The public demand for outdoor recreation opportunities continues to grow in North Carolina.
Over 20,100,000 people visited NC State Parks in 2023 – a 4% increase over 2022. The statewide 2023 Year of the Trail successfully promoted our network of hiking, paddling, biking, and equestrian trails.
The Made X Mountains Partnership recently released the results of the Western North Carolina Outdoor Recreation Participation Survey, which found that outdoor recreation generated $4,900,000,000 in economic input, 48,000 full-time jobs, and $197,500,000 in local tax revenues just in 25 western North Carolina counties.
Conserving our land means success for our state.
Land for Tomorrow recommends the following and looks forward to working with the General Assembly to bolster the conservation of North Carolina’s natural places and working farms.
- NC Land & Water Fund
Increase funds to:- $30,000,000 recurring
- $10,000,000 in non-recurring funds for FY 24-25
- Parks & Recreation Trust Fund
Increase funds to:- $30,000,000 recurring
- $10,000,000 in non-recurring funds for FY 24-25
- Agricultural Development & Farmland Preservation Fund
We appreciate Commissioner Troxler’s strong support for farm and forestland conservation, and we support his requests.
Increase funds to:- $10,000,000 recurring
- Conservation Income Tax Credit
Land for Tomorrow strongly supports H290, Protecting NC’s Military and Working Lands. H290 provides a powerful incentive for private landowners to conserve their land and to sell or donate land or easements at a discount. - Requests for Additional Staff
Land for Tomorrow supports requests by the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources, Wildlife Resources Commission, and Department of Agriculture for additional staff to manage new and expanded state parks, state trails, historic sites, wildlife management areas, and state forests.
Click here to download a PDF of our priorities for 2024.
To learn more about the impact of the conservation trust funds and see your tax dollars in action, follow Land for Tomorrow on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/L4TNC – and Twitter – https://twitter.com/land4tomorrow – as well as LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/land-for-tomorrow.
Land for Tomorrow is a statewide coalition of community leaders, conservation, and wildlife organizations, and parks and recreation advocates with a common goal: increasing land and water conservation in North Carolina.