Category: Conservation

Where else can you find a weed whacker, hula hoop, 18 paddling buddies and a river bank made of old cars? Try the Tuckasegee River in Bryson City.

Eighteen canoeists and kayakers descended on the Town Tuck section of the river and removed 650 pounds of trash June 30 during Week of Rivers. The trash included glass liquor bottles, an umbrella, fishing net, soggy carpets (complete with growing plants), plenty of beer cans, a seat cushion and tarps.

The 2015 Yee-Haw! River Paddle is scheduled for May 9, and event organizers need two to three safety boaters for the afternoon trip in Alamance County.

The trip runs along a 4.2-mile section from Shallow Ford Paddle Access near Garringer Mill Road to Indian Valley Paddle Access. It starts at 1 p.m.

If you're interested, please contact Brenda Wichmann, Haw River Trial coordinator, at Brenda.Wichmann@Alamance-NC.com or 336-229-2380.

The Eno River Association is asking for donations to help pay for $100,000 in damages to their headquarters in Durham.

According to the conservation group's website, a blockage caused raw sewage from the city's wastewater system to pour into its office Jan. 10-11.

Money is needed to rebuild and remove what was lost. The association hopes to return to the office in May.

The Carolina Canoe Club makes an annual donation of $200 to the association.

The News & Observer reports that nine federal charges have been filed against Duke Energy for coal ash spills into four of North Carolina's rivers.

Violations occurred at plants on the Dan, Neuse, Catawba and French Broad rivers. In addition, charges say Duke failed to maintain treatment system equipment at plants on the Dan and Cape Fear.

The News & Observer reported Friday that 8,000 acres of wetlands, flood plains and other features near Jordan Lake will be protected and maintained in their current condition under an agreement signed by state and federal agencies.

This includes land on both sides of the Lower Haw, which is south of U.S. 64 in Chatham County. The agreement also will protect parts of New Hope Creek, among other tributaries of the lake, according to the agreement.

The Upper Swepsonville Dam was recently removed from the Haw River in Alamance County, according to Peter Raabe, the North Carolina conservation director for American Rivers.

The old timber dam stretched across the river just downstream of the access at the Swepsonville River Park. The American Rivers project, which cost approximately $100,000, was completed in early October, he said.

The work was done by Wildlands Engineering Inc.While the dam was not very high and mostly submerged, it was a barrier to fish trying to swim upstream, he said.