None The Nature Conservancy in Virginia Press Releases Search All Press Releases Bill Kittrell Phone: (540) 676-2209 E-mail: bkittrell@naxs.net Daniel White Phone: 804-295-6106 E-mail: dwhite@tnc.org

The Nature Conservancy Protects Top Target on Clinch River

Date: 04/25/01

The property, which will be renamed the Kyles Ford Preserve, is valued for its position on the Clinch River and its assortment of aquatic life, including the presence of numerous rare and threatened species. The centerpiece of the new preserve is the Kyles Ford mussel shoal, a shallow section of the Clinch River that contains at least 35 mussel species, more than any other place on Earth.

"The acquisition of this property, and its designation as a nature preserve are critical steps towards the protection of the river, including the plants and animals that call it home, and the water that people in Virginia and Tennessee depend on for consumption and recreation," said Bill Kittrell, director of the Conservancy's Clinch Valley Program. The people in many surrounding towns and counties draw their drinking water from the Clinch, and the river feeds into Norris Reservoir, a major recreational center for boating, swimming and fishing.

The Clinch River sustains 48 imperiled and vulnerable species, including 29 varieties of rare mussels and 19 species of fish. Rare plants, mammals and birds also thrive along the river's edge. All told, the river and surrounding valley are home to 27 species that are federally listed as threatened or endangered, and the new preserve contains 10 of these species.

"The United States is the world leader when it comes to the variety of animal life found in our rivers, and the Clinch is one of the most ecologically important rivers in the country," said Brian Richter, director of the Conservancy's Freshwater Initiative, an international effort to protect freshwater systems.

The health of the Kyles Ford Preserve in particular and the Clinch River in general is threatened by the erosion of river banks, the loss of trees and shrubs along the banks, and declining water quality due to contamination from industrial and agricultural activities, including bacterial input from cattle wading in the river and its tributaries.

Mussels serve as indicators of a river's health. The Clinch once supported 60 kinds of mussels; however, the aforementioned threats have already taken a heavy toll, as only about 40 species remain.

At Kyles Ford, the Conservancy will work to protect the river by restoring native trees and shrubs to the river banks, keeping cattle out of the river itself, and monitoring water quality. The Conservancy will use the property, which had been a working farm, as a model to show local landowners ways in which farming and river conservation can be compatible.

The Conservancy is working with individuals, private businesses and public agencies from the communities along the length of the Clinch to find common sense solutions to help protect the health of the river, and the health of the local economy. The Conservancy offers to work in partnership with farmers to safeguard the rivers, creeks and caves on their property. On the tobacco and cattle farms nestled in the rugged terrain of Hancock County, Tennessee, for example, the Conservancy and its partner organization, the Clinch Powell Resource Conservation and Development Council, have already signed agreements with 50 landowners to help them adopt agricultural best management practices. These practices include the installation of livestock management fencing, replanting streamside buffers, and setting up alternate water sources for cattle. At the same time, the Conservancy is working with the coal industry and public agencies to tackle the complex issue of cleaning up abandoned mine lands.

Through its work with the surrounding communities, the Conservancy's Clinch Valley Program aims to protect the river's waters, plants and animals by protecting the ecological processes they need to survive.

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For media: Video footage, as well as downloadable fact sheet, maps and photographs available upon request.

The mission of The Nature Conservancy is to preserve the plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 12 million acres in the United States, and it owns 1,400 preserves in the country-the largest private system of nature sanctuaries in the world. It has helped partner organizations to preserve more than 80 million acres in Asia, Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America.