AULANDER, N.C., Sept. 13, 2022 – Forest and farm owners in eastern North Carolina have the opportunity in late October to learn about assistance available from federal and state agencies, about forest carbon markets, and strategies for effective estate planning. The Forest Landowner Conference sponsored by Roanoke Electric Cooperative’s Sustainable Forestry and Land Retention Project (SFLRP) will be held on Oct. 25-26 in Rocky Mount, N.C.
The conference is free to the public. It will be held in the Rocky Mount Event Center from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. both days. Speakers and exhibitors from more than 20 agencies, nongovernmental organizations and companies will take part, including: the North Carolina Forest Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the North Carolina Forestry Association, the Black Family Land Trust, Domtar, Enviva and many others. Advance registration is required.
The conference will feature two sessions as follows:
- Session 1. 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Oct. 25 -- The keynote speaker is Rita Hite, president and chief executive officer of the American Forest Foundation (AFF). Other Session 1 speakers include Mavis Gragg, an attorney and conservationist who specializes in estate planning and conflict resolution; Flynn Bucy, managing director of Nature4Justice; and Omoyemeh Jennifer Ile, a PhD candidate at NC State University’s Tree Physiology and Ecosystem Science Laboratory.
- Session 2, 8:30 a.m. -- 3:30 p.m. Oct. 26 -- Session 2 speakers include Will Dudenhauser, training director for the Dispute Settlement Center; Tatiana Height, Southern Regional Director for AFF’s Family Forest Carbon Program; Julius George, Assistant State Conservationist in North Carolina for the NRCS; and Rob Lipford, staff forester for the North Carolina Forest Service.
The Sustainable Forestry and Land Retention Project began in 2013 as a partnership between the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the U.S. Forest Service and, more recently, the American Forest Foundation. The program works to restore and conserve threatened forestland in 13 North Carolina counties by increasing forest-owner income and land asset values. The counties are: Bertie, Chowan, Edgecombe, Gates, Granville, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, Nash, Northampton, Perquimans, Vance and Warren. All landowners owning at least one contiguous eight-acre parcel of woodland are eligible to participate. See www.recforestry.org for more information on the program.
Forest landowners do not have to live in these counties to participate in the conference. The registration deadline is October 13.
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Contact: Alton Perry, SFLRP Director
252-539-4614