the 1990s and the early 2000s, and then again since 2008, we have been a leading voice for expanding transit in Asheville.
Since 2009, we have partnered with the Burton Street Community on I-26 advocacy, acting as the fiscal agent for their annual Agricultural Fair, and in developing a community plan in conjunction with the Asheville Design Center.
Work with the Burton Street Community led directly to us working with the Shiloh Community for several years to implement aspects of their community plan, particularly their goals related to sidewalks and transit.
Our I-26 advocacy has also engaged the Hillcrest community in discussions about designs that would be more beneficial to them.
We support a bacteria monitoring site in the creek that runs through the Shiloh neighborhood.
The Asheville Design Center has a long history of working with communities of color and has continued that tradition since joining us in 2017. Relevant past projects include: East of the Riverway planning, The Block Report, a playground installation at Hall Fletcher Elementary, playground design and construction at Pisgah View and Klondyke Apartments, installation of the Triangle Park Mural, design and construction of the YWCA Outdoor Classroom and Burton Outdoor Classroom.
ADC has undertaken an assessment of land owned by the City of Asheville that could be used for affordable housing.
Our energy advocacy and involvement in the Energy Innovation Task Force led to funding to weatherize 400 low-income homes, many of which belonged to people of color.
We co-host the Building Our City speaker series, which has featured the work of POC professionals like Debra Campbell (Asheville City Manager), Mitch Silver (NYC Parks Commissioner), and Michelle Mapp (CEO of SC Community Loan Fund), while addressing issues of affordable housing, equitable development and healthy community design.

We have not engaged in any significant work focused on or done in partnership with the Latinx community, save for a bit of work with the Emma community related to I-26 in 2009-2010.

Internally, MountainTrue has also taken a number of steps to expand our understanding and embrace new steps on equity:

In the recent past, we had three people of color on staff and as AmeriCorps members. We have also hosted several African American interns.
We have been part of Everybody’s Environment since its inception in 2014 and, as a result, we are more intentional about where we advertise open positions.
We adopted a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policy.
We require and pay for our staff to attend either Building Bridges or the Racial Equity Institute, and staff are encouraged to attend both.
Two of our staff have attended two national Facing Race Conferences.
We allow our staff to count as paid time, time spent volunteering with organizations focused on equity.
We set aside a small amount of funding to sponsor events or programs led by organizations of color.

On the board, we began intentional efforts perhaps ten years ago to diversify. For the last six years at least, we have had one to five board members of color. We currently have five women of color serving on the board (out of 15 board members), including three who serve on the executive committee. We have devoted two board retreats in the last five years to DEI trainings, participated in a Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation Racial Equity Training for board and staff members, and we encourage our board members to attend either Building Bridges or the Racial Equity Institute. One of our board members manages a group called Pathways to Parks that is aimed at getting people of color into the outdoors, and we look forward to working more closely with them going forward.

Going Forward:

For the last two years, we have asked the staff to be more intentional about addressing equity in their program work. This has not been as successful as we would like, and we continue to try to be more specific. We are also struggling to include equity issues in our long term goal-setting. Some ideas for more immediate actions that have come forward recently from the board are:

Create a page on our website that addresses equity.
Move to action on equity issues.
Move our members to action on equity issues.
Make the connection between our work and equity to help our members understand.
Allocate more money to groups led by BIPOC, including those aimed at recreation.
Support the Racial Equity Institute.
Raise voices of color in MountainTrue U.
Develop relationships with HBCUs for intern and employee recruitment.
Host a regular radio show on WRES about people of color in the environment and/or write a regular column in the Urban News.
Try again to share our power in Raleigh with groups led by BIPOC.
- Add racial equity, health to our legislative agenda.
Create an easy to use fish consumption and fishing access guide for people who fish for sustenance rather than just recreation.

Most of the region’s African American population is in Asheville, while the Latinx population is concentrated in a handful of counties across the region. For this reason, our equity work will look different in different parts of the region as we seek to meet the needs of specific communities.

Again, we acknowledge that we are beneficiaries of systemic racism and that our success as an organization rests on that fact. We commit to use our power and privilege as an influential organization to fight systemic racism and break down the walls of division in all the ways we can.

