NEWS

In a compelling feature by PBS North Carolina, Conserving Carolina’s innovative work in restoring the French Broad River’s floodplains is showcased, emphasizing the critical role of natural landscapes in mitigating flood risks and enhancing climate resilience.

Check out this amazing article about stream restoration on Ashworth Creek.

Water experts will gather next week in Nashville to talk about the state of stream restoration at the first national stream restoration conference.

Our original version incorrectly stated the hellbender is endangered federally. It is “endangered” or listed as a “species of special concern” in multiple states. The Ozark Hellbender, a subspecies, is listed as federally endangered. The story has been corrected to reflect this.

Are hellbenders in a stream near you? Resource Institute recently completed a stream restoration project on Hog Lot Branch and Bates Branch near Franklin, North Carolina. Both reaches of the stream were severely eroding, and agriculture production was impacted. The project team restored 1,250 feet of stream, which included stabilizing the creek and streambanks and creating habitat for a variety of species, including hellbenders, which were last sighted in Bates Branch in 2003.

A stream restoration project on the Mitchell River is currently under construction. In October 2018, Hurricane Michael inundated Surry County dropping more than 10 inches of rain in some areas. This torrent of rain blew out the historic Kapps Mill dam along the Mitchell. After the blowout, the stream was flooded with tons of fine, sandy sediment causing extensive erosion and impairing water quality.

A Mitchell River watershed restoration project has improved water quality and repaired damage from 2018’s Hurricane Michael, as well as restoring habitat for trout and freshwater mussels.

Resource Institute, the Town of Elkin, Surry County, and Watershed NOW recently completed construction on a significant stream restoration project on Big Elkin Creek. The project stabilized 3,500 feet of stream, protects Elkin’s water supply, and improves the water quality of Big Elkin Creek.

Surry and Wilkes County residents will have cleaner water with less pollution and less sediment, thanks to a recently completed stream restoration project led by Resource Institute.

An unprecedented partnership between Resource Institute, a Winston-Salem, NC, based nonprofit, and Appalachian State University, New River Light & Power (NRLP) restored a section of Payne Branch, along the Middle Fork of the New River. As part of the restoration project, the partners removed a decommissioned hydroelectric dam. The project is located just east of Boone at Payne Branch Park.