Cheers to U.S. Sens. Richard Burr, the Republican from Winston-Salem, and Kay Hagan, the Democrat from Greensboro, for crossing political lines last week as key sponsors of a bill that would preserve up to 50,000 acres of land along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Saving this land from development is crucial to preserving the natural beauty that brings visitors to our state.
"The Blue Ridge Parkway is a state and national treasure, and an investment now will help us protect the parkway for future generations," Burr said in a prepared statement.
The bill, which comes as the parkway celebrates its 75th birthday, would authorize the National Park Service to spend $75 million over five years to buy land, working with conservation groups. Eminent domain would not be used.
The Blue Ridge Parkway Protection Act would allow for the preservation of more natural habitat and farmland along the parkway, which winds for 469 miles, from Rockfish Gap, Va., to Cherokee. It's also, as Hagan's office noted, one of "the strongest economic engines in the region," attracting almost 20 million visitors and generating almost $2.3 billion in North Carolina and Virginia annually.
Reps. Heath Shuler and David Price, Democrats from North Carolina, are key sponsors of companion legislation in the U.S. House. Rep. Virginia Foxx, the Republican from Watauga County, has not signed on. "I am a strong supporter of the Parkway and the National Park Service, but with high unemployment and record deficits, the federal government needs to focus on reducing spending and debt, rather than increasing it," she said in a prepared statement. "North Carolina taxpayers are tightening their belts right now and so should the federal government. Once our economy recovers and we get the deficit under control, I would be very happy to co-sponsor this bill."
Congress should always be careful with spending. But we can't afford to get behind on preserving the parkway. The recession is lifting, and resort property prices will soon resume their steady climb. We should have money for land ready so that orderly development can be balanced with preservation -- our responsibility to future generations.
That's a cause worth uniting for.
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