Dear MountainTrue members – a letter on race and equity

Dear MountainTrue Members and Supporters

Julie Mayfield & Bob Wagner

Like many organizations, we have begun taking a hard look at the role MountainTrue should play in the new national dialogue on race and equity. To be clear, equity has been a focus for us for several years now, mostly in terms of training and awareness for our board and staff, but the death of George Floyd and the ensuing outcry for racial justice has pushed us to ask what else we can and should do.

You might ask, why should MountainTrue do anything? We are an environmental advocacy organization, not a social or racial justice organization, right? Sure, it would make sense for us to work on environmental issues that impact communities of color, but why should we go beyond that? Shouldn’t we let other groups that are focused on racial issues fight this fight?

These are good and understandable questions. And we have answers to them – answers that we will be rolling out to you over the next few months. For now, the short answer to those questions is this: the fight for racial justice and equity is not separate from the fight for a clean and healthy environment. Indeed, racial discrimination and the environment have been linked for decades through the disproportionate placement of polluting industries, highways, and other harmful developments in and through communities of color; through urban renewal that destroyed black communities, often for city parks and green space; through the de facto exclusion of people of color from our national parks and forests because they don’t feel safe; through the willingness of regulators to overlook harm to communities of color that they would never accept for white communities (think Flint, Michigan). And these are only a few examples.

We have come to understand that, as a successful, influential organization, we have a role to play in dismantling the institutional and structural systems in our country that perpetuate racism and discrimination. We can no longer ignore the fact that our work exists within a much larger, complex system that sees some people as less important and expendable. Fighting for a clean environment and truly healthy communities demands that we no longer accept that framework, and fighting that framework means addressing racial discrimination outside of the narrow confines of traditional environmental advocacy.

Critical to the work of dismantling systemic racism is first understanding how each of us individually and how MountainTrue as an organization have benefitted from systemic racism – our staff is largely made up of privileged, well-educated, white people and our funding comes from foundations, businesses, and individuals that have accumulated wealth within a system of discrimination and, sometimes, at the direct expense of people of color. That is not to say these are bad people or businesses or foundations. They, like all of us, exist within a system of discrimination that has been created over centuries. It is long past time for that system to end, and our job now is to understand exactly the role we should play in breaking that system and advancing equity.

We invite you to join us in this journey. As mentioned above, we will be publishing a series of articles that discuss environmentalism and environmental advocacy in the context of race. We will also be scheduling virtual, small group discussions with us and our staff for those who want to dive in more and ask questions. We realize this will be a new conversation for many of you, and, while it may be uncomfortable, we hope you will remain open and engage with us on this critical topic.

Bob and Julie

MT Raleigh Report: General Assembly Convenes For Two-Day Session & Preparing To Vote

Sep. 1, 2020

Members of the General Assembly return to Raleigh tomorrow for yet another short – very short – two-day session. While Governor Cooper released an ambitious package of budget priorities including pandemic response proposals and bond measures last week, lawmakers are not expected to take up much of those plans. Instead, look for the legislature to focus on a more limited expenditure of some portion of the state’s still-unspent federal COVID-19 relief funds, including a bump in unemployment benefits and new investments in rural broadband to support the rise of online schooling.

For our part, MountainTrue has joined a coalition of environmental and economic justice organizations in calling for lawmakers and Governor Cooper to support substantial new assistance for North Carolinians facing utility shutoffs as a result of the pandemic. The Governor recently announced $175 million in funding “to support rental and utility payments and prevent evictions for those with a demonstrated need.” Unfortunately, more than one million North Carolina residential utility accounts now owe at least $226 million in unpaid utility bills as of July 31st – far exceeding the portion of the $175 million that is likely to be allocated specifically for utility bill assistance. Without additional assistance, thousands of North Carolinians will lose access to clean water and electricity as the weather grows colder.

With the election just around the corner, the General Assembly will likely complete its work this week and adjourn, officially ending its 2019-2020 term. But that doesn’t mean lawmakers are necessarily done for the year. There is already speculation that if Congress approves additional pandemic-related legislation this fall, Governor Cooper will call the General Assembly back into session before the new year. If Congress does not act, a return to Raleigh may also be required to appropriate the remainder of the state’s federal aid. Under current rules, North Carolina must spend all federal COVID-19 relief funding by the end of December or return it to the federal government.

