30 Years of Nature...and Counting
2021 Year In Review
The Catawba Lands Conservancy celebrated its 30th anniversary this year! While we were not able to gather together for a large celebration, we hope you feel as proud as we do of what this organization has achieved in that time, improving quality of life for Carolinians and future generations.
Protecting the Land
In 2021 the Conservancy received three generous estate gifts, including one that will further advance conservation in Mecklenburg County by protecting 178 acres near Reedy Creek Nature Preserve!
Extending the Thread Trail
The Thread Trail had another exciting year in 2021. In addition to opening the new trails listed below, our team added four new staff members, which further increases our capacity to advance trails across the 15-county Thread Trail footprint.
In October of 2021 the Thread Trail launched a newly updated online trail map, presented by OrthoCarolina. You can find all of the 300+ miles of trail, including the new trails listed above, on the new site at carolinathreadtrailmap.org!
Blazing New Trails
In December the Carolina Thread Trail announced the public phase of its $13M Blazing New Trails capital campaign, with over $11M already committed! This campaign will raise funds to help build 200 miles of trails over the next 5 years, connecting communities across 15 counties in NC and SC.
Part of Your Community
Thank you to Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas for sponsoring our public programs, and to The River District by Crescent Communities for sponsoring our paddle programs.
This fall, a unique partnership developed between the Community School of Davidson, Davidson Lands Conservancy, and Catawba Lands Conservancy. Under the supervision of staff from the two land trusts, twenty-eight students including 14 seniors and 14 sophomores, provided for labor for two important projects in the Town of Davidson community. The students provided some much needed work on the Davidson K-8 School Nature Observatory including trail clearing and bridge repair. At Abersham Park, with assistance from TreesDavidson, the students planted twenty five trees to help provide shade and habitat for wildlife.
Thank you to the teachers and students at Davidson Elementary for this wonderful collaborative!
The Conservancy and Thread Trail continued partnering with the Lakeview neighborhood throughout 2021, hosting community bike ride programs and working with neighbors to create a community garden.
The Conservancy and Thread Trail have always worked closely with our municipal partners to advance conservation and trails. In 2021 we continued these partnerships by:
- Amending and updating Master Plan maps for the Thread Trail, many of which were adopted 10 years ago
- Partnering with communities across seven counties to assist with conservation easements, sewer easements, rights-of-way and trail planning
- Working with our municipal partners to keep trails open and safe for the public during the ongoing pandemic, and installing trail counters to monitor usage
Helping Nature Flourish
As part of this initiative, Conservancy staff and volunteers planted 800 endangered Schweinitz's sunflower seedlings at Buffalo Creek Preserve Trail this fall. This preserve is now the first protected site for Schweinitz's sunflowers in Cabarrus County, NC.
Photos by Nancy Pierce.
The Conservancy conducted a prescribed burn at Buffalo Creek Preserve this year. When "good fire" is reintroduced to grassland ecosystems, it can help native plants and animals thrive. Just weeks after the burn, the preserve was covered in native blooms.
The Conservancy also continued its work to improve native pollinator habitat along utility rights-of-way in 2021, conducting mowing and seeding regimes that encourage wildflowers and remove non-native grasses.
Learn more about our work to convert rights-of-way to pollinator habitat HERE .
