Why is so much plastic hung up in trees and shrubs, and when will it get cleaned up? Will Asheville Muni close at the end of March? • Asheville Watchdog
Today’s round of questions, my smart-aleck replies and the real answers:
Question: Why is there so much plastic hung up in trees and shrubs from Helene? Where did it all come from? Will anyone clean it up? When?
My answer: This is undoubtedly the worst Christo exhibit ever. I just don’t get his vision on this one.
Real answer: It is hard to miss all of the debris still hanging from trees and brush along our river and stream banks. Naturally, Tropical Storm Helene is to blame.
The 1,000-year rains swelled rivers to upward of 30 feet deep in some places. That’s high enough to get into the tree line, and that’s where a lot of debris landed.
The debris remains highly noticeable, said Anna Alsobrook, the French Broad watershed science and policy manager at MountainTrue, an Asheville environmental nonprofit.
“While it’s gotten better with the help of volunteers picking it up in places, the amount of plastic hanging from trees looks apocalyptic,” Alsobrook told me via email. “Take a minute and think about how hard it is for us as individual consumers to buy anything that’s not wrapped in or packaged in plastic. The same is true for retailers, manufacturers, and industries, but the amount and volume is much greater for them.”
Whatever was next to our rivers and streams went into the water, including plastic.
“So, when a building was flooded, anything inside of it came out, including all the packaging, plastic waste, etc., that may have been inside,” Alsobrook said. “On top of that, plastic is a major part of building material — whether as insulation or under roofing.”
We do have some good news to report.
“MountainTrue is working to clean up where and how we can with the help of some really rockstar volunteers,” Alsobrook said. “I’m telling you, they have braved some subpar conditions lately! That being said, we are staying out of the way of the debris contractors hired to remove the bigger debris, like cars, tankers etc.”
Hartwell Carson, the French Broad riverkeeper with MountainTrue, provided details on river cleanup progress.
“Between our Green Riverkeeper, French Broad Riverkeeper and Watauga Riverkeeper programs, we have hauled out over 2.8 million pounds of garbage from our rivers since the storm,” Carson said. “We have hired a full-time cleanup coordinator, acquired a new vehicle and purchased a dump trailer. We are also employing over a dozen raft guides in Madison County to clean up the whitewater section of the French Broad River and are hoping to ramp up our cleanup team to include 25 to 50 staff.”
Debris is a common sight along the French Broad River. // Watchdog photo by Starr Sariego
Additionally, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced Feb. 1 that the Corps, “in coordination with federal, state, and local partners, has officially launched a waterway debris removal mission in North Carolina to support recovery efforts following Hurricane Helene.
“The mission focuses on clearing storm-related debris from navigable waterways, ensuring public safety, protecting critical infrastructure, and preserving the environment,” the Corps said in the news release.
Col. Brad Morgan, Wilmington District Commander for the Corps, noted that Helene “left significant debris in key waterways, posing risks to recreation and ecosystems.
The Corps said the recovery work will be done “in close coordination with local agencies and stakeholders.”
Carson said they’ve learned that the Army Corps’s cleanup efforts, “for now, will only cover major tributaries and only big debris that threatens critical infrastructure.
“Think cars, shipping containers, etc.,” Carson said. “That means there will be a huge amount of trash left after the cleanup effort and MountainTrue is stepping up to make sure this trash is cleaned up, so we can get back on our rivers and outfitters reopen.”
Plastic material stuck in trees is “a good example of the kind of trash that the Army Corps won’t be removing,” Carson said.
Stacey Reese, a spokesperson for the Corps, said via email they are tasked with removing these types of debris: vegetative, construction and demolition, titled property (boats, cars, etc.), white goods, and hazardous materials.”
“We will work on points given to us by the county and FEMA, and (we’ll be) working in areas FEMA deems eligible,” Reese said. “The waterway debris removal began in Buncombe County, Azalea Park area on Saturday.”
Alsobrook said once the Corps’ teams have completed the heavy machinery work, “we plan to come back in and tackle the hand-pickable items.”
If you’re interested in volunteering, check MountainTrue’s events calendar at mountaintrue.org/events.
Question: I just heard that the Asheville Muni Golf Course may close in March. If true, that is not fair to those who paid for a season’s pass. The first three months of the year there is limited play due to winter weather. Can you get details?
My answer: I recently played the back nine of the Muni twice consecutively, as only the back nine is open now. I was thinking that playing the same nine twice, I naturally would smoke the course and shoot my best score ever. Funny how that didn’t work out.
