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DOE, state pave way to transfer 3,500 acres

Posted at 3:05 pm December 30, 2021
By John Huotari Leave a Comment


From left, TWRA Executive Director Bobby Wilson, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management Acting Manager Laura Wilkerson, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory Site Office Manager Johnny Moore sign an agreement that lays the groundwork to transfer more than 3,500 acres of scenic East Tennessee land from the U.S. Department of Energy to the state of Tennessee. (Submitted photo)

 

More than 3,500 acres of federal land could be transferred to the state of Tennessee, including Clark Center Park and Black Oak Ridge Conservation Easement.

The land could be transferred under an agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy and Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. The two organizations signed an Agreement in Principle on Wednesday, December 15, that “lays the groundwork to transfer more than 3,500 acres of scenic East Tennessee land to the state,” a press release said.

“Transferring this federally owned land will increase natural resource management and designate areas for greenspace and mixed-use recreational opportunities for the public,” the press release said.

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From left, TWRA Executive Director Bobby Wilson, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management Acting Manager Laura Wilkerson, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory Site Office Manager Johnny Moore sign an agreement that lays the groundwork to transfer more than 3,500 acres of scenic East Tennessee land from the U.S. Department of Energy to the state of Tennessee. (Submitted photo)

 

More than 3,500 acres of federal land could be transferred to the state of Tennessee, including Clark Center Park and Black Oak Ridge Conservation Easement.

The land could be transferred under an agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy and Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. The two organizations signed an Agreement in Principle on Wednesday, December 15, that “lays the groundwork to transfer more than 3,500 acres of scenic East Tennessee land to the state,” a press release said.

“Transferring this federally owned land will increase natural resource management and designate areas for greenspace and mixed-use recreational opportunities for the public,” the press release said.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today. Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here. Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here: Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here. We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription. Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Filed Under: DOE, East Tennessee Technology Park, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Premium Content, Slider, State, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Black Oak Ridge Conservation Easement, Bobby Wilson, Clark Center Park, DOE, DOE Office of Science, East Tennessee Technology Park, ETTP, federal land, Johnny Moore, Laura Wilkerson, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Randy McNally, state of Tennessee, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, TWRA, U.S. Department of Energy, UCOR

Deer hunter injured when boat runs aground

Posted at 8:52 am November 4, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

A deer hunter was seriously injured early Saturday morning when a boat ran aground on Melton Hill Lake near the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area, state officials said.

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency officers said three deer hunters who had been drawn to hunt the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area launched an aluminum boat at Solway Boat Ramp and headed toward the management area in dense fog.

Around 6:30 a.m. Saturday, Christopher Beckler, 47, of Cleveland, Tennessee, was ejected when the boat ran aground near the Freels Bend area, the TWRA said. Beckler had been near the front of the boat using a spotlight to assist his son Dawson Beckler, 21, who was operating the vessel under dark and foggy conditions.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Police and Fire, Recreation, Sports, Tennessee, Top Stories Tagged With: Christopher Beckler, Dawson Beckler, deer hunter, Glenn Swafford, Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, TWRA

Greenway, park closures announced during fall hunts

Posted at 10:09 am October 13, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has scheduled two scout days and three quota hunts on the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area this fall.

During the scout and quota hunt days, these greenways and this park will be closed: Gallaher Bend Greenway, North Boundary Greenway, Haw Ridge Park, and the section of Melton Lake Greenway adjacent to Haw Ridge Park.

The hunts, which are open only to those with a valid TWRA quota permit, will take place on the following weekends:

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Recreation, Sports, State Tagged With: Gallaher Bend Greenway, Haw Ridge Park, Melton Lake greenway, North Boundary Greenway, Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department, Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area, quota hunts, scout days, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, TWRA

Oak Ridge nature walks scheduled for April-June

Posted at 10:34 am April 13, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The 2019 season of Oak Ridge Reservation nature walks continues on Sunday, April 14, with a wildflower and old growth forest walk.

