Critical environmental areas of North Carolina

[From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]

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1804VIRONMENTAL AREAS

OF NORTH CAROLINA 7STATE PLANNING REPORT
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1972
JUNE,1972

TITLE Critical Environmental Areas
of North Carolina

AUTHOR Richard R. Wilkinson
R. Paul Darst
Department of Landscape
Architecture
North Carolina State University

SUBJECT An Analysis of Critical En-
vironmental Conditions and
Threats Posed to Them by
Urbanization, Air Pollution,
Water Pollution, and the
Natural Hazards of Flooding
and Storm Action

DATE July 1972

PLANNING AGENCY State Planning Division

SOURCE OF COPIES

State Planning Division
Department of Administration
116 West Jones Street
Raleigh, N. C. 27603

For Reference:
tjS DEPARTMENT OF COVVERCE NOA@
AL SERVICES CENI ER HUD Regional office Library
22'@ 4',@OUTH HOBSON @VENUE Region III
Atlanta, Ga. 30323
CHARLESTON, SC 2940,'-1.-2413 1
HUD Library
Washington, D. C. 20410

State Depository Library, N. C.
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, N. C. 27514

HUD PROJECT NO. N.C.P. 146

SERIES NO. 146.10

NO. OF PAGES Text: 70

Froperty of CSC Library

ABSTRACT

The project examines the basic uses of North Carolina's

environment. Prime lands for agriculture, forestry, wildlife

management, recreation, scenic value, waters for commercial

and sport fishing, and areas of scientific, cultural, and

historic significance are delineated on the maps. Each of

these uses is considered valuable to the overall well being

of the State. Each function also requires intensive manage-

ment to maintain the environment in a condition suitable for

that use.'

Urbanization is a general term for influences that are

deleterious to those uses. Urbanization is considered to

include housing, commercial facilities, major highways, in-

dustrial development, power generation, and other uses that

are not intrinsically related to the land's natural produc-

tivity. The conditions caused by urbanization which affect

the basic functions are air pollution, water pollution, flood

damage, and land degradation through piecemeal ownership

patterns.

The basic uses of the land are critical from an environ-

mental, economic, aesthetic, and cultural standpoint. The

impact on them from urbanization is a serious threat to their

continued functioning.

The project explores this impact and the nature of its

deteriorating influence as well as the areas of most serious

impact.

State Planning Report
146.10

CRITICAL ENVIRONMENTAL AREAS OF NORTH CAROLINA

by
Richard R. Wilkinson
R. Paul Darst
Department of Landscape Architecture
North Carolina State University

Prepared for
State Planning Division
Department of Administration
State of North Carolina.

Public Agency Contract No. N.C.P. 146.10

The preparation of this report was financed in part
through a comprehensive planning grant from the
Department of Housing and Urban Development.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

URBANIZATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

HARMFUL ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS . . . . . . . . . . . 15

AGRICULTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

FOREST LANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

RECREATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

SCENIC AREAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

HISTORIC AREAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

WILDLIFE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

FISHERIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

SCIENTIFIC AREAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

MAP CONTENT SOURCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

LIST OF DIAGRAMS, CHARTS, AND MAPS

Page
LIST OF DIAGRAMS AND CHARTS

Diagram No. 1, Urbanization/E nvironmental Impact . . . 10

Chart No. 1, Urbanization-Environmental Impact
Dynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Diagram No. 2, Generalized Flood Diagram . . . . . . . 16

LIST OF MAPS

Urbanization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Critical Enviromental Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Forest Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Recreation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Scenic Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Historic Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Wildlife . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Fisheries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Scientific Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

INTRODUCTION

Portrayal and discussion of environmentally critical

areas of North Carolina can be developed through two distinct
sets of insights. One is a description of the inherent capa-

bility of the land to sustain various uses, and the second

is a description of contemporary practices and the nature

of their interaction on the landscape. Ideally, the former

should be developed prior to attempting a description of the

impact of current activities. This discussion focuses simul-

taneously on both. Absence of satisfactory criteria for

assessing environmental quality as well as the data necessary

to support judgments require that a morphological approach to

defining critical environmental conditions be developed.

The maps, as they are set forth, can be used in both

ways; but the text is concerned with describing the impact

of man's various activities on each other.

Every region and landscape of the State has dominant

uses which are supported through land ownership, public

policy, interest group pressures, and real needs. In many

cases, these uses are well advanced and definitively not in

accord with ecologically sound criteria. Examples of such

uses are urban development in flood plains, wetland drainage

for agriculture, or construction on barrier island dunes.

The basic question centers about the focus of a reorganized

land policy.

It would be desirable to build a future policy on com-

plete and detailed knowledge of the physical resource base.

This does not seem practical in light of time and cost con-

straints. An alternative to this method is control of the

change process.

Results of change produce the most distressing environ-

mental problems, and resolution of these problems must ul-

timately be an integral part of the process itself. This

points toward the need for an understanding of the effects

of change of the landscape on the landscape itself at the

finest grain of detail. Land use change can conveniently,

if not with complete accuracy, be categorized as urbanization.

Urbanization can, in turn, be measured in several dimensions,

which for the purposes of this discussion are unimportant.
The important consideration is the process, the length of

time over which it occurs, the types of component increments

and the effect of these increments on other aspects of land

use and value.

Urbanizationfas a disjointed and incremental management

process,is inexorable. As long as land is measured in terms

of monetary value, the types of uses to which it is put will

become more intense and singularly efficient. Forests will

be converted to farms, farms to factories, and factories to

cities. Abilit y to protect and conserve systematically more

organic attributes of the land are dependent upon seeing them

in light of this process.

The ensuing discussion is based on this interpre-

tation. The accompanying maps may serve independently as

a beginning for either of the two viewpoints.

