THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 21, 1996 TAG: 9604210063
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: CHAPEL HILL LENGTH: Medium: 79 lines
While environmentalists applaud, lawmakers are skeptical of Senate leader Marc Basnight's plan to create a recurring fund that, for the first time ever, would buy land along rivers to help filter pollutants.
``Let's build a buffer system completely across North Carolina,'' Basnight told an environmental symposium at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. ``Let's do it like we did the parks fund, but with a much larger pot of money.''
The Dare County Democrat's pronouncement Friday ups the ante on the administration of Gov. James B. Hunt Jr., which disclosed this week that it would seek at least $5 million for the Neuse River but would not ask for major legislation this year to clean it up.
While environmentalists applauded Basnight's speech, one Hunt aide at the symposium was visibly surprised, partly because the funding scheme comes just weeks before the General Assembly begins its session, a short one.
``We haven't had any conversations with Sen. Basnight about this for a while,'' said Steve Levitas, deputy secretary of Environment, Health and Natural Resources. ``We are looking forward to talking to him about the details.''
Environmentalists said they were glad to see a state lawmaker take a leadership role on the Neuse, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported.
``Basnight seems to be the only lawmaker who really understands the importance of protecting buffers,'' said Ed Harrison, a Sierra Club activist.
Basnight's river plan comes as numerous commissions are debating cleanup proposals for the Neuse and the state's hog farms. Many scientists agree that buffers - strips of undisturbed trees and vegetation - are the best way to filter nitrogen-rich runoff from farms and city streets. Nitrogen is considered a main cause of the algae blooms and fish kills that have plagued coastal waters.
Still, there is wide debate on whether the state should mandate buffers along streams, encourage their preservation through tax credits, buy the land outright, or use a combination of methods.
Under Basnight's plan, the state would set aside funds each year to buy land and restore buffers along
rivers. Most of the funds would be targeted toward buying agricultural lands, he said, where ditches and tilled crops have degraded creeks and river banks.
To decide on the land purchases, the General Assembly would create a special commission, he said, similar to the state Natural Heritage Board, which buys rare natural sites with funds generated by the sale of vanity license plates. Basnight also hopes the state will establish larger tax credits for preserving natural spaces.
``In this competition of expending funds, we are going to have to prioritize this nest we call North Carolina,'' he told the conference.
Despite Basnight's dreams of green, his river plan may face an uphill battle in the General Assembly, where Republican lawmakers are already predicting that the Democrats' promised wish list will bust the state budget.
Hunt, for example, has already promised funds for teacher raises, the Neuse River and the ``Smart Start'' early childhood program, while floating ideas to cut the food tax and the corporate income tax.
Rep. John Nichols, a Republican who co-chairs the legislature's Environmental Review Commission, said he wonders how Basnight will find the money to buy river land statewide, year after year.
``The concept is good. Everybody knows we need to restore wetlands and buffers,'' said Nichols. ``But whether we can get tens of millions of dollars in the short session is another thing. We'll have to wait and see.''
Basnight made his comments to about 150 scientists, environmentalists and government officials attending the Weiss Symposium on Urban Livability, a conference organized by UNC to formulate an environmental research agenda for the 21st century. ILLUSTRATION: Sen. Marc Basnight's river plan may face an uphill battle in the
General Assembly.
by CNB