Vote For The Environment & Voter Registration Information

The fate of environmental issues in North Carolina will be heavily impacted by the upcoming election. As such, we highly encourage all of our supporters to register to vote, create a voting plan and research the environmental positions of the candidates on your sample ballot as soon as possible.

The deadline to update your voter registration online or by mail is October 9. Online voter registration is now available and free through the NC Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) here. You can also download a registration form for yourself or a near relative here to fill out and mail to your local Board of Elections, or pick up a form directly from your local Board of Elections office. Or, you can register to vote and vote at the same time if you vote in person during Early Voting, which will occur between October 15 and October 31.

If you’re registered or unsure if your registration is current, you can check your voter registration status, find your polling place and see your sample ballot using the NC voter lookup tool here.

As always, thank you for your support of our work in Raleigh to stand up for Western North Carolina’s environment. Stay tuned for more updates from us on activities in the legislature in the coming months.

Broad Riverkeeper David Caldwell Identifies Harmful Algal Bloom in Moss Lake

We don’t know if the algal blooms are recurring, but there was a confirmed harmful algal bloom in Moss Lake earlier this summer.

Your Broad Riverkeeper, David Caldwell, goes out each week to test recreational waters in the Broad River Watershed for bacterial pollution. While sampling at Moss Lake on June 3, David noticed that the water was very green and cloudy, so he also tested the water with a YSI meter that measures temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH and turbidity (a measure of cloudiness). “I got really high dissolved oxygen and pH readings, so I did some research and found that this could be an indicator of an algal bloom.”

Pictured: Moss Lake during the algal bloom (left) compared to normal water conditions (right).

Algal blooms, which form due to an excess of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, can release toxins that are linked to human illnesses and have even been shown to cause death in livestock and dogs.

The following Monday, David received a call from a Moss Lake resident who had noticed many dead fish in the water. David notified the NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and they sent a staff member out on June 10 to take water samples in and above the lake. The report came back confirming an algal bloom, and it was named a Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) because of the presence of cyanobacteria that “may produce cyanotoxins.” A second report confirmed the presence of a cyanotoxin called microcystins, which can cause illness in humans and animals that come into contact with water affected by a bloom. The concentration of the toxin was only 0.4 micrograms per Liter (ug/L) – well under the EPA’s recommended safe level for microcystins of 8 ug/L. Keep in mind, however, that the samples were taken by DEQ seven days after the algae were first noticed, so much of the algae had died off by then. In talking to that same resident after these reports came out, David also learned that he had noticed similar conditions at least twice since then, and once with a very foul odor.

As algal blooms become more and more common due to rising temperatures and an increase of nutrients in our waters, Riverkeepers across the state believe more study and analysis of algal blooms in Moss Lake and elsewhere must be done. We would like for the residents at Moss Lake to take more of a lead in identifying and reporting possible algal blooms. If the water turns really green, they should contact DEQ immediately. The “life cycle” of algal blooms can be really quick –as short as a couple of days – so quick reporting is important.

Some of the residents around the lake do not want the bad publicity that would come with raising awareness to this potentially dangerous problem. However, if we don’t first acknowledge that there may be a problem, then there will be little effort towards determining the root causes of the issue and improving the water quality in Moss Lake and other water bodies. “I would ask the Moss Lake area residents this,” David says. “What do you want your lake to look like in 10 to 20 years? What will you do to help realize that vision?”

To learn more about algal blooms, visit the NCDEQ page here or the FAQ page from the NC Division of Water Resources here.

DEQ: It’s Time to Modernize NC’s Pollution Spill Notification System

Join North Carolina’s riverkeepers in calling on state regulators to modernize NC's public notification system.