1. Urbanization and its impact on resource managementr.'

2. Intrinsic capability of the land-for desired

uses.

Supposing the latter were the more proper interpretation

for the mapped information, the landscape of North.Carolina

could be classified in the following way:

1. Critical Areas

Those singular areas which have the widest range of suitability

for specific organic uses. As an example, land most suitable

for forestry is also useful for recreation and scientific

purposes. It may also fall in a particularly scenic region

and be the habitat for valuable or endangered game and fish

species. This combination could be gained from overlaying

the various maps and outlining the areas of overlap. Ex-

trinsic activities occurring or proposed in critical areas

would then be subject to severe controls to ensure that they

would not seriously alter the organic uses.

2. Sensitive Areas

Areas having only two simultaneously suitable organic uses

would require general controls on land use change, such as

zoning, plan approval, and other devices normal to the regu-

latory process.

3. Development Areas

Development areas are not specifically critical to any of the

basic organic functions. Land use change could occur in these

areas according to present guidelines.

This system, while meaningful in the overall organizational

effort necessary to establish a land policy that will control

deleterious acts, is not sufficient to focus on the problem.

The problem, as viewed in this discussion, is urbanization.

The impact of urbanization is felt in each of the functional

land use groupings. The critical nature of each of these
groups must be described in conjunction with a description

of the impact produced by urbanization.

URBANIZATION

Urbanization is not a stable condition but a continuous

process. The process can be described in various ways in-

cluding physical condition, physical impact, and population.

The measures considered in this description are population

density and the nature of its impact on natural systems of

the environment. Population has been projected from 1960

through the 1970 census to 1980 and 2000. Densities of 100

people per square mile have been projected on a township basis

to indicate those areas in the State which have entered or

are soon to enter the urbanization process.

One hundred people per square mile generally represent

the transition from rural to urban. it is not until,the pop-

ulation reaches 1,000 people or more per square mile that an

area can be considered urban. Between 100 and 1,000 per

square mile, the urban pattern and the structure of its impact

on the environment is created. Normally, this takes place

without urban planning institutions for schools, thorough-

fares, land use allocation services, and utilities. By the

time the 1,000 people per square mile figure is reached and

necessary planning institutions established, the problems are

ingrained and not readily soluble.

From a wide range of problem categories, four have

significance to this discussion:

1. Land modification through grading, creation.of

impoundments, and road locations.

2. Alteration of the natural drainage system through

sealing of aquifer recharge areas, concentration of runoff

with resultant increases in flood peaks, erosion from modified

landscapes with resultant stream siltation and channelization

of natural water courses.

3. Degradation of land ownership units into smaller

and smaller parcels. This issue has the most serious impact

in terms of two conditions:

a. The increasing number of independent owners

lying within natural watersheds or other features

make independent alterations of the landscape

which aggregate in terms of their negative en-

vironmenta-1 impacts. Resolution of these im-

pacts is virtually impossible given the number

of independent owners and the embryonic nature

of institutions and agencies created to resolve

them.

b. The original subdivision of land involves

separating individual parcels from productive

farms, pasture lands, orchards, or woodlands.

In many cases these are relatively large lots,

involving ten acres or more, on which crops for

household use are grown or animals are kept.

Their location is as much dependent on the pro-
ductivity of the land as it is on proximity to

places of employnient and service. As numbers

accumulate, proximity to employment, services,

schools, stores, formal recreation facilities,

and@other urban features become dominant. At

this time, natural productivity loses its value-

to strictly commercial or site value. This

takes place only after the initially important

natural productivity has been destroyed or-

severely altered.

The result is environmental deterioration and

a structure of roads, utilities, and services

which is inefficient and resistant to positi ve

and economically feasible changes because of

the number of ownerships involved. This con-

dition is known as urban sprawl and is prevalent

in North Carolina.

4. The fourth impact is air and water pollution. Im-

proper treatment facilities and an inadequate number of en-

forcement personnel suffer from the onslaught of pollutant

producers. Serious water and air@pollution conditions are

a result of the aggregation of many small incidents and

occurrences. By the time the severity is recognized, the

pattern of pollution input is established, and abatement

measures are enormously expensive.

Urbanization is portrayed as both a basic use of the land

and a critical environmental condition. As a basic use, the

map represents a projection of current trends. In terms of

its impact on the environment, it is related to its allied

conditions of air pollution, water quality deterioration

expressed through stream classification standards, increased

flood potential represented by incursion of urban type

development into flood plains, and as a self-imposed threat

based on the nature of its uncontrolled and degrading effect

on the landscape. These conditions are reflected in the

Urbanization and Critical Conditions Map. They are compared

with all other base uses.to outline areas of existent or

potential conflict.

Relative size of land
tract necessary for
----wildlife, scenic,
forestry, watershed, and
recreation management.

Relative si ze of tract
Mass necessary for commercial
forest management.
"'@Relative size of tract
necessary for family
farm operation.

Relative size of tract
necessary for non-@arm
residential development.

Relative site size for
urban development.

DIAGRAM NO. 1: The degradation of land tracts into

progressively smaller and less environmentally dependent

units thwarts subsequent attempts to rebuild and reconstruct

natural systems and their function.

