TWRA postpones WMA clearcutting plan, at least temporarily

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has postponed a controversial plan to begin clearcutting timber on the Bridgestone Firestone Centennial Wilderness Area in White County. The plan to clearcut timber for wildlife habitat improvement on the public management area has been under fire since it was announced last summer.

TWRA previously announced it intended to begin clearing the land in April. However, TWRA Executive Director Bobby Wilson said Wednesday morning the Agency "will be suspending any plans to do any cutting until this situation is resolved."

"This situation" includes two recent developments. On January 21, an individual filed a 60-day "Intent to Sue" letter against TWRA.

And Tuesday 34 legislators, including two Chattanooga-area legislators, signed a bipartisan letter condemning TWRA for its clearcutting plan on the Bridgestone Firestone area.

Chattanooga-area legislators, Rep. Robin Smith (R, Dist. 26) and Rep. Greg Vital (R, Dist. 29) both co-signed the letter which reads, in part, "We as legislators have met with you and conveyed our concerns on behalf of our constituents. These concerns were met with deaf ears by TWRA."

The letter goes on to say, "There is a shameful lack of communication and transparency with this plan and TWRA has offered little to no assistance to the taxpayers."

Reps. Vital and Smith said, "The TWRA’s lack of analysis or supporting documentation for this plan along with the absence of transparency or public input is very concerning to us. It could be that this experiment isn’t harmful to rare wildlife and native plants, but we don’t know. Hitting the pause button is the right thing to do."

Other than sharing the Agency's intention to postpone the clearcutting for the time being, Ex. Dir. Wilson said because of the threat of legal action, he was not at liberty to provide any additional comment.

The recent letter from legislators also said, "TWRA has offered no public response to why this plan is necessary nor any opportunity for the public to offer input or changes."

TWRA representatives did participate in a public meeting October 4, 2021 at the Sparta Civic Center (near the Bridgestone area). The Agency also published a news release explaining details of its plan for wildlife "Habitat Improvements" on Bridgestone Firestone."

Biologists have outlined detailed specifics of its plan in at least two meetings of the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission, the governing body over TWRA. Those meetings are open to the public. Below is the video presentation by biologists made at the TFWC December 16 meeting.

TWRA officials say the deforestation plan is part of an effort to restore native grasslands, which they say have been "drastically declining." Such grasslands provide exceptional habitat for bobwhite quail, a species that has also been in dramatic decline across Tennessee.

TWRA biologists said the initial effort would include a 230-acre project as part of approximately 1,000 acres that has been identified for forest conversion in the future. They say the effort, "will benefit a much greater variety of game and nongame species. Biologists say native grasslands and shrublands are far more important to the conservation of all species than mature forests."

The Bridgestone Firestone area was given to the state by the tire company but came with a deeded caveat that state officials preserve the property as “a wilderness area.”

According to TennesseeLookout.com, the Tennessee Wildlife Federation was charged with ensuring the state honors those conditions. They say a spokesperson for the Tennessee Wildlife Federation confirmed that outside legal counsel hired to review the state’s clearcutting plan found it “meets the requirements” of the gift.

We will continue to update this story as developments warrant.