Compounding Damage with Destruction on a North Carolina River

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Podcast & Blast with Hal Herring

Zack Williams

Outdoors, Wilderness, Sports, Fishing, Outdoor, Hunting, Sports & Recreation

4.6 • 853 Ratings

🗓️ 18 February 2025

⏱️ 83 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

During the deluge of Hurricane Helene, over 30 inches of rain fell in the headwaters of the iconic Nolichucky River in North Carolina, falling on ground already saturated from prior rain. The Nolichucky crested nine feet higher than its record flood levels, wiping out almost everything in its path. Although the river experienced scouring and erosion, it was the man-made infrastructure that fared the worst. Among the losses were almost 40 miles of railroad tracks owned by CSX Transportation.

Everyone wants the train tracks rebuilt, and the vital freight transportation link restored. But nobody could have predicted that the rebuilding project, contracted out to a company from Mississippi, would involve recklessly mining the riverbed, blocking tributary creeks, tearing up National Forest lands, and destroying one of the most beloved fishing and whitewater rivers of the entire eastern U.S.

None of this had to happen. Agencies tasked with permitting and watchdogging this operation seem to have failed entirely. The public’s demands for the work to be done in a less destructive manner have been met with silence.

Join Tennessee fishing guide and paramedic and BHA member Chris Lennon and North Carolinian Phillip Widener (Charman of BHA’s North Carolina chapter) to learn about what’s happening, and why it is so crucial, right now, to hold responsible parties accountable and stop this entirely avoidable assault on our public lands and waters.

Intentional destruction of the Nolichucky River must stop!

Listen and then learn more and take action at https://www.backcountryhunters.org/nolichucky_river_stop_csx_destructive_construction_activities

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The Podcast & Blast with Hal Herring is brought you by Backcountry Hunters & Anglers and presented by Silencer Central, with additional support from Decked, Dometic, and Filson.

Join Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the voice for your wild public lands, waters, and wildlife to be part of a passionate community of hunter-angler-conservationists.

BHA. THE VOICE FOR OUR WILD PUBLIC LANDS, WATERS AND WILDLIFE.

Web: https://www.backcountryhunters.org

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Transcript

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0:00.0	We will permit you. You can start, and we will permit you as a process goes on, but we don't want to delay the infrastructure rebuild.
0:11.2	Totally understandable. 100%. But the thing is, is when they say that, you are expected to follow the law in that process, right?
0:22.4	Man, honestly, it was sort of Wild West.
0:24.4	They came in, did whatever they wanted to, and just went to it.
0:30.3	The people aren't enforcing what they're supposed to be doing.
0:33.3	That's what's not, you know, they've decided that they're not going to follow the rules and nobody's enforcing it.
0:38.9	But I want to just make it clear, like, they know that what they're doing is wrong.
0:43.8	In a world where some things seem out of control, there are some things you can reach out and turn the faucet and make it better.
0:51.3	So let's try.
0:52.9	Hey, everybody, it's Hal Herring, Backcountry Hunters and
0:55.8	anglers podcast and blast. Thanks for being here. Hey, I am proud to announce we have a new
1:02.0	sponsor for our podcast, and that is Silence or Central. If you are involved in hunting and shooting
1:09.1	or both, you are probably looking at owning or dreaming
1:14.0	of owning a silencer suppressor, the same thing for your firearm. I've got my first one a
1:21.5	couple years ago. It's been a complete game changer for me. I'm just looking at another one right
1:27.4	now for another rifle.
1:29.6	I will never go back to where I was. So one of the things, Silencer Central is, has been around since 2005, founded as South Dakota Silencer.
1:44.7	And it is simply the easiest way to get a suppressor right now.
1:52.3	It is America's number one silencer dealer.
1:55.3	They can walk you through the whole process
1:57.6	and have a suppressor delivered directly to your door.
2:02.2	If you've ever looked at this process, if you ever would, and for me, I had a lot of research
	...

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