URBAN IZATION/ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Environmental
Areas threatened
by urbanization By means of: With these results

Flood plains -filling in flood plains -loss of wildlife habitat
-building dams -loss of life in floods
-building structures -property damage
-loss of recreation potential

Scenic areas -road building -loss of scenery
,-scattered housing -public beauty converted to private
-electric lines gain
-power plants
-industry

Recreation areas -road building -loss public access
-deforestation -less escape from city
-building structures -more public demand for recreation
-building lst or.2nd homes -conversion of potential public
good to real private gain

Prime forest land -displacement of land for -loss of high quality forest
housing and industry -increased demands for lumber from
-displacement for 2nd homes public lands
-scattered development -lost recreation
-more land logged per capita from
poorer quality forest

Prime agricultural -displacement of land for -loss of rural scenery
land housing and industry -more land/capita required of
poorer agricultural land
-economic inefficiency in farming

Historic sites -displacement or paved over -elimination of historic landmark
-damage from air pollution

Scientific areas -excavation of.site -lost opportunity to learn man's
(archaeological) -building .over history or prehistory

Wildlife habitat -building -more species endangered
-flooding -more species. extinct
-excavation
-displacement
-water pollution'

Areas of frequent -build towns and cities in -loss of life and structures
hurricane damage prone areas for hurricanes

Areas of frequent -build towns, cities, and -Los.Angeles, California
air inversions industry in valleys of -impairment of crop and forest
stagnant air production
-destruction of historic sites

Estuaries -displace for housing and -more fish endangered
industries -economic loss to fishery
-pollute

CHART NO. 1.

CRITICAL ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

Harmful environmental conditions fall into two cate-

gories: natural and man-Pade.

1. Earthquakes. ..Earthquake and fault zones. Some

areas in the Piedmont and Mountain regions of North Carolina

have experienced tremors during recorded history. Severity

and extent of occurrences do not warrant rating earthquakes

as a current or potentially severe critical condition. Fault

lines, as they exist in the State, are stable and have caused

negligible damage. Rock,slides and slippage occur in the.

mountains but are so localized in their impact as to be

beyond normal predictive capability.

2. Hurricanes significantly affect the Barrier Islands,

sounds, marshes, estuaries, and adjacent low-lying areas.

A hurricane is a cyclonic storm characterized by winds in

excess of 60 miles per hour, a diameter of 25 miles or more,

and excessive rainfall in a short duration. The combination

of wind and rain functions to produce abnormally high tides

and wave action which back up water into estuaries, channels,

creeks, and overland areas. In combination with high winds,

the damage produced is extensive and does have a severe im-

pact on areas beyond the immediate path'of,the 'storm. The

greatest measurable impact is on structures and buildings,

farm crops, and roadbeds. Fisheries and forests are also

susceptible to damage. Man-made alterations of the coastal

landscape are most severely affected and tend to increase

the impact on other related functions by removing natural

stabilizing features such as the dune system and the absorp-

tive capability of the marshes and wetlands. .

3. Floods are a natural occurrence on all streams.

The base of a stream valley from the banks at normal flow

across the natural berm to the foot of the valley walls is

the natural flood plain. During floods, this area becomes

the channel. The area of a flood plain considered most

critical in engineering/hydrologic calculations is that por-

tion necessary to carry the runoff from a storm of 100-year

frequency.

Valleys in a natural forested condition tend to retard

the accumulation of runoff and reduce the severity of floods

in terms of their height or velocity As the uplands of a

valley develop, absorption is impeded. Crests and velocity

increase, amplifying the flood's destructive capability.

10 4%

Flood crest from typical
urbanized area

Flood crest from
environmentally
planned-urban-area

TIME

DIAGRAM 2: The generalized diagram of a flood mass in

two differently used basins indicating the nature of.urban
envir'
plann@

development on the flood dynamics of a stream.

Sprawl development increases the severity of floods.

This is an incremental process which evolves with the build-

up of density in an urbanizing area. Corollary development

of the flood plain for urban type uses is subject to the

brunt of the increased destructive power of the flood.

4. Air inversions are a natural phenomena, occurring

most frequently in regions with well-defined ridges and

valleys. They occur as cold air masses move over depressions,

trapping warm air under them. Frequency of occurrences is

related to topographic relief, and the possibility exists

for inversions in relatively flat regions.

The critical factor engaging inversions is the quantity

of harmful pollutants in the air at the time of occurrence.

Pollutants which exist below critical levels during normal

conditions aggregate when trapped to produce increasingly

harmful concentrations.

Potential for inversions in North Carolina is most

critical in the northwest and southwest corners of the State

with a probable thirty days in five years. Probability for

such conditions in the Piedmont is twenty days in five years

the Coastal Plain up to ten, and the coastline from zero to ten.

Concentration of pollutants in the State's Air has not

reached hazardous proportions. Abatement measures are osten-

sibly preceding apace with development. The sprawling

nature of urbanization tends to thwart the effectiveness of

such procedures by spreading the sources into every area of.

the State.

The four most severe substances are carbon monoxide,

sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and particulates. Each in

its own way is a threat to the habitability of urban areas,

crops, forests, historic sites and buildings, game and wildlife

management, scenic qualities, and recreation.

5. Water pollution is a moderate to severe threat to

almost every aspect of the State's resource base. Pollution

comes'frommany,zources and in many forms. Suspended solids,

silt, and debris comefrom land modification. Agriculture-and

deforestation.cause turbidity, affecting visual quality of

the streams and lakes. Chemical pollutants in the form of

heavy metals.such as mercury and metal salts, along with bio-

chemical substances from farm runoff, urban runoff, industrial

plant'discharges, oil spills and mining operations are cumu-

latively degrading streams. Biological pollutants from ani-

mal and human wastes discharged directly into streams or

coming from inadequate septic tanks and fields and inade-

quate treatment facilities introduce pathogenic substances

into streams@affecting people directly or indirectly-through

contamination of food or closing of streams to recreation uses.

Thermal pollution from spent water in industrial processes

is potentially harmful to the State's fisheries.

Either independently or.cumulatively the impact on the

considerable water resource of the State is felt in almost

every area of activity. Water pollution is also an incre-

mental process. It can begin with discharges from mutually

remote sources and aggregate in small quantities until the

stream or lake is unfit for human use. It can exist

permanently in still or slow moving bodies of water or

proceed as a slug of polluted water in a faster moving

stream.

