Heated Complaints Greet TVA Officials Over Management Proposal For River

By NELSON MORAIS

Staff Writer

A number of property-owners on the Nolichucky River complained, sometimes heatedly, to Tennessee Valley Authority officials at a meeting Monday that they had not been notified, nor given enough time to comment on a TVA land management plan for the river.

About 35 people attended the meeting, originally intended to be an individual "one-on-one" appointment by Hollywood actress and Greeneville native Park Overall with two TVA officials.

In fact, so many people showed up Monday for what was announced as a public meeting in the weekend edition of The Greeneville Sun that some had to stand against walls in the small room in the back of the Greene County Soil Conservation office on North College Street because of a shortage of chairs.

In addition, a spillover crowd gathered in a hallway leading to the room and strained to hear what transpired in the room.

Chris Cooper, TVA resource specialist, with assistance from Laura Smith of TVA's communications department, replied to some pointed questions and skepticism about the 10-year land management plan, the first for the Nolichucky River area.

Comments Deadline Tonight

A 30-day period for written comments on, and criticisms of, the Douglas-Nolichucky Tributary Reservoirs Land Management Plan ends tonight at midnight.

Several of those present for the 80-minute meeting objected to the deadline, saying they had not been personally contacted by TVA about the proposed land management plan.

Only One Present Notified

When one attendee asked if any of the property-owners present had received notification of the management plan, only one of the 35 people present raised her hand.

Cooper said he had tried, without success, to extend the deadline for the public comments period past midnight tonight.

Cooper conceded there may have been a problem in the mailing of about 2,500 notices to those affected by the Douglas-Nolichucky land management plan.

He assured those present he would personally add their addresses in TVA's system to be sure they are contacted in the future before another public hearing is held.

Only one public hearing was held on the plan. It was on June 12 in Morristown. Some present asked why a public hearing had not been held in Greeneville.

Cooper said the location of Morristown had been picked for the public hearing because the 10-year management plan also affects those living near Douglas Lake.

(Greeneville Sun reporter Tom Yancey attended the Morristown meeting and his complete story appeared in the June 14 edition of The Greeneville Sun. It can be found at www.greenevillesun.com in the Public Records section.)

"We're listening to your comments," Cooper said. Cooper said he was the project manager for the Douglas-Nolichucky plan and two other proposed plans.

Cooper said TVA was "under-resourced" with funds and that the plan presented so far "doesn't actually mean we're going to do it."

He said there would be another public hearing, probably in March, on a draft plan.

He said TVA received an application from the Tennessee Wildlife Refuge Association (TWRA) six months ago for the development of some public access points along the river, but that "we're not processing their application until December 2009."

He emphasized TWRA's proposal was not being given preferential treatment by TVA.

On June 19, a much smaller group of people attended a presentation by Cooper on the land management plan, initially held in the same room behind the soil conservation office. (It was then moved to an adjacent breakroom.)

At both that meeting and Monday's meeting, several property-owners of land along the Nolichucky said they were concerned TVA was saying it held the title to land they bought and on which they hold titles.

Michael Jackson, president and CEO of EcoQuest International, said of his property on the river, "I've got title insurance. I'll have my attorney on it tomorrow. This is garbage!"

Joyce Daniels said, "A lot of us have been paying taxes 10, 20, 30, 40 years. I'm not sure the Greene County government can afford to pay us all back" any taxes property-owners have paid on land TVA says it owns.

Protecting Rookeries

Others expressed concern about protecting rookeries -- a breeding place where there are young birds -- on the river, and a fear that greater public access to the river would result in more trash being left in the river for adjacent private property-owners to clean up, and in other environmental damage.

Overall, who owns property along the river, said, "I consider myself Greeneville's environmental specialist."

Overall also asked those present to "stand as a community" to defend and protect the river.

She raised concerns about what she described as additional harm to the environment if more public recreation is allowed on the Nolichucky River.

Cooper said the next phase of the plan was to include the written suggestions and criticisms expressed during the ending 30-day period as appendixes to an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

He said comments from the public would "guide land-use decisions."

Said Cooper, "We have to handle conflicting interests."

He said the EIS, which would take approximately nine months to complete, would look at the history of the areas in question, proposals for their development, the potential impact to the environment by the proposals and how to deal with those impacts.

Cooper held a color-coded map of the Nolichucky River that included some TVA-owned "uncommitted" parcels of land. He said the federal agency was particularly interested in suggestions for the use of those parcels of land.

"There's going to be some changes on this map, and a lot of it will come from your comments," Cooper said.

Meetings By Appointment

Cooper told those present he was available to answer questions from stakeholders and others by appointment on a one-on-one basis beyond tonight's deadline, including a discussion of conflicting deeds where both property-owners and the TVA lay claim to the same land.

Cooper and Smith gathered names, e-mail addresses and mailing addresses from those present interested in being informed of progress of the plan and any future meetings.

The two also wrote TVA contact numbers on a board and urged those present to contact TVA, which they said receives no taxpayer money.

Comments from the general public, including affected landowners, can be made by calling TVA at 1-866-601-4612 or be posted online at www.tva.gov/environment/reports/dnlp.

Again, the deadline for comments is midnight tonight.