nc48

A Healthy Environment

nc48

Clean water and our public lands are critical to the well-being, quality of life, and economic prosperity of our entire state.  That rings every bit as true here in District 48.  As a citizen, business owner, and sportsman I have always been proactive and strong on environmental issues.  That philosophy has carried through in my time as your state Senator. I'm known has having a strong environmental record. Following are just some of the reasons why.

Following are some of my accomplishments that help protect our environment...

  • As a legislator and as a previous board member I have worked with the Friends of the Ecusta Trail to advocate for the conversion of an abandon rail line to a greenway
  • Established Pisgah View, State Park, Buncombe county's first and only state park

  • Established funding for recreational water testing in Western North Carolina

  • Increased funding to the Clean Water Management Trust Fund and the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund

  • Created the Viable Utility Reserve to help rural communities repair failing water and sewer infrastructure

  • Supported increased funding for the fight to protect our mountain Hemlocks against the Wooly Adelgid

  • Established funding for petroleum leak remediation from unknown sources

  • Helped add 6,880 megawatts of renewable energy into North Carolinas' energy portfolio
  • Supported the Outdoor Experiential Science Education that will provide funds for multi-day workshops for teachers to increase their use of the outdoors in teaching required curricula and bring students on experiential field trips to a State park.
  • Supported Dupont State Forest funding towards the development of a master plan that will look at how to grow the outdoor attraction in a way that incorporates numerous outdoor activities and interests
  • Supported creation of the French Broad River Paddle Trail that would expand fishing and camping tourism with improvements in Transylvania, Henderson, Buncombe, and Madison counties.
  • Supported the Green River Game Lands to improve public access to a popular recreation area in Henderson and Polk counties
  • Created legislation that directed the N.C. Department of Agriculture and N.C. Department of Wildlife to conduct a study in conjunction with the U.S. Forest Service to develop a plan to address the documented population decline of wildlife on state and federal managed land
  • Supported funding for Prescribed Burning Grants to rejuvenate matured forest lands and to help address invasive plant species
  • Helped create an outdoor equipment marketing fund to help attract companies to NC to manufacture outdoor gear
  • After the devastating mountain wildfires I helped obtain funding to purchase additional firefighting aircraft, an additional set of resources we recently discovered that are critical to protecting our citizens, their property, and our great outdoors.
  • Single-handedly killed a provision in a Senate regularity reform bill regulate would once again allow electronics containing heavy metals back into landfills.