The rapid transfer of industrial-size forests in Virginia and nationwide has increased the threat of fragmentation and conversion of these critical lands. We are taking swift action to protect them and help fight climate change by ensuring the forests’ ability to absorb large amounts of carbon. Keeping these forests intact also guarantees important ecological benefits that help strengthen the backbone of rural economies through timber jobs and traditional uses.

Our Role

Proceeds from The Conservation Fund’s first-ever green bonds and a loan from the Richard King Mellon Foundation enabled us to purchase 7,888 acres of working timberlands, known as Roanoke River Forest, in Charlotte County, Virginia, in 2019.

To date, we have conveyed 5,011 acres to the Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF) for the creation of Virginia’s 26th state forest, which opened to the public in April 2022. The new Charlotte State Forest is the first publicly accessible state land in Charlotte County.

The lands we continue to own will be sustainably managed as a working forest as we seek public and private support to protect a portion of the remaining forest with conservation easements and to transfer additional lands to VDOF to expand Charlotte State Forest.

This project is part of our Working Forests program — an innovative program dedicated to mitigating climate change, strengthening rural economies and protecting natural ecosystems through the permanent conservation of at-risk working forests across America.

Why This Project Matters

Sustainably managed for nearly a century — first by Thomas Bahnson Stanley, Virginia’s 57th governor, and, subsequently, by the Stanley Land and Lumber Corporation — the forest provides shortleaf and Virginia pine, as well as white oak and hickory to local mills for furniture.

Located along Saxkey Road, a designated Virginia Byway, the mature upland forests feature critical foraging and potential roosting habitat for federally threatened northern long-eared bats, while the wetlands provide exceptional habitat for ducks and other waterfowl. This effort will also secure the Greenwood Game Preserve, which has been a conservation priority for more than a decade.

The protection of the entire Roanoke River Forest will support water quality and secure tributaries to the Roanoke River, which has been designated a Virginia Scenic River. In addition, Roanoke and Wards Ford creeks provide habitat for imperiled fish species, including the Carolina darter.

The lands now owned by VDOF will continue to be sustainably harvested for timber in keeping with Sustainable Forestry Initiative standards. Key habitat areas will be protected and new public access made available for outdoor recreational activities such as fishing, hunting and bird-watching.

We Need Your Help

The Conservation Fund is actively raising funds to achieve a permanent conservation solution for the remaining lands. For more information about how you can support the conservation of this important forest, please contact Rachael Joiner.

Learn More

• Article: Governor Dedicates State Forest (The Charlotte Gazette)