1.9

AGRICULTURE

Agriculture represents a way of life, as much as it does

a use of the land. Productivity is in many ways a by-product

of a life style. Changes in the settlement pattern of North

Carolina pose a distinct threat to both aspects. Incipient

urbanization consumes land and water, creates pollution,

and forces land values and taxes beyond agricultural capabil-

ities, displacing the farmer.

Thelfarmer's dependence on the land's productive capacity

is a relative condition based on many interlocking natural

features. The basic feature is the soil resource followed

closely by the land ownership pattern. Productive soil in

urban usage is an invaluable resource lost forever.

Serious changes in ownership are occurring throughout

the State. Farms on poor soil in the western Piedmont and

difficult slopes of the mountains are being abandoned. Vast

tracts of wetlands in the Coastal Plan are being drained and

deforested to make large corporate farms. The areas along

the expanding urban fringe and the second home complexes

near recreation facilities are being converted into small

parcels which collectively produce urban impacts. It is

difficult to attach detailed significance to these activities.

The soil base can be mapped and its value to the larger

society interpreted as a critical natural resource. Among

the many threats to agriculture, two are significant because

they can be controlled -- urbanization and its counterpart,

air pollution.

The soil base of the State has been classified and,.

mapped in five broad categories. The level of detail is the

soil association, and the interpretation is the percentage

of farmable land within that association.

The categories are:

1. 'Eighty percent or more of the land can be farmed

with normal management practices.

2. Sixty-six to eighty percent of the land can be farmed

with normal management practices.

3. Sixty to sixty-six percent of the land can'be farmed

with normal management practices.

4. Fifty to sixty percent of the land can be farmed with

normal management practices.

5. Less than fifty percent of the land can be farmed

with normal practices.

The conditions which render land in any of the associations

nonproductive are: excessive or inadequate drainage, steep

slopes, shallow depth of soil, stoniness, and soil reaction

(alkalinity or acidity). Categories one through four are

critical to the future of this State. Their retention in a

major part will ensure adequate productivity, offer an alter-

native to urban life, and maintain a margin of flexibility

for the future.

MOUNTAIN REGION

Category 1: 80 percent or more.

Alluvial and terrace soils are capable of 80 percent

productivity: They exist in flood plains and terraces

along streams. In combination there are about 60,000 acres

in the mountain region. The most serious constraint to use

is poor drainage on the alluvial soils and slope on terrace

soils. Suitability extends from forestry to intensive cash

crops and nurseries.

Category 2: 66 to 80 percent.

Edneyville-Balfour soils are capable of 66 to 80 percent

use. They are moderately steep with slight erosion problems.

They exist mostly on plateau areas and extend over 64,000

acres. They are suitable for pasture, orchards, and general

crops.

PIEDMONTREGION

Category 1: 80 percent or more.

Alluvial soils extend over 10,000 acres in the Piedmont

in the flood plains of rivers and streams. They have moderate

drainage problems and are most suitable for forest management,

grazing, or general crops.

Terrace soils are on moderately well drained, slightly

sloping land adjacent to the flood plains. occasional

flooding causes some drainage problems across most of the

370,000 acres of the extent. Pasture, tobacco, and general

crops ate suitable.

Davidson-Mecklenburg soils are dark red clays on land

sloping up to 15 percent. Erosion is a moderate to severe

problem. The 520,000 acre area is suitable for general crops,

forage, and forestry.

Category 2: 66 to 80 percent.

Appling-Cecil soils cover 2,200,000 acres of the Pied-

mont on slopes between 4 and 12 percent. They are subject

to moderate erosion problems and suitable for general crops

and dominant Piedmont tree species.

Cecil-Lloyd soils are light red clay loams on 4 to 18

percent slopes. Past and present erosion is a severe problem

on much of 2,200,000 acres. General crops and forestry

are suitable.

Iredell-Mecklenburg soils are fine textured clay loam

soils on moderately severe slopes. Much of the 480,000

acres is suitable for forage, pasture, forestry, and general

crops when properly managed.

Category 3: 60 to 66 percent.

Mayodan-Granville sandy loams cover 480,000 acres of the

Piedmont. Steep slopes cause severe erosion problems. Many

of the abandoned farms are made up of this soil type. The

remaining land is excellent for tobacco with good management

and otherwise suitable for pasture and forestry.

Category 4: 50 to 60 percent.

Granville-White Store sandy loams cover 180,000 acres in

Randolph, Chatham, and Orange Counties. Potential erosion is

high, but general crops are possible wit h adequate management.

COASTAL PLAINS REGION

Category 1: 80 percent or more.

Norfolk-Ruston soils cover 170,000 acres. The only

problem is difficult drainage which requires intense manage-

ment. These soils are suitable for pasture and forestry.

They are considered to be the most valuable soils in the

State.

Dragston-Fallsington soils are poorly drained sandy

loams over 225,000 acres of low-lying land along the sounds

in the northeastern part of the State. When properly drained

and managed, they are suitable for a wide range of crops and

forestry.

Lynchburg-Rains soils are sandy loams requiring exten-

sive drainage for general crops and forestry. They cover

750,000 acres in scattered areas across the eastern part of

the Coastal Plain.

Terrace soils along the rivers are subject to occasional

flooding. They range from well drained to wet and are suit-

able for general farming. They cover 150,000 acres.

Category 2: 60 to 66 percent.

Coxville-Bladen soils are wet clay soils covering

450,000 acres. They are difficult to handle but, when pro-

perly managed, are suitable for general crops and forestry.

Category 3: 50 to 60 percent.

Bladen-Elkton are wet, fine textured clayey soils re-

quiring drainage for general crops. They cover 600,000 acres

in the northeastern part of the State.

