LTWA works on land use issues through advocacy for strong rules and enforcement of sediment and erosion control laws, and by partnering with others in the Region to bring regular, affordable sediment and erosion control training opportunities to Western North Carolina for our contractors.

In Macon County, the Director of LTWA holds a seat on the County’s Watershed Council, which is a body of eight volunteers who provide feedback and input about water related decisions and ordinances to the Macon County Board of Commissioners. Four members are appointed by LTWA and four are appointed by the Upper Cullasaja Watershed association located in Highlands, NC. Most recently, this group has worked the Macon County Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance and the Sediment and Erosion Control Ordinance (S&EC). It is currently awaiting Commissioner approval of its 2009 S&EC ordinance recommendations

Local watershed and other conservation organizations in the region (including LTWA) have individually offered low-cost (or free) basic training on installing best management practices, but hosting these trainings requires significant time and financial resources to plan and implement, so they are not offered on a consistent schedule. This presents a particular problem for busy contractors working in counties that require continuing education.

Recognizing that sedimentation remains the number one problem for our waterways and that there is still a critical need for training of grading contractors and developers, we are working with a larger group of organizations and agencies throughout southwestern North Carolina to try to address these concerns, calling the effort the “Regional Erosion & Sediment Control Initiative.”

The steering committee of the Initiative includes representatives of the Eastern Band of  Cherokee Indians, Haywood Waterways Association (HWA), Hiwassee River Watershed Coalition (HRWC), Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance (J-MCA), the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee (LTLT), Little Tennessee Watershed Association (LTWA), Southwestern NC Resource Conservation & Development Council (RC&D), and Watershed Association for the Tuckasegee River (WATR). The NC Natural Heritage Program/Wildlife Resources Commission provides administrative assistance. Together, this nine member committee represents a roughly 3,000-square mile, 7-county area of southwestern North Carolina that corresponds with Region A Council of Governments.

A primary goal of the Regional Erosion and Sediment Control Initiative is to ensure that consistent, current, affordable training for grading contractors and developers occurs regularly and locally in southwestern NC. Other objectives include (1) Create a standardized and mountain-specific set of training modules for erosion and sediment control that are targeted to grading contractors and developers; (2) Develop a consistent, reliable and affordable delivery system throughout the 7-county area; (3) Provide for funding mechanisms to offer courses annually and indefinitely; and (4) Establish a regional certification and tracking system that will benefit participants. We are proud to partner on this important project.