More than 1,100 vascular plants, 72 fish, 34 mammals, and more than 200 bird species have been observed on the U.S. Department of Energy reservation. This year, the public is invited to eight nature walks designed to highlight the rich flora and fauna diversity of the ORR and to demonstrate the work being done to sustainably manage and conserve this resource, a press release said. The series closes with a history talk in August.

Reservations for the following events must be made in advance by noon the Thursday prior to each walk by contacting Tracy Clem at (865) 574-5151 ([email protected]). If weather forces postponement of an event, it will be announced on Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Information Line at (865) 574-9836 (i.e. 574-XTEN) at least two hours before the scheduled start of the walk. Children are allowed on the walks; no pets, please.

Sunday, April 14: Wildflower and old growth forest walk

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Government, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Reservation, Recreation, Sports, State Tagged With: amphibians, bird nature walk, Freels Bend, frog calls, greenway, greenways, John Byrd, Kathy Strunk, Kitty McCracken, Larry Pounds, Mick Wiest, nature walk, nature walks, Neil Giffen, Nikki Jones, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, old growth forest, ORISE, ORNL, Paul Durr, reptiles, Sarah Darling, Shannon Young, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Trent Jett, TWRA, wildflower, wildlife habitat

Controlled burns scheduled in North Boundary Greenway Area

Posted at 12:13 pm November 17, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Controlled burns are scheduled soon on part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Reservation.

DOE’s Oak Ridge Office said it will start controlled burns of woodland areas of the Oak Ridge Reservation that are within the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency’s Black Oak Ridge Conservation Easement East Tract and Parcel ED-6 along North Boundary Road and Wisconsin Avenue in west Oak Ridge.

“Firebreak installation activities supporting these burns will begin in the near future, with ignitions taking place as soon thereafter as weather conditions permit and continuing through December 2018,” a press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Tennessee, U.S. Tagged With: Black Oak Ridge Conservation Easement, controlled burns, DOE, North Boundary Greenway, Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office, Oak Ridge Reservation, Tennessee Division of Forestry, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, TWRA, U.S. Department of Energy, UT-Battelle/Oak Ridge National Laboratory

TVA, Fish & Wildlife Service announce trout stocking agreement

Posted at 4:32 pm November 1, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The Tennessee Valley Authority and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have reached a multi-agency agreement to provide continued funding for three federal fish hatcheries that have stocked waters in Georgia and Tennessee with millions of trout. The agreement was announced Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018, at a press conference beside the Clinch River below Norris Dam. (Photo courtesy Tennessee Valley Authority)

The Tennessee Valley Authority and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have reached a multi-agency agreement to provide continued funding for three federal fish hatcheries that have stocked waters in Georgia and Tennessee with millions of trout. The agreement was announced Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018, at a press conference beside the Clinch River below Norris Dam. (Photo courtesy Tennessee Valley Authority)

 

The Tennessee Valley Authority and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have reached a multi-agency agreement to provide continued funding for three federal fish hatcheries that have stocked waters in Georgia and Tennessee with millions of trout.

The partnership, which began in 2013, includes the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

Since 2013, TVA has been funding trout production by the Service at three national fish hatcheries: Dale Hollow and Erwin in Tennessee, and Chattahoochee Forest in Georgia. The trout are then provided to the following tailwaters: Apalachia (Hiwassee River), Blue Ridge, Boone, Cherokee, Fort Patrick Henry, Normandy, Norris, South Holston, Tims Ford, and Wilbur. Trout-stocked reservoirs in the plan include Fort Patrick Henry, South Holston, Parksville, Watauga, and Wilbur reservoirs.