Real answer: Closure is highly unlikely.
The Muni’s front nine, the part closest to Swannanoa River Road and the river itself, was heavily damaged, but the back nine reopened in October, after the city cleared multiple downed trees.
“The front nine will clearly be some time before we are able to reopen,” said Chris Corl, the city of Asheville’s director of community and regional entertainment facilities.
The Asheville Municipal Golf Course suffered extensive damage from Helene and will require extensive repairs. While the back nine has reopened, the front line remains closed, and it’s unclear when that section will reopen. // Credit: Provided photo
Corl noted that City Council in December approved an amendment to the licensing and management agreement contract with Commonwealth Golf Partners to operate the course that adjusted the profit-and-loss share structure between the city and Commonwealth. It placed 100 percent of profits and loss with the city, paying Commonwealth a small monthly management fee to operate the course on the city’s behalf, Corl said.
“Included was a provision that beginning April 1, 2025, the agreement would revert back to the original profit-and-loss share structure, which is roughly a 50/50 split between the city and Commonwealth,” Corl said.
The amendment covering Oct. 1, 2024 through March 31, 2025 is designed to give the city time to work out a longer-term, temporary agreement with Commonwealth. Corl said the city is in conversation with Commonwealth to determine “what a contract structure can look like, assuming that the course remains a nine-hole course for up to two years, as we work through the process to rebuild while following the necessary steps and timelines associated with potential FEMA reimbursement.”
Regarding the 2025 annual passes, the city purposely formulated them with quarterly payments to allow for the potential shakeup in the operating structure starting April 1.
“I understand that this January we’ve had an abnormally high number of days with the course closed due to weather, but that is always a possibility in the winter and affects annual passholders and non-passholders every year,” Corl said.
The bottom line, Corl said, “is that the course will not close in March.
“However, I should be clear that we have an existing approved agreement through March 31,” Corl said. “April 1 and after, we are still working through, and all options are on the table, as reverting to the original contract structure pre-storm is not feasible for us and Commonwealth.”
“We’re certainly doing everything in our power to work on a result and a financial model that continues course operations, but to be prudent stewards of our current financial situation, we need to look at all potential options,” Corl continued.
Michael Bennett, a partner in Commonwealth Golf Partners, said Corl’s assessment is correct. He also noted that the annual passes are paid only through the end of March.
Closure is doubtful, Bennett said.
“I just don’t see it,” Bennett said. “Chris has been very good to work with.”
Bennett noted that the course was in great shape before Helene, with the restoration nearly complete.
“We really just finished everything except for those two bunkers on 18 — that was the only thing we had left to do,” Bennett said. “We stopped in June because we didn’t want to disturb them ahead of the Skyview Tournament.”
Business was good before the storm, Bennett said, and he noted that the course, a Donald Ross design dating to the 1920s, still has fantastic potential.
“So to close it would be pretty tragic,” Bennett said. “I don’t think anybody really thinks that that’s going to happen. It’s just more mechanical — like, ‘OK, how do we continue to fund this while it’s just a nine-hole golf course?’ Because it’s nearly impossible to make any money operating a nine-hole golf course, because the expenses aren’t half of what you might think they are.”
Corl said before Helene the city was about 95 percent done with the renovation project. As of September 2024, the city had spent $3,018,468 on it.
The city received funds towards the project from the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority’s Tourism Product Development Fund, the Donald Ross Society Foundation, hole sponsorships, private donations made through the Friends of Asheville Municipal, and the city.
For now, Bennett said, the idea is to keep maintaining the course, and find a way to keep it open and at least not losing money.
Bennett said the “worst-case scenario” for the front nine to remain closed is probably about two years, although he emphasized nothing has been determined on the rebuilding schedule.
He did note that Commonwealth and the city submitted a detailed damage assessment to FEMA about two weeks ago, so he’s optimistic that will help to get the process rolling.
“Because we were one of the first ones in, we all believe that we’ll be one of the early ones to get reviewed,” Bennett said.
Asheville Watchdog is a nonprofit news team producing stories that matter to Asheville and Buncombe County. Got a question? Send it to John Boyle at jboyle@avlwatchdog.org or 828-337-0941. His Answer Man columns appear each Tuesday and Friday. The Watchdog’s reporting is made possible by donations from the community. To show your support for this vital public service go to avlwatchdog.org/support-our-publication/.
www.thecentersquare.com – By David Beasley | The Center Square contributor – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 21:25:00
(The Center Square) – Authorization of sports agents to sign North Carolina’s collegiate athletes for “name, image, and likeness” contracts used in product endorsements is in legislation approved Wednesday by a committee of the state Senate.
