Conservation philanthropist donates 'globally significant' 7,500 acres in the Roan Highlands to the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy.
A high-elevation hideaway for birds, bears and salamanders, a massive piece of Western North Carolina’s famous mountains left unmarred, and a refuge for rare species in the face of climate change are all wrapped up in an exquisite donation of 7,500 acres in the Roan Highlands, described as a vast, breathtaking wilderness.
"Pristine roadless land that has not been timbered over is almost impossible to find in the Southern Appalachians in 2021, but this assemblage contains so much that we value, from old growth forests to high-elevation open areas in an undisturbed condition,” said SAHC Roan stewardship director Marquette Crockett. "This is a conservationist's dream come true."
The donation was made by Tim Sweeney, the founder and CEO of Epic Games, who is also a conservation philanthropist who has purchased many large tracts of land across Western North Carolina to be forever preserved.
A gift of land of this magnitude, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, is actually priceless and may just be the best gift any golden-winged warbler or black bear could ask for.