The four partner agencies announced the new agreement Tuesday at a press conference beside the Clinch River below Norris Dam. The agreement provides partnership funding through fiscal year 2021, a press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Federal, Front Page News, Government, Recreation, Sports, State Tagged With: Clinch River, David Bowling, fish hatcheries, Frank Fiss, Georgia, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Lamar Alexander, Mike Oetker, Norris Dam, Rusty Garrison, Tennessee, Tennessee Valley Authority, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, trout, trout stocking, trout stocking agreement, TVA, TWRA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Black bear reported in Clinton on Friday

Posted at 11:25 am June 15, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Black Bear at Anderson County High School on Oct. 6, 2015

An archived file photo of a black bear at Anderson County High School on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2016. (Archived file photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Information from WYSH Radio/Oak Ridge Today

A black bear was spotted wandering through Clinton on Friday.

The city sent out a Code Red Alert to part of the city on Friday morning indicating that the bear had been spotted in the vicinity of JD Yarnell Industrial Parkway and the 1200 block of Seivers Boulevard, heading in the general direction of the Clinton Home Center.

Authorities say that if you see the bear, you should give it a wide berth and notify the Clinton Police Department at (865) 457-3112.

It’s not unusual to occasionally see black bears in East Tennessee in the summer, including in Oak Ridge, Anderson County, Clinton, and the Great Smoky Mountains. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has previously said that Oak Ridge and Knoxville are surrounded by very good bear habitats—including the largest black bear preserve in the world—and it’s not unusual to see up to a half-dozen bears come through the Oak Ridge area each year and at least that many in the Knoxville area. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Clinton, Government, Police and Fire, State, Tennessee Tagged With: bear habitat, black bear, Clinton, Jason Lankford, JD Yarnell Industrial Parkway, Roy Smith, Seivers Boulevard, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, TWRA

Rescuers search for missing man in water at Bull Run Park

Posted at 4:59 pm February 18, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Rescuers in an Anderson County Sheriff's Department boat search for a missing man in the water at Bull Run Park in Claxton, authorities said Sunday afternoon, Feb. 18, 2018. Anderson County Sheriff Paul White is at left in the boat. In front is Knoxville Police Department search and rescue volunteer Candy Stooksbury with K-9 Barnabas, a bloodhound. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Rescuers in an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department boat search for a missing man in the water at Bull Run Park in Claxton, authorities said Sunday afternoon, Feb. 18, 2018. Anderson County Sheriff Paul White is at left in the boat. In front is Knoxville Police Department search and rescue volunteer Candy Stooksbury with K-9 Barnabas, a bloodhound. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 11:15 p.m.

CLAXTON—Rescuers searched for a missing man in the water at Bull Run Park in Claxton on Sunday afternoon and evening, but they were not able to locate him.

The search was called off as daylight faded just before 7 p.m. Sunday, more than six hours after the missing man’s pickup truck was located near the park. It’s not clear when the search might resume.

The missing man is reported to be from Knox County, said Mark Lucas, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department chief deputy. The identity of the man, reported to be 66, was not immediately available Sunday.

Anderson County Sheriff Paul White said the man left his black pickup truck on the side of road across Bull Run Creek from Bull Run Park, The keys were in the truck, and a suicide note was in the truck, White said. The vehicle was parked alongside New Henderson Road at Tracy Allison Lane.

But rescuers aren’t certain that the man is in the water, White said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Front Page News, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County EMS, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, Anderson County Volunteer Rescue Squad, Bull Run Creek, Bull Run Park, Bull Run Park boat ramp, Knoxville Police Department, Knoxville Volunteer Rescue Squad, Mark Lucas, missing person, New Henderson Road, Paul White, search, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Terry Allen

Wildlife nature walk at Freels Bend on Saturday, Jan. 20

Posted at 11:10 am January 6, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

A wildlife management nature walk is scheduled for the afternoon of Saturday, January 20, in the Freels Bend area in south Oak Ridge.

“Have you ever seen a deer foraging in a field or heard a field sparrow calling in the distance and wondered what could be done to help these species of wildlife?” a press release said. “Join wildlife experts from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory.”