Authorize NIL Agency Contracts, known also as Senate Bill 229, is headed to the Rules Committee after gaining favor in the Judiciary Committee. It would likely next get a full floor vote.
Last year the NCAA approved NIL contracts for players.
Sen. Amy S. Galey, R-Alamance
NCLeg.gov
“Athletes can benefit from NIL by endorsing products, signing sponsorship deals, engaging in commercial opportunities and monetizing their social media presence, among other avenues,” the NCAA says on its website. “The NCAA fully supports these opportunities for student-athletes across all three divisions.”
SB229 spells out the information that the agent’s contract with the athlete must include, and requires a warning to the athlete that they could lose their eligibility if they do not notify the school’s athletic director within 72 hours of signing the contract.
“Consult with your institution of higher education prior to entering into any NIL contract,” the says the warning that would be required by the legislation. “Entering into an NIL contract that conflicts with state law or your institution’s policies may have negative consequences such as loss of athletic eligibility. You may cancel this NIL agency contract with 14 days after signing it.”
The legislation also exempts the NIL contracts from being disclosed under the state’s Open Records Act when public universities review them. The state’s two ACC members from the UNC System, Carolina and N.C. State, requested the exemption.
“They are concerned about disclosure of the student-athlete contracts when private universities don’t have to disclose the student-athlete contracts,” Sen. Amy Galey, R-Alamance, told the committee. “I feel very strongly that a state university should not be put at a disadvantage at recruitment or in program management because they have disclosure requirements through state law.”
Duke and Wake Forest are the other ACC members, each a private institution.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article primarily reports on the legislative development regarding NIL (name, image, and likeness) contracts for collegiate athletes in North Carolina. It presents facts about the bill, committee actions, and includes statements from a state senator without using loaded or emotionally charged language. The piece neutrally covers the issue by explaining both the bill’s purpose and the concerns it addresses, such as eligibility warnings and disclosure exemptions. Overall, the article maintains a factual and informative tone without advocating for or against the legislation, reflecting a centrist, unbiased approach.
SUMMARY: Donald van der Vaart, a former North Carolina environmental secretary and climate skeptic, has been appointed to the North Carolina Utilities Commission by Republican Treasurer Brad Briner. Van der Vaart, who previously supported offshore drilling and fracking, would oversee the state’s transition to renewable energy while regulating utility services. His appointment, which requires approval from the state House and Senate, has drawn opposition from environmental groups. Critics argue that his views contradict clean energy progress. The appointment follows a controversial bill passed by the legislature, granting the treasurer appointment power to the commission.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 14:47:00
(The Center Square) – Called “crypto-friendly legislation” by the leader of the chamber, a proposal on digital assets on Wednesday afternoon passed the North Carolina House of Representatives.
Passage was 71-44 mostly along party lines.
The NC Digital Assets Investments Act, known also as House Bill 92, has investment requirements, caps and management, and clear definitions and standards aimed at making sure only qualified digital assets are included. House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, said the state would potentially join more than a dozen others with “crypto-friendly legislation.”
With him in sponsorship are Reps. Stephen Ross, R-Alamance, Mark Brody, R-Union, and Mike Schietzelt, R-Wake.
Nationally last year, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act – known as FIT21 – passed through the U.S. House in May and in September was parked in the Senate’s Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
Dan Spuller, cochairman of the North Carolina Blockchain Initiative, said the state has proven a leader on digital asset policy. That includes the Money Transmitters Act of 2016, the North Carolina Regulatory Sandbox Act of 2021, and last year’s No Centrl Bank Digital Currency Pmts to State. The latter was strongly opposed by Gov. Roy Cooper, so much so that passage votes of 109-4 in the House and 39-5 in the Senate slipped back to override votes, respectively, of 73-41 and 27-17.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article presents a factual report on the passage of the NC Digital Assets Investments Act, highlighting the legislative process, party-line votes, and related legislative measures. It does not adopt a clear ideological stance or frame the legislation in a way that suggests bias. Instead, it provides neutral information on the bill, its sponsors, and relevant background on state legislative activity in digital asset policy. The tone and language remain objective, focusing on legislative facts rather than promoting a particular viewpoint.
