1990: THE CONSERVATION MOVEMENT

The conservation movement—a movement to reverse unsustainable resource use—began as early as the late 1700s in North Carolina, as hunting practices began to decimate deer populations. Lawmakers established hunting seasons to protect the species and to prevent waste, but it took one hundred more years of unrestricted resource depletion for its citizens to see the devastating effects of unchecked growth—air and water pollution, deforestation, soil erosion, endangered species and mounting health concerns—to pursue a course of correction.

By the 1990s, owing to a long procession of hippies, hikers, hunters, simple-living advocates, health-conscious gurus, outdoor enthusiasts, writers, philanthropists, conservation organizations and alarmed citizens, North Carolina had grown to embrace a grass-roots approach to environmental concerns. Having set aside a national park, twenty-seven state parks and twelve wilderness areas, North Carolina’s nature-loving populace had effectively waged war on industrial growth, urban development and the occasional misguided politician.

By the twenty-first century, North Carolina’s biggest environmental challenges were auto emissions (Great Smoky Mountains National Park is ranked one of the most polluted national parks in the country), habitat destruction due to population growth and industrial abuses, toxic waste from large-scale farming, water-quality issues related to industrial practices, air pollution from coal-burning electrical plants and mismanaged radioactive dumping sites.

Addressing these problems, currently sixty-three environmental organizations are operating full-throttle—surely on biofuel—to keep North Carolina beautiful. Relying heavily on fundraising campaigns, volunteer labor, education, marketing strategies and political involvement, these organizations have been surprisingly successful in creating awareness and delivering the goods: a cleaner, safer, wilder North Carolina. Nationwide organizations like the Sierra Club, Audubon Society and the Nature Conservancy have also played pivotal roles in protecting and improving habitats along mountain trails, Piedmont rivers and coastal waterways.

North Carolina’s conservation legacy can best be experienced on the fly, as millions of annual tourists and local Carolinians would attest—enjoying its magnificent beauty and incredible variety during all four seasons of the year.