The wildlife management nature walk in the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area is scheduled from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, January 20. Discussions during the tour, which is rescheduled from a rained-out date in October, will include game species, species of concern, and how to manage for them in fields and forests, the press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Recreation, Sports, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Aubrey Deck, Freels Bend, nature walk, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Tracy Clem, U.S. Department of Energy, wildlife management nature walk

Learn about Tennessee’s bats at UT Arboretum on Thursday

Posted at 4:05 pm October 29, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Photo courtesy University of Tennessee Arboretum Society

Photo courtesy University of Tennessee Arboretum Society

 

You can learn about the 16 species of Tennessee bats at the University of Tennessee Arboretum in Oak Ridge on Thursday.

Sponsored by the UT Arboretum Society, this family friendly program will be led by Pandy English, the assistant chief of biodiversity for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, a press release said. It’s scheduled to start at the UT Arboretum on South Illinois Avenue at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, November 2.

“We know that bats eat mosquitoes and help pollinate plants, but there is so much more to this mysterious creature,” the press release said.

The program will be at the UT Arboretum Auditorium, which is at 901 South Illinois Avenue. It will include a PowerPoint presentation, bat “show and tell” items, and children’s activities at the end, the press release said. Attendees will learn about bat myths and facts, the characteristics and types of bats in Tennessee, and why bats are one of our most invaluable species. [Read more…]

Filed Under: College, Community, Education Tagged With: bats, Pandy English, Tennessee bats, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, University of Tennessee Arboretum, UT Arboretum, UT Arboretum Society

Fish caught in Melton Hill Reservoir could break state record

Posted at 1:52 am March 5, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Angler Stephen Paul caught the new pending state record musky on March 2, 2017, from Melton Hill Reservoir in Knox County. The fish weighed 43 pounds, 14 ounces and measured 51 and 3/8 inches in length. (Photo by Dylan Gano)

Angler Stephen Paul caught the new pending state record musky on March 2, 2017, from Melton Hill Reservoir in Knox County. The fish weighed 43 pounds, 14 ounces and measured 51 and 3/8 inches in length. (Photo by Dylan Gano)

 

A fish caught in Melton Hill Reservoir on Thursday could break a state record, wildlife officials said.

The muskellunge, better known as a musky, was hauled in by angler Stephen Paul in the Knox County portion of Melton Hill Reservoir on Thursday evening, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency said.

The giant musky weighed 43 pounds and 14 ounces. It bit Paul’s artificial lure around 6 p.m. Thursday and provided him with the “catch of a lifetime,” the TWRA said.

The fish could break a 34-year-old state record.

The TWRA said muskellunge are a challenging fish to catch, particularly when they get older and wiser.

Paul’s friend Dylan Gano was with him to document the historic catch. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Recreation, Sports, State, Top Stories Tagged With: Bret Carter, Dylan Gano, fish, giant musky, Jim Negus, John Hammonds, Kyle F. Edwards, Melton Hill Reservoir, muskellunge, musky, Norris Reservoir, Paul Shaw, state record, Stephen Paul, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, TWRA

Wetland restoration project on Melton Lake Greenway on March 5

Posted at 10:10 pm February 23, 2017
By City of Oak Ridge Leave a Comment

Melton Lake Wetland Restoration

The Healthy Waters Program in Oak Ridge will be conducting an invasive plant removal on the Melton Lake Greenway, under the Edgemoor Road bridge, on Sunday, March 5, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m.

This is in an effort to restore a wetland along the greenway by removing non-native invasive plants, cleaning up trash, and planting native trees, grasses, and flowers, a press release said.

Tina Ball and Caitlin Craighead, the AmeriCorps members serving in Oak Ridge with the Public Works Department’s Stormwater Management Program, have received a grant through the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, or TWRA, to make this project possible, the press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge Tagged With: Access Oak Ridge, AmeriCorps, Caitlin Craighead, Healthy Waters Program, invasive plant removal, Melton Lake greenway, Oak Ridge, Stormwater Management Program, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Tina Ball

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