Craven-Shubuta (Caroline) soils are sandy loams with

moderate drainage problems. They cover 870,000 acres and

are suitable for field crops and forestry when properly

managed.

Lenoir-Coxville soils cover 630,000 acres. They are

most suitable for forestry, pasture, and field crops.

,Category 4: 50 to 60 percent.

Lakeland-Norfolk soils cover 1,300,000 acres mostly in

the Sandhills. Excessive drainage, severe leaching, and wind

erosion are major problems. They are suitable for forestry

and general crops -in selected areas.

FOREST LANDS

There are 33,735,680 acres of land and water in North

Carolina. In 1964, 20,027,300 acres or 59.5 percent were in

commercial forest land according to the United States Forest

Service: 9,956,200 acres are in the Coastal Plain; 6,014,600

acres in the Piedmont; and 4,056,500 acres in the Mountain

region. Of the total, 1,369,800 are owned by the Federal

government; 373,200 by the State and local governments;

2,495,200 by the forest industry; 9,322,900 are-owned by

farmers with the remaining 6,466,200 held by miscellaneous

individuals and corporations.

FOREST TYPES

White pine-hemlock forest group is part of the mountain

forest complex. The white pine is the dominant species.

They occur on steep and south facing slopes or in other

areas as a result of fire or other disturbances.

Spruce-fir forests are above the 4,500 feet elevation

in the mountains. The forest is best developed above 5,000

feet. Spruce-dominated forests exist in the lower reaches of

the association, and fir dominates at the highest elevations.

Hardwood-pine forests extend from the mountain foothills

into the Coastal Plain. Long-leaf pines and oaks dominate the

Sandhills and dry uplands in the southeast portion of the

Coastal Plain. Virginia pine is prevalent in the north cen-

tral Piedmont. Loblolly and short-leaf pine are dominant in

the inner Coastal Plain and across the central portion of the

Piedmont.

Oak-gum-cypress forests are located in the wetlands and

river bottom lands in the eastern Coastal Plain.

The major species in these associations occupy the

following areas:

Softwood Types

White pine-hemlock 140,200
Spruce-fir 14,700
Long-leaf pine 462,100
Slash pine 32,500
Loblolly pine 3,121,300
Short-leaf 1,079,700
Virginia pine 789,100
Eastern red cedar 28,200
Pond pine 1,408,600
Pitch pine 45,900
Table-mountain pine 18,900

Subtotal 7,141,200 Acres

Hardwood Types

Oak-pine 3,556,600
Oak-hickory -
.Chestnut-oak 275,800
Scrub oak 198,900
Other 5,541,200
Oak-gum-cypress 2,680,900
Elm-ash-cottonwood 324,600
Maple-beech-birch 308,100

Subtotal 12.,886,100 Acres

Total 20,027,300 Acres

Critical limitations on the productivity of the broad

forest associations are site quality and area conditions.

Site quality is based on the capability of the soil and other

factors in terms of mean annual growth. Growth is measured

in cubic feet of merchantable wood per acre per year. Broadly

conceived, there are four classes:

Class 1 - Sites capable of producing 120+ cubic feet/acre/

year.

Class 2 - Sites capable of producing 85-to 120 cubic feet/

acre/year.

Class 3 - Sites capable of producing 50 to 85 cubic feet/

acre/year.

Class 4 - Sites capable of producing less than 50.,cubic

feet/acre/year but excluding unproductive sites.

Area condition classes, represent land classified by

growing conditions such as surface water, drainage, erosion

potential, or problems susceptible to management practices

designed to alleviate them. The condition depends on the

stocking of the areas with commercially viable trees.

Presently, net growth is far below potential. About

15.2.million acres or 76 percent of the present commercial

forest is capable of producing 50 cubic feet per acre per

year. About-5.3 million acres are in site classes 1 and 2.

Current net growth across the entire forest is approximately

48 cubic feet per year. Better stocking of trees, more -

effective replanting and reseeding practices, protection

from fire and disease, and more efficient utilization of all

products will increase the stand efficiency.

The large portion of the productive,timber which is

held by farmers and other non-commercial forest interests is

subject to other management objectives. Conversion of timber

stands to farm fields and to urbanization are deleting many

acres each year. Simultaneously, the abandonment of farms

is restoring areas to forests. This type of shifting is

difficult to predict and control.

Critical aspects of forest management to interests

and values beyond the forest industry are maintenance of

wildlife habitats, watershed protection, recreation and

maintenance, and enhancement of scenic quality. Two rela-

tionships seem to be most pressing:

1. Maintenance of forest cover is critical to drainage

related lands in and about the urbanizing area of the State.

They include flood plains, steep slopes, drainage courses,

coverage of highly erodible soils, and maintenance of ab-

sorptive areas for ground water recharge. These areas do

not uniformly fall within the commercial forest site-indexing

system, but the role of forest cover in such situations is

of great value to the larger interests of the State.

2. Within the commercial forest enterprise, the areas

capable of producing 85 or more cubic feet per year are the

most valuable. Lower site classes can be created from

shifting land usage but the degradation of highly productive

sites is critical and irreparable. Lands in this class are

closely related to and, in many cases, coincident with prime

agricultural lands. Degradation of the ownership pattern of

these lands into urban sites needs to be controlled.

The related map indicates land within site classes I and

2. It is compared with dominant species and/or forest types.

The soil base is used as the prime indicator and the area

designations are those soils which the Soil Conservation

Service has mapped as being capable of producing high volumes

with management practices adequate for desirable species.

Maintenance of these areas alone will not provide enough

wood to support the needs of the forest industry and its

clients, but their diminution would severely hamper the

attainment of that goal. Lower class sites are less critical

and can be maintained through changes in land use and main-

tenance of an urban open space system.

