Land-clearing issue to come before Pamlico commissioners

BAYBORO | The matter of a controversial land-clearing project in Pamlico County could be headed to court, and the Pamlico County Board of Commissioners will be asked for its support Monday at a 7 p.m. meeting.

The Atlas Tract, a 4,658-acre tract of forest and wetlands in the Florence community, is the subject of a possible lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers by the Coastal Federation and local citizens.

Those groups allege illegal ditching and the destruction of wetlands, charges that were first offered by citizens in 2013, with complaints to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. That federal agency gave an Illinois company the authority to clear and ditch land for conversion to agricultural use.

The land owners are Spring Creek Farms LLC, of Illinois.

Spokesmen for the Southern Environmental Law Center and the property owners are on the agenda for Mondays commissioners meeting at the county courthouse.

According to Alan Propst of Oriental, a leader of the citizens group, the request will be for the commissioners to support a letter of intent to sue the federal agencies.

The commissioners last year sent letters to the federal authorities for information and to voice concerns.

The clearing allegedly will undermine the water table in the area and adversely affect nearby estuaries.

Propst said the support of commissioners was vital if a lawsuit goes to federal court.

According to Propst, 251 acres have been cleared and ditched to date.

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Land-clearing issue to come before Pamlico commissioners