Warren Wilson College’s environmental studies department will begin offering a master’s degree in applied climate studies in summer 2025. The program will draw on the college’s natural sciences and social sciences programs to prepare students for mitigating the effects of climate change. Students will attend two summertime intensives, and the rest of the coursework will […]
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 on April 2 to invite private developers to partner on a $59.1 million complex for 200 affordable units at 50 and 52 Coxe Ave., directly across from the Asheville Regional Transit bus station and Rabbit Rabbit music venue.
Thanks to open-space bonds passed in 2022 and generous landowners, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted to conserve 360 acres at its meeting Feb. 6.
If authorized, the county will spend $400,000 on two conservation easements — the first easements funded by the 2022 open space bonds, according to a staff presentation.
The 342-acre tract atop Deaverview Mountain, just five miles from downtown Asheville, was purchased by an anonymous conservationist in March with the intention of selling the land to the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. SAHC has three years to obtain federal and state grants to repay the buyer, then it plans to turn the property over to Buncombe County as a park or preserve.
Andy Baker has spent the last 17 years building a home for himself, his family and many others through his development projects in Western North Carolina. Originally from Michigan, Baker graduated from Purdue University with a degree in forestry before pursuing a career in real estate development. Earlier this year, the Southeast Regional Land Conservancy […]
Within the next few years, Buncombe County residents may have new public trails to roam close to downtown Asheville. The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously April 18 to partner with the Asheville-based conservation nonprofit Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy to explore acquiring 343 acres on Deaverview Mountain for what could become the county’s largest […]
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners may partner with a conservation nonprofit to acquire 342 acres on Deaverview Mountain for a county park at its regular meeting Tuesday, April 18.
According to the National Resources Defense Council, Americans are 4% of the world’s population but generate 12% of its solid waste. Parents are conscious of their families’ contribution to this literal trash heap.
Nearly a year after its original timeline, Asheville’s government is preparing to ratify a Municipal Climate Action Plan. The city’s Sustainability Advisory Committee on Energy and the Environment unanimously recommended adoption of the plan Feb. 21. City Council is expected to approve it at its meeting Tuesday, March 28. As previously reported by Xpress, the […]
The county has not received any applications for cryptocurrency mines, according to a staff presentation provided ahead of a briefing scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 21. But commissioners are expected to weigh in on whether county zoning should be updated in anticipation of future development requests.
Buncombe County’s Comprehensive Plan 2043, the draft of which was released in December, is now in the fourth and last phase of its development. County officials are seeking a final round of input from the community before the plan’s approval by the Planning Board and Board of Commissioners, currently slated for May.
On Dec. 30, the nonprofit completed the purchase of 34 acres in Brevard to expand the preserve. The new land will bolster the existing 395-acre park, owned by the city of Brevard, which connects to the Pisgah National Forest.
In part four, the last in the series, CPP reports on the objections and responses to the recent decision to harvest 26 acres that encompass an old growth patch of forest on a 3,500-foot mountaintop — the Southside Project.
The recent decision to harvest 26 acres that encompass an old-growth patch of forest on a 3,500-foot mountaintop – the Southside Project – underscores what some say is the widening incongruity between the U.S. Forest Service’s mission, climate change crisis and the public’s will.
Scientists say old-growth forests are essential tools in the fight against climate change. Harvesting them releases greenhouse gasses, worsening climate impacts.
The recent decision to harvest 26 acres that encompass an old-growth patch of forest on a 3,500-foot mountaintop — the Southside Project — underscores what some say is the widening incongruity between the U.S. Forest Service’s mission, climate change crisis and the public’s will.
On heels of a 2021 study that showed the power of the French Broad River as an economic driver, the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce convened a panel to discuss the importance of keeping that engine clean.
The remains of three bears found in Woodfin — possibly a mother and two cubs — highlight a serious problem with poaching in the mountains, a bear advocacy group says. The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission said the case may be the result of poaching, but its investigation is ongoing.
In partnership with the WNC Farmers Market, the Asheville zoo launches its Educational Farmers Market Garden starting Wednesday, Nov. 16. The new exhibit focuses on sustainable relationships between agriculture and nature.
The structure, previously known as the Haynes Building, is over 50 years old and has been vacant since 2015. The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will vote on a memorandum of understanding with A-B Tech regarding the demolition at its regular meeting Tuesday, Nov. 15.