RECREATION

Recreation includes manydivergent forms of activity:

competitive swimming, senior citizen bridge clubs, gardening,

and other types of leisure time activities. Types of recrea-

tion under consideration in this discussion are categorized

as outdoor recreation. This form is dependent on the use

of the State's natural and historic resources. The areas

considered critical are a composite of National and State

parks, recreation areas, scenic areas, historic sites and

districts, game lands, trails, public and some private

forests, wildlife refuges, and scenic rivers. The lands and

features are considered to be of State and, in some cases,

National significance.

The basis for classifying these areas in the recreation

category is. their capability of supporting recreation com-

plexes, including activities, services, accommodations, and

access by one means or another.

The areas range from near wilderness lands to inten-

sively developed day use areas. The focus of each area is

the array of activities possible within the setting. Activi-

ties include sightseeing, hiking, swimming, boating, fishing,

hunting, bird watching, collecting, skiing, and other pas-

times dependent as much on the environmental context as on

the developed provision of facilities.

Each of these activities is most successful in an environ-

ment free from the negative influences of urbanization, in-

dustry, pollution, and other non-recreational environmental

influences.

Activities in a sympathetic setting are the basic elements

of a successful recreation area and form the supply side

of the picture. Demand by users dictates that associated

facilities also be present.

Accommodations include campgrounds, trailer parks,

motels, hotels, and resort-type facilities. Each is or should

be related to the resource-based activities.

Services including auto service stations, laundries,

restaurants, souvenir shops, sport and equipment needs,

interpretive and information facilities are also necessary.

Each of these types of development should be linked with

the activity locations via a circulation system clearly with-

in the environmental setting and can include highways, park-

ways, or trails.

Each combination of recreation area components should

be organized about'a specific user time budget that relates

supply of facilities with demand for them. The smallest

component of a time budget is the four-hour increment or the

time between meals. Recreationists tend to plan activities

and sequences of events around this type of budget. The

least integrated development should be capable of supporting

the desired number of people with activities, services, and

circulation necessary to support a user for this amount of

time.

A day use area requires facilities for two or three

four-hour increments. This requires an array of activity

types about an organized service facility and circulation

system.

An area catering to weekend or longer visits requires

an integral accommodation complex and circulation system that

links a wide array of activities into one complex recreation

area.

The facilities designated in this discussion have the

potential or are already developed for user accessibility

and service and have a high quality environmental context.

SCENIC AREAS

Scenery falls into two categories:

1. Areas which have scenic and aesthetic objectives as

Part of the existing management framework.

a. National Parks and Seashores

b. State Parks

C. National and State Wildlife Refuges

d. National Forests

e. Historic Sites

f. Scenic Rivers (Proposed)

2. Regions of the State which have scenic qualities

unrecognized by present public policy or private objectives.

Every part of the State is visually pleasant to some

extent, but particular resource complexes are dominant.

a. mountain ridge and valley complex

b. Major Piedmont river basins and Piedmont/Coastal

Plain fall line.

C. Estaurine complex of sounds, marshes, beaches,

hammocks along the edge of the land mass

d. The barrier islands

Delineation of scenic complexes is dependent on the

visual relationship of dominant edges or changes in landscape

features. The sea-land edge is visually strong. The term

used to describe scenic impact is imageability or the poten-

tial for the scene to elicit recognition and recall from the

viewer.

Degrees of imageability are dependent on the relationship

between a scene's complexity and order. Complexity is the

number or array of distinct elements within the view, and

order is the visual relationships between them.

Elements are those features which have clear distinctions

between them such as a land-water edge. Change in topo-

graphy, vegetation masses, and ground surface material repre-

sents elements.

Their arrangement to form perceptible sequences of en-

closures is the order function. Highly repetitive forms are

most orderly, and discordant patterns with no apparent rela-

tionships are disorderly. High scenic quality exists if

the scene is complex and orderly; i.e., there are a large

number of elements in perceptible sequences of order. Low

quality is ascribed to simple scenes without apparent order,

such as the view from a flat straight road through a single

species of cut over forest or through the-jumble of signs

and structures on a commercial strip.

Imageability says nothing of the viewer's preference

for a scene. It is dependent on other factors and explains

his subjective capacity to recall the elements along a path-

way.

Scenic management should not focus directly on the arrange-

ment of detail.but on the organization of the framework in

which detail is preceived. Detail and personal involvement

is part of the preference function which operates best in an

imageable environment.

The vantage point is critical in that it controls the

array of elements. Speed of movement is controlled by the

vantage point also. The longer a viewer has to decode the

scene the more imageable and preferable it will be. Along

an automobile route, the view is constantly moving and changing.

Discordant edges confuse the viewer's capacity to understand

and sense the order. To this end, the scenic qualities of

a resource are best exposed by moving parallel with strongly

imageable edges such as the Blue Ridge Parkway moving along

the Blue Ridge. The panorama of the valleys can be portrayed

against a consistent edge, relationship of topography and

tree masses. The same is true of moving in a valley and

viewing the hills or driving along a river's edge.

In this framework the outstanding undeveloped scenic

resources of the State lie in corridors paralleling natural

edges. Management involves properly locating the viewer's

pathway or vantage point and preventing discordant features

from obliterating the order attained from the vantage point

location.

Visual enjoyment of the State's natural features could

become a legitimate function of highway location and design.

Land planning along the corridors can also adapt criteria

for visual ordering of development and physical change of

the landscape.

HISTORIC AREAS

North Carolina's patrimony is becoming a critical

issue in the overall development of the State. Buildings,

sites, artifacts, and districts which have historic merit

either by integrity of location, purity of style, locational

relevance to major events, or are indicative of trends in

the development of the State are being threatened by modern

urbanization and its by-products.

