WaysSouth at Corridor K Planning Table; I-3 Study Still Planned 

WaysSouth continues to exercise its influence as an advocate for responsible transportation in eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina and northern Georgia.  
Recently, we made our voice heard at two public meetings held in Tennessee to obtain input on plans to complete Corridor K.  WaysSouth asserts that new four-lane highways through pristine forests and watersheds are not the answer to the transportation needs of these mountain communities. Representing WaysSouth were Holly Demuth, executive director; Betty Petty, secretary; and Hugh Irwin, strategy committee.  Several members of the Corridor K task force also attended.

Many thanks go to Emma Ford, a WaysSouth volunteer from Benton, Tenn., who wrote a letter that was published in the Chattanooga Times-Free Press. She wrote:

Since Corridor K was originally envisioned in the mid-1960s, the transportation landscape has fundamentally changed. Do we really need a new four-lane highway or do we need to finally fix the problems with U.S. 64? Does providing another four-lane freight route to coastal ports make sense when transportation planners are saying that the future of freight shipment lies with rail? Or does it make more sense to creatively address the handful of bottlenecks in the gorge and provide passing lanes where they’re feasible?

Photos by Larry Winslett
Our mountains at their best and worst impassion WaysSouth volunteers

Thanks also go to all WaysSouth supporters who wrote comment letters to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regarding the segment of Corridor K that extends from Robbinsville, N.C.to Stecoah Gap. Read some of the ardent letters written by individuals and organizations at http://www.corridork.org/about/USACOE.php. 

Corps regulations require NCDOT's highway proposal to show that other, less environmentally damaging alternatives have been considered. Yet, NCDOT makes no such references in their proposal. Such alternatives do exist, and are as simple as making improvements to the existing, two-lane, interconnecting highways (U.S. 129 and N.C. 143). These less costly improvements would meet the purpose and need of the intrusive highway.  
 
On the I-3 front, officials at the Federal Highway Administration have still not set a date for launching the highway study. Now, instead of telling us that a study will begin “shortly,” they are saying it’s their “top priority.”The Athens Banner-Herald interviewed WaysSouth Chair Lucy Bartlett about the status of the study, and Holly Demuth gave an interview to Georgia Public Radio about the same issue. 

As this newsletter goes to press, WaysSouth is joining motorcycle enthusiasts to help save the Tail of the Dragon, a twisty section of Southern Appalachian highway that could be ruined by Interstate 3’s construction. WaysSouth will hold a motorcycle rally Oct. 10-11 to raise money for our cause. The fun starts in Murphy, N. C., where motorcyclists can register to participate in Saturday’s all-day ride along the Tail of the Dragon or for shorter morning and afternoon rides through the mountains on both Saturday and Sunday.

“As the Federal Highway Administration gears up to start the study of I-3, we need to let them know loud and clear that we don’t want an interstate to destroy this classic motorcycle run,” explained rally organizers and WaysSouth volunteers Stacye Morgan and Aurelia Stone.

“We’ve planned the rally to show our biker friends what’s at stake if this destructive highway goes forward. We’re inviting them to join our cause in protecting the Southern Appalachian roadways they love,” said Stone.

Morgan expressed gratitude for the support that volunteers have given the rally, including helping staff stations along the rally route, registering participants and providing bands for live music, to name a few. “We hope to make this an annual event,” said Morgan.

Visit www.stopi-3.org to see a report on this event’s outcome.

Thank You!  

Donors to WaysSouth
Summer of 2009

We are deeply grateful to the following individuals and organizations that dug deep into their pockets to support the cause this summer:

Martha Ezzard
Mary Alice Lamb
Mollie Drake
Nancy Ream
P.L. Weimann
R.K. Burian
Richard Fisher
Robert Balthazar
Robert Dennison
Roy Lowe
Sarah Linn
Stacey Morgan
Susan Haverstick
Ted Doll
Tina Blackwell
Tom Hoffman 

Supporting Organizations 

Georgia Council of Trout Unlimited
Sierra Club, Tennessee Chapter
Towns County Homeowners Association
WildSouth 

Supporting Organization Feature:

The Rabun chapter of Trout Unlimited

The Rabun chapter of Trout Unlimited is one of the original supporting organizations of WaysSouth. “That’s because our membership understands that any new major transportation corridor through this region will adversely impact water quality,” explained Doug Adams, the chapter’s treasurer and newsletter editor.

Trout Unlimited’s mission is to conserve, protect and restore cold water fisheries and their watersheds. Organized in 1986, the Rabun chapter’s 150 members focus on fisheries and watersheds in Northeast Georgia. Education and outreach programs for youth have included an annual trout camp and biannual fishing/mentoring days for area Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops.

“There is no average member, but all those active in TU enjoy fishing in the cold water streams and have done it a long time,” said Adams. “Members of the Rabun Chapter want to give back by working to protect the waters and by introducing youth to the sport and teaching respect for the natural resources of our area.”

Over the years, the Rabun chapter has spoken out for responsible development and monitored highway projects, such as the new construction of Hwy. 441 from Clarkesville, Ga. to Clayton. They have also worked to prevent erosion problems along Hwy. 76 in Rabun County. Today, they actively support sampling and measuring to ensure effective pollution control for Stekoa Creek. Additionally, they have monitored and taken a stand on proposals for recreational zoning of waters of the Chattooga River.

WaysSouth is grateful for the financial contributions of the Rabun chapter of Trout Unlimited, as well as their commitment to share our message and updates with other Trout Unlimited chapters in the Southeast.

