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Years of effort pay off with preservation of Cheat Canyon

COOPERS ROCK, W.Va. — Perseverance has paid off for those who have enjoyed the Cheat Canyon for years. A big celebration was held last Friday to mark the raising of nearly $7 million to preserve the canyon that can be seen from Coopers Rock State Forest on the Monongalia-Preston county line.

Mike Powell with the Nature Conservancy told MetroNews the effort could have been abandoned several times over the years but it never was.

“We were so close to getting Cheat Canyon protected a number of different times and it fell through a whole host of times and luckily people didn’t get discouraged and persevered and kept working and eventually this thing happened,” Powell said.

The public-private partnership has included gifts to the Nature Conservancy from the estate of Charlotte Ryde ($2.6 million), a combined gift from Warburg Pincus and Antero Resources ($1 million) and grants from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Cooperative Endangered Species Fund, the West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund and others.

“Warburg Pincus is honored to play a role in the conservation of a landscape of such beauty and importance to the people of West Virginia and the region,” said Chip Kaye, Co-Chief Executive Officer for Warburg Pincus in a news release.   “Collaborations among the private, public, and non-profit sectors – such as this one to protect Cheat Canyon – are critical to provide the resources needed to effectively protect our most important lands and waters.”

Powell said the significance of the Cheat Canyon is its biodiversity and the opportunity for people to come to the canyon for recreation opportunities.

“Those two things combined in my mind make it really special,” Powell said.

The were two other key partners in the acquisition, The Conservation Fund and state DNR. The Conservation Fund negotiated and purchased the entire 3,800 acres from the previous landowner, while the DNR has taken ownership and will manage 2,500 acres.

The conservation includes 3,800 acres and according to the Nature Conservancy the property includes:

–most of the canyon not already included in Coopers Rock State Forest and Snake Hill Wildlife Management Area, and the spectacular view that people enjoy from Coopers Rock.

–a section of river that has been called one of the most “ecologically intact”  in the Central Appalachians by The Nature Conservancy, due to the absence of dams and the river’s connection to well-forested headwaters.

–public access to seven miles of the 330-mile Allegheny Trail, which had been re-routed away from the canyon after it was closed by a previous owner – a resource for hikers, bird-watchers and other outdoor enthusiasts.

–nearly all of the Cheat River used for whitewater rafting and kayaking, from put-in to take-out, rim to rim, protecting the water quality and the view for the benefit of users.

–fishing opportunities for smallmouth bass, as well as hunting opportunities for deer, turkey, bear and squirrel.

Powell, a graduate of West Virginia University, first started to enjoy Coopers Rock and the canyon when he was a student. He said the rare species like the Cheat Snail, the Indiana Bat and the large-flowered Barbara’s buttons along with the whitewater opportunities on the Cheat River were more than enough to work toward preserving.

“I think that’s a really good message to go forward–these conservation deals don’t just happen overnight. They take years of action, years of conversation and fundraising,” he said.

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin and Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin were among those at Friday’s celebration at the Coopers Rock overlook.





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