Present historic areas and sites administered by the

Federal government and the North Carolina Department of Archives

and History are the focus of this discussion. Other facilities

of significance are operated by commissions and private in-

dividuals or firms. The main thrust of the publicly admin-

istered facilities is the accurate conservation of signifi-

cant traditiops and events.

Efforts have been made during the recent past to cen-

tralize Administration with Archives and History. Their pro-

fessional staff and commitment to authenticity has the

capability of identifying the most outstanding opportunities

and restoring them with great attention and rigor. Their

objectives are to bring the past to life as part of the

ongoing life of the community. To date, funds have limited

complete inventories and follow-up restoration, zoning and

legal control devices.

Many examples, although not all, are single buildings

in a museum setting divorced from the normal activity of the

setting. An expanded program will consider the structure

or site in its total context, with equal emphasis on land-

scape and urban context design.

A major problem lies with the location of many signifi-

cant opportunities. They are either in decaying center cities

or impoverished rural communities. The necessary concern,

financial, and knowledge resources are not available to

mount public support and ultimate conservation.

North Carolina's patrimony is a vital nonrenewable

resource which can only be developed with a concerted program

integral with the mainstream of activity. Its potential for

ameliorating urban blight and presenting the past to people

in an understandable way is a legitimate concern of urban

development.

WILDLIFE

Wildlife of interest to this discussion of North Carolina

falls into three categories: game animals, fur bearers, and

endangered species. The critical dimension to their con-

servation is habitat management. Urbanization brings about

a decrease in range size which is critical to animals such

as bears, alligators, and eagles. Each requires a large

territory essentially free from man's influence. The eggs

of the eagle and osprey are susceptible to DDT, and the

eagle is especially intolerant of man's presence.

Mono-species forestry and industrialized agriculture

reduce the amount of ecotones, or natural edges, that pro-

vide the best food sources. Large-scale agriculture which

requires draining of wetlands is a serious threat to all forms

of game animals through habitat destruction and management

practices.

Wildlife is a mutual concern of scenic recreation,

forest, and scientific area management. Currently, the

resource is diminishing to protected lands only. These are

not adequate for the task. Additional wetland protection

and refuge areas are needed to control the elements of the

habitat environment.

Game refuges provide adequate protection, and hunting

lands both owned and leased are a major portion of the pro-

tection conservation system. Licensing of hunters and exten-

sive use of wildlife officers supplement this system.

major game animals in North Carolina include deer, bear,

squirrel, rabbits, wild turkey, and waterfowl. Principal fur

bearers are muskrat, raccoon, mink, otter, opossum, and the

grey and red foxes. An exotic animal, the nutria, is re-

placing the muskrat and mink and is considered a threat to

their survival.

Rare animals in need of protection through habitat

preservation are pelicans, ospreys, bald eagles and,red

cockaded woodpeckers among the birds. Alligators, sea

turtles and bog turtles, among the reptiles, are suffering

from wetland and habitat destruction and coastal development.

The black bear, because of its necessarily large range size,

is disappearing from the scene in both western and eastern

North Carolina.

5..6

FISHERIES

There are two types of fisheries in North Carolina:

commercial and sport fishing. Except for the developing

catfish farms, the commercial fishery is limited to the

salt and brackish water of the coastal zone. The sport

fishery includes deep water, sounds, inland streams and

lakes.

The commercial fishery includes fin fish, shellfish and

crustaceans. Fin fish are harvested from the open sea,

the sounds, inlets, and estuaries; crustaceans along the open

sea edge, sounds, and estuaries; and shellfish from the

entire water complex. The principal shellfish are oysters

taken from the sound, brackish water,'clams (Rangeia) taken

from the sounds, and surf clams (Mercenarea) taken from the

inlets and along the coastal shelf. Scallops are of two

types: bay scallops are from the sounds and-callico scallops

from the open waters.

Crustaceans include primarily shrimp and crabs harvested

from the entire complex. Dominant fin fish are the menhaden

and alewife, sea bass, sea trout, and flounder. The striped

bass, alewives and shad are-anadromous, returning to fresh

water streams to spawn,where they are also.harvested.

Major threats to thecommercial fishery are pollution,

alteration of spawning grounds, and alteration or destruction

of the food chain through dredging, filling,,and silting of

the marshes. Changes in.salinity of.the marshes and estuaries

from increased land runoff will seriously hamper reproduction

and growth. Biological pollution from municipal and indus-

trial sewage and septic tanks contaminates the shellfish,

rendering them unfit for human consumption.

Sounds, marshes, and estauries are critical to the

maintenance of a commercial fishery. Urbanization destroys

the marshes and directly limits the productivity of the entire

commercial and sport fishing industry.

The sports fishery includes deep sea fishing, sound

fishing (salt and brackish), and inland streams. Major

species include marlin, mackerel, blue fish and.flounder

from the sea, channel bass and flounder from the sounds,

and black or'large mouth bass and trout in the inland

streams and lakes. The large mouth bass is found almost

everywhere in Currituck Sound which is fresh to brackish

water. Trout are found in the cool clear streams of the

mountains. The speckled trout is native, and the rainbow

trout and brown trout have been introduced. Additionally,

the striped bass and shad which are anadromous are prime sport

fish. Pan'fish and catfish are caught in almost all the

fresh waters of the State.

Threats to the sport fishery include the same conditions

which are harmful to commercial fishing as well as the

accidental introduction of the fresh water mill foil plant

to the Currituck Sound. Fresh water game fish ate intolerant

of habitat changes such as temperature fluctuations from

waste water or clearing of the forest canopy, siltation from

agriculture or urban runoff, stream channelization and

biological pollution.

Anadromous fish require pollution free streams and

clear channels to return to their spawning grounds. Dams

and other barriers stop their migration and destroy the

reproduction cycle.