For more information about Trout Unlimited, check out their Web site at www.rabuntu.com.

Students at Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School in Clayton, Ga. know a lot about building and operating a still—to produce alternative fuel for vehicles. It’s all part of the school’s program on environmental stewardship and sustainability. And the initiative has students excited about building a new kind of energy future.

In the mid-1990s, students at the school began researching the production and use of alcohol-based fuels, the production of methane gas from horse manure and the production of fuel-grade ethanol for vehicles. Two years later, students learned how to set up a bio-diesel process using french fry grease from the dining hall and student center. Today, that fuel is used to run some of the school’s farm equipment and some faculty vehicles.

The school’s students are excited to learn about and actually use alternatives for transportation energy that are sustainable. This is similar to WaysSouth’s search for solutions to transportation needs that respect the Southern Appalachian communities and address transportation needs in a responsible way.

“Kids in the afterschool work program actually run the alcohol and bio-diesel processes,” explained Woody Malot, Rabun Gap-Nacoochee’s science teacher and alternative energy program director. He said students are learning about the economics of these fuel alternatives and the processes used to make them.

“It’s a low-budget operation, so students have learned to practice ingenuity,” he said. “For example, they’ve used old parts from a hot water heater to build, repair and keep the bio-diesel process running.”

The alternative fuels program also involves the school’s formal classrooms. Ninth graders can take bio-diesel as a chemistry class and senior physics students can learn how to conduct an “energy audit,” which measures energy going into the process against the net energy made available from the fuel produced. Two years ago students themselves started an Environmental Stewardship Club to raise money and awareness about alternative energies and sustainability practices.

We salute the teachers and students of Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School for raising the bar and promoting sustainability and stewardship.

Marie K. Dunkle, WaysSouth board director

The WaysSouth board of directors bids a fond farewell to director Ginny Heckel. Heckel was on the original steering committee for the Stop I-3 effort and has been treasurer for the past three years. She set up the accounting system for WaysSouth, chaired the finance and nominating committees, set up our original data system and served as our chief purchasing officer. Heckel’s many quiet contributions have made the work of the board of directors much easier. She has provided breakfast at board meetings, arranged meeting places and always had every report distributed on time and accurately. We will miss her presence on the board of directors, but appreciate all of the work she has done for WaysSouth. We wish Heckel well as she assumes responsibilities as chair of the Episcopal Charities Foundation of the Diocese of Atlanta. 

Lucy E. Bartlett, WaysSouth chair 

Supporting Organization Feature:
North Carolina Alliance for Transportation Reform
—the State level focus 

Concern about transportation meeting the needs of the people and the environment is not a new concept in North Carolina. Since 1992, the North Carolina Alliance for Transportation Reform (NCATR) has been working to give North Carolina citizens a strong and effective voice in the planning of our transportation systems and projects. With WaysSouth having a similar focus in the Southern Appalachian region, including western North Carolina, eastern Tennessee and northern Georgia, the two groups have developed a close working relationship.

NCATR has been active in developing and assisting with strategy for Corridor K. It brings a wealth of knowledge and experience regarding the North Carolina transportation system and its key officials and agencies. Interstate 3 and Corridor K are frequent topics on the agenda at their board meetings. NCATR forwards WaysSouth action alerts to their enthusiastic membership and WaysSouth issues appear in their newsletters and on their robust Web site and active listserv.

Explaining the work of NCATR, President Joe McDonald has said, “When it comes to transportation planning, it is absolutely essential that we make the right decisions all along the way. Politics and greed should not be allowed to influence these decisions.”

“To those who say that a new road should be built for economic progress, I would answer that if the road is going to be environmentally destructive and is actually not needed, we would be better off to pay people to dig holes and then cover them back up again.”

The NCATR Web site is full of information regarding government officials’ and organizations’ contact information, North Carolina transportation maps, planning, projects and funding, and citizens’ guides to various relevant transportation issues.

NCATR provides information and education to local officials in an effort to persuade them that the principles of democratic, accessible and efficient transportation systems will enhance the quality of life for their communities and their state. NCATR monitors the actions of North Carolina’s Department of Transportation and the Board of Transportation, and provides their views on the state’s transportation system in the press, in the General Assembly and in meetings with NCDOT executives and staff members.

For more information about NCATR, visit www.ncatr.com, e-mail ncatr@ncatr.com or call 910/281-5271. 

Holly Demuth, WaysSouth Executive Director 

WaysSouth's volunteers are the heart and soul of our organization. Our volunteers bring their unique perspectives, diverse backgrounds and passions to the table to help us build momentum for sustainable transportation in Southern Appalachia. WaysSouth cannot function without our volunteers. We’re delighted to welcome Sandy Cooms, who is helping track donations, and Carrie Tatum, who helps with data entry.

Current volunteer needs include

• graphic design
• grant researching and writing
• newsletter writing
• data entry

Even if you just have five minutes a day to help, we have a place for you.

WaysSouth Volunteers Jim Grode and Don McGowan discuss the issues

We still have a myriad of volunteer needs, however. If you can give some of your time to help protect the mountains we all love, please e-mail volunteer@wayssouth.org. Current volunteer needs include graphic designers, grant researchers and writers, newsletter writers and data entry. Even if you just have five minutes a day to help, we have a place for you.

Chance Finegan, WaysSouth Administrative Assistant and
Volunteer Coordinator