Green Infrastructure / Urban Forestry Outreach

North Carolina’s 16.7 million acres of commercial forests are under siege from development and other pressure to change current land use. In the past decade 1 million acres of forests were lost to development. Forests once controlled by industry are up for sale and potentially in peril. The Green Infrastructure outreach effort seeks to stem the tide of forest land loss by advising landowners, professionals and civic leaders of conservation options and market opportunities that can lead to “win-win’ alternatives.

To accomplish this critical task a three-tiered approach will be deployed:

• Land Protection - Educate stakeholders of land protection opportunities (from Conservation Easements to planning , zoning and ordinances).

• Alternative Forestry Enterprises - Explore and promote alternative forestry and natural resource enterprises that can provide the economic incentive and opportunity to maintain forestlands.

• Urban Interface Solutions - Seek synergies with the Urban forestry community to address issues of growth, development via greenspace protection strategies, land-use planning and urban-rural interface management

For more information regarding these special projects, contact:

Dr. Mark Megalos
NC State University
CB 8003
Raleigh, NC 27695-8003

Location: 3033 Biltmore Hall, NCSU Campus
Phone: 919-513-1202
Fax: 919-515-6883
Email: mark.megalos@ncsu.edu

Click here to read Growing Jobs, a newsletter highlighting the efforts of the three College of Natural Resources' outreach associates whose directive is to "grow jobs and communities through enhanced management and utilization of North Carolina's natural resources".

Updated Thursday, September 4, 2008