Take Action Now

Millions of people across North Carolina take to our beaches, rivers, and lakes to cool off, swim, paddle, and fish, but most are unaware that nearly 16 million gallons of untreated sewage have spilled into our waterways during a two and a half month period (May 17 to July 30, 2020) according to data collected by North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

North Carolina desperately needs to update its public spill notification system. Current state law requires operators of wastewater collection and treatment systems to notify DEQ of spills of over 1,000 gallons into surface waters and to send a press release to local media within 24 hours. For spills of over 15,000 gallons, operators are required to place a notice in the newspapers of counties impacted by the spill within 10 days (NCGS 143-215.1C). Spills of other pollutants have similar reporting requirements to DEQ.

North Carolina should not be depending on ads in print newspapers to get the word out about dangerous spills. Newspapers are not mandated to run the press releases, and many local newspapers are only published in print on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, which is not frequent enough to warn river users of water quality problems in a timely manner.

The public has the right to know about major pollution spills that impact our waterways as soon as possible, and through the technology the public uses today.

Join NC’s riverkeepers in calling for a better, more modern system that would:

Publish spill data to an online database and interactive map and on agency social media channels.
Send email and text alerts to interested parties.
Allow the public to sign up to receive these alerts for the watersheds they are interested in.
Make improvements to our state laws by increasing fines for polluters dumping sewage in our waterways.

16 Million Gallons of Sewage Flowed into NC Waterways This Summer With Little Notification To Paddlers, Swimmers and Beachgoers

North Carolina’s Riverkeepers are calling on state regulators to modernize its public notification system.

North Carolina — Millions of people across North Carolina take to our beaches, rivers and lakes to cool off, swim, paddle, and fish, but most are unaware that nearly 16 million gallons of untreated sewage has spilled into our waterways during a two and a half month period (May 17 to July 30) according to data collected by North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

Call on NCDEQ to Update North Carolina's Spill Notification System

Take Action Now

The sewage enters waterways from overflowing manholes and pump stations and leaking sewer pipes, but the public is left largely unaware due to antiquated public notification requirements. North Carolina state law requires operators of wastewater collection and treatment systems to notify DEQ of spills of over 1,000 gallons into surface waters and to send a press release to local media within 24 hours. For spills of over 15,000 gallons, operators are required to place a notice in the newspapers of counties impacted by the spill within 10 days (NCGS 143-215.1C). Spills of other pollutants have similar reporting requirements to DEQ.

“We’re living in the year 2020, and the state of North Carolina is still depending on ads in print newspapers to get the word out about dangerous spills,” says French Broad Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson. “Sending press releases to local papers is not much better. Many local newspapers are only published in print on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, which is not frequent enough to warn river users of water quality problems in a timely manner — if they’re published at all.”

North Carolina Riverkeepers have launched an advocacy campaign at ILoveRivers.org to clean up North Carolina’s waterways and to update the state’s public notification system. “We’re asking the state to adopt a more modern approach, where DEQ would publish spill data to an online database and map as well as on the agency’s social media channels and through email and text alerts to interested parties,” explains Emily Sutton, the Haw Riverkeeper. “People should be able to opt in to receive email and text alerts for their watersheds. We also encourage DEQ to provide water quality notifications on their social media platforms. An improved notification system would help ensure that this critical information gets to the people that most need to know when the river is unsafe.”

E. coli bacteria levels in many North Carolina waterways frequently spike well above the EPA’s safe standard for recreation after rain events. E. coli and other forms of pollution are caused by agriculture and urban stormwater runoff, failing septic systems and overflowing sewer infrastructure. These issues are exacerbated by the effects of climate change, as more frequent and heavier rain events create more storm runoff and overwhelm outdated sewer systems.

Matt Starr, the Upper Neuse Riverkeeper explains that “notification is just the first step, but what we really need are improvements in our state laws that increase fines when sewage is dumped in our waterways. We can’t keep treating our waterways as a sewage disposal system if we ever hope to meet the goals of the Clean Water Act to have all waters be fishable and swimmable.”

Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Region	Gallons of Sewage Spilled into Waterways
Asheville	3,214,626
Winston-Salem	3,260,987
Raleigh	2,800,681
Washington	2,616,516
Fayetteville	2,087,348
Mooresville	1,620,989
Wilmington	380,102
TOTAL	15,981,249

Chart represents DEQ regions and the amount of gallons of sewage that reached waterways between May 17, 2020 and July 30, 2020.