Maryland state Governor Martin O’Malley (at far right) made an announcement from Monroe Overlook in Garrett County (above) that all areas managed by the state’s Department of Natural Resources are off-limits for commercial wind farms. PHOTO COURTESY OF MARYLAND OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

Cartography can make a world of difference in protecting mountain views, rivers and other natural and cultural resources. Generally safe within national parks, these resources are under increasing pressure from development on privately owned land inside or adjacent to park boundaries. The National Parks Conservation Association identifies 55 parks with critical land in private hands, including about 7,850 acres in the Blue Ridge region (see sidebar). An opinion poll by the group shows 77 percent of voters think buying such parcels should be a high priority for the federal government. npca.org/landforsale

Kentucky
Forest land in Kentucky has been disappearing since 1988, much of it under subdivisions and other development as the state’s population has grown to four million, according to a report from state and federal forest managers. Kentucky has lost about six percent, or more than 1,000 square miles, of its forests. Only a fraction of what remains is protected from logging or considered unproductive, while timberland makes up 97 percent of today’s forests – including a portion of Daniel Boone National Forest and other publicly owned land. The report was compiled in 2004, but just released this spring. forestry.ky.gov/news

Maryland
On April 12, Gov. Martin O’Malley traveled to Garrett County to announce that areas managed by the state Department of Natural Resources are off-limits to commercial wind farms. A 2007 survey by the agency showed that 83 percent of Marylanders oppose wind farms in parks and other DNR lands. Shortly before his announcement, the legislature adopted Gov. O’Malley’s initiative to address climate change by accelerating a host of energy-saving programs, including an ambitious efficiency goal that would save an average of $190 per household annually and avoid at least three new power plants, and a program to make solar and geothermal systems affordable to more residents. gov.state.md.us/pressreleases/080412b.asp

Tennessee
Almost half a million acres of state park land and private land in eastern Tennessee could be at risk from commercial rock excavation with little environmental oversight, 14 conservation groups said in an April filing to the state Court of Appeals. Surface rights to these lands were sold separately from the mineral rights, still often held by coal companies. The state Department of Environment and Conservation is suing a company for digging rock in Cumberland Trail State Park, in Hamilton County, burying up to 100 yards of trail, spoiling the natural setting and damaging critical wildlife habitat. SouthernEnvironment.org/newsroom/index.htm

Virginia
Roanoke has taken a major step to ensure clean drinking water for future generations by donating a conservation easement on 6,200 acres in the city-owned Carvins Cove Natural Area, the watershed that supplies two-thirds of the Roanoke Valley’s water supply. In the works for more than a decade, the easement is the largest in Virginia and one of only a handful in the Blue Ridge region that protect municipal watersheds, according to Roger Holnback of the Western Virginia Land Trust, which holds the easement jointly with the Virginia Outdoor Foundation. The city plans to expand the existing 40 miles of hiking, bicycling and horseback riding trails and protect rare plant habitat, while preparing another easement on the remaining 6,000 acres in the watershed. westernvirginialandtrust.org

West Virginia
People living in the coalfields have a 70 percent higher risk for kidney disease and 63 percent higher risk of chronic lung disease, according to a study by Dr. Michael Hendryx at West Virginia University, released March 25. Analyzing data from the school’s 2001 health survey of 16,500 people in 26 coal counties, Hendryx found that those living in the top-producing counties reported higher rates of lung and kidney disease, diabetes and hypertension. Exposure to coal dust from mines, processing plants and loading facilities may be the culprit, he said, as well as contaminated water from coal-washing operations. Surface mining seems to pose a higher risk, but people living near underground mines also had elevated disease rates, he found. health.wvu.edu/newsreleases

The long-languishing Coalfields Expressway got a double boost this spring, with $10 million in state grants and an announcement by Rep. Rick Boucher (Abingdon) that the Virginia section of the proposed four-lane highway connecting six coal counties in Virginia and West Virginia is eligible for federal money. Two coal companies that own mineral rights along the 51-mile route will mine the coal and prepare the roadbed as they go, cutting the $4 billion cost in half. (Much of the W.Va. section is done or under construction.) Officials say the road is needed for tourism and other economic development, but some in the region worry the highway will bring more mountaintop removal coal-mining, a controversial practice that results in extensive environmental damage. coalfieldsexpressway.com