The Roanoke Times
www.roanoke.com

Sen. Trumbo and Del. Thomas lead effort
Virginia buys 8,300 acres of pristine forest land
State hunting and fishing fees will be used to repay the $3 million loan.

By PAUL DELLINGER
Tuesday, June 26, 2001

The $3 million purchase of 8,300 acres in Wythe County known as the Big Survey has been completed by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

It is the department's largest land purchase in more than 20 years.

Gov. Jim Gilmore announced the acquisition Monday in Richmond. "Virginians will enjoy this newest wildlife management area for decades to come," he said.

Gilmore said the purchase was made possible through the cooperation of family members who owned tracts of the property, residents who wanted to preserve it, the Western Virginia Land Trust and the Conservation Fund.

The Game and Inland Fisheries department bought the land from the Conservation Fund, using proceeds from a treasury loan approved by the General Assembly. Funds received by the department from fishing, hunting and wildlife-associated recreation will be used to repay the loan.

The Conservation Fund and Western Virginia Land Trust had worked with the department and the landowners on the transaction.

"One of the highest priority issues expressed by constituents of the department is improving access to lands for recreation and the acquisition of additional lands," said Carson Quarles of Roanoke, chairman of the Game and Inland Fisheries board.

"The commitment by the members of the family who owned this magnificent property was a key to success," added Dick Ludington, senior associate of the Conservation Fund. "Thanks to their stewardship and generosity, plus the hard work of the Western Virginia Land Trust, Big Survey is now a legacy for future generations of Virginians."

The Western Virginia Land Trust is a publicly supported organization working to preserve natural and cultural heritage of the region. In 1997, it began its efforts to preserve Big Survey as one of the largest privately owned tracts of land in Southwest Virginia.

Over the next four years, the organization enlisted the help of hundreds of residents, businesses and state and local government officials in those efforts.

"With the aid of legislators from across Western Virginia, we helped secure a $3 million loan from the commonwealth's treasury so the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries could acquire the property," said Michael Van Ness, executive director of the Land Trust.

State Sen. Malfourd "Bo" Trumbo, R-Fincastle, and Del. Victor "Vic" Thomas, D-Vinton, led the funding initiatives in the two legislative bodies.

The Big Survey property, with mixed pine and hardwood forests, includes Stuart Mountain, Lick Mountain, Sand Mountain and Swecker Mountain. The land supports a variety of wildlife and is a stop for migrating songbirds.

Wytheville owns 1,900 acres within the Big Survey, which once served as the town's watershed. Town officials agreed to manage their property cooperatively with the state land.