Pre-urban development poses a major threat to the

commercial and sport fishery which is a touchstone of North

Carolina history and accountsfor a significant portion of

its tourist and production economy.

SCIENTIFIC AREAS

Areas with outstanding scientific value can be

classified in three general categories: regions, sites,

and Misfits. Regions are areas such as salt marshes or

swamps in the Coastal Plain that contain within their

boundaries all the component natural systems necessary to

support the total system without outside controls.

Sites comprise residual complex natural areas surrounded

by modified landscapes which do not drastically alter the

environment of the site itself. Controls are necessary to

prevent deterioration and maintain an acceptable level of

functional integrity for the site itself. Sites are such

areas as bogs in an urban complex or stands of virgin forest

in an otherwise commercially managed forest.

Misfits are remnant species of aberrations in the land-

scape produced by natural forces. A hemlock stand in the

Piedmont or a huge dune on the barrier islands are examples.

The dominant features of the State portrayed in this

discussion include all three types. National and State

parks are in the scientific region class. Class A rated

streams, wild, and scenic rivers, National and State forests,

regional habitat tracts and State natural areas are scientific

sites.

Misfits are champions of species and rare and endan-

gered botanical species as well as niches of endangered

animal species.

Inventories of significant features are underway but

not nearly complete. Follow-up legislation is necessary
and management responsibility needs to be decided and funded.

These resources are nonrenewable and subject to

destruction by urbanization and its associated water and air

pollution concentrations. In a sense, they represent a

significant portion of the State's patrimony and are

necessary to reveal the origins of the people to them-

selves.

.66

MAP CONTENT SOURCES

NO. TITLE SOURCE

1. URBANIZATION

1. Urban-Area Incorporation Limits N. C. Dept. of Trans.

2. Present Areas w/100 People/s.m. State Planning Div.

3. 1980 Areas w/100 People/s.m. if 11 11

4. 2000 Areas w/100 People/s.m. to of tr

2. FORESTRY

1. Dominant Forest Species U.S.D.A. - Forest
Service

2. Soil Survey Interp. for Woodlands U.S.D.A. - Forest
Service

3. AGRICULTURE

1. Agricultural Soil Cap. by % N.C./A.S.S. Soil
Farmable Land Survey w/Interp.
by R. Horton of
S.C.S.

4. RECREATION

1. National Parks U.S./N.P.S.

2. National Forests U.S.D.A./U.S.F.S.

3. National Rec. Areas U.S./N.P.S.

4. Public Game Lands U.S./B.S.F.W.
N. C. Div..of Wild-
life Res. Div.

5. Scenic Rivers N. C. Div. of
Recreation

6. State Parks N.C.D.N.E.R.
State Parks

NO. TITLE SOURCE

4. RECREATION (cont.)

7. -State Lakes N.,,-C. D.N.E.R.
State Parks

8. Blue Ridge Pkwy & Appa. Trail U.S./N.P.S.

9. Private Rec. Facilities N. C. Atlas

10. Islands w/State Significance N. C. Div. of Rec.

11. National Wildlife Refuges U.S./B.S.F.W.

12. State Forests N. C. Div. of
State Forests

5. SCENIC AREAS

1. One through Eleven Above (Map #4)

2. Overlooks & Pts. of Interest on U.S.IN.P.S.
Blue Ridge Parkway

3. Areas under Consideration as N.C.D.N.E.R.
State Nat. Areas State Parks

4. Gardens Open to Public N. C. Arboretum

5. Class - A Streams N. C. Air & Water

6. Historic Sites Appointed to N.C./D. of A. & H.
Nat. Reg.

7. Historic Districts Proposed & N.C./D. of A. & H.
Approved by Nat. Reg.

8. Scenic Roads U. S. Bur. Pub. Rds

9. Proposed State Parks N. C. State Parks
10. Champions of Species Amer. For. Assoc.@

6. HISTORIC AREAS

1. National Historic Landmarks N.C./D. of A. & H.

2. Historic Sites N.C./D. of A. & H.
a. Architectural Significance
b. Political Significance
c. Religious Significance
d. Military Significance

NO. TITLE SOURCE

6. HISTORIC AREAS (cont.)

3. Historic Districts N.C./D. of A. & H.
a. Architectural Significance
b. Political Significance
c. Religious Significance
d. Military Significance

4. Nationally Owned Historic U.S./N.P.S.
Properties

7. WILDLIFE

1. Range of Virginia Deer N. C. Div. of
Wildlife Res.

2. Range of Wild Turkey N. C. Div. of
Wildlife Res.

3. Range of Black Bear N. C. Div. of
Wildlife Res.

4. Areas of Mod. to High Waterfowl U.S./D.S.F. & W.
Value

5. Rare & Endangered Species N. C. Nat. Hist.
Alligator & Eagle MUS., W. Hamnett
Bob Turtle
Sea Turtles
Pelicans

8. FISHERIES

1. Clams (Shellfish) N. C. Comm. Fish.

2. Fin Fish N. C. Comm. Fish.

3. Crustaceans N. C. Comm. Fish.

4. Trophy and/or Native Trout N. C. Inland
Streams Fisheries

5. Anadromous Fish Streams N. C. Comm. Fish.

6. Endangered Species (Dismal
Swamp Fish)

NO. TITLE SOURCE

9. SCIENTIFIC AREAS

1. Class A Streams N. C. Air & Water

2. Regional Habitat Tracts N. C. Arboretum

3. StateNatural Areas (proposed) N. C. State Parks

4. State Forests -N. C. State Forests

5. National Forests U.S.D.A./U.S.F.S.

6. Wild & Scenic Rivers N. C. Rec. Comm.

7. Champions of Species Nat. For. Assoc.

8. Rare & Fragile Botanical Species J. Radford UNC/CH

tow."

3 6668 00001 8624