FENTRESS AND OVERTON COUNTIES, Tenn. —The Conservation Fund, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture Division of Forestry, and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency have announced the protection of 11,723 acres of ecologically important forestland, completing a multi-year effort to conserve more than 14,700 acres in the Cumberland Plateau. Located adjacent to the state’s Skinner Mountain Wildlife Management Area (WMA), the newly conserved property will remain privately owned and sustainably managed for timber production while preserving biodiverse habitat and allowing public access for hunting, hiking, and other recreational activities.
A priority for conservation because of its ecological and economic importance, this dramatic landscape of gorges, cliffs, and waterfalls near the East Fork Obey River provides significant habitat for a variety of endangered and threatened species of mussels, migratory songbirds, and plants. More than 50 caves are now fully conserved as part of this conservation effort, including the fifth longest cave in the state. These caves provide critical winter habitat for the most endangered mammal in the state—the Indiana bat—and six additional species of concern.
Tennessee’s U.S. Congressional delegation representing Fentress and Overton counties—U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty, and U.S. Representative John W. Rose—supported the use of federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) LWCF funding for this project.