North and South Carolina contain a range of natural resources, from water to woodlands to wildlife. Not only do natural resources influence the economic well-being of a region, they are connected to the quality of human life as well. Factors such as urbanization and human development directly affect the integrity of natural resources; high population densities correlate with high resource use and increased levels of pollution, note the scholars at North Carolina State University.
Sixty percent of North Carolina is covered by forests, and 18.1 million acres are classified as timberland. South Carolina’s Blue Ridge ecosystem consists of 87 percent forest, while the Piedmont region is 57 percent covered with wooded areas. These forests are home to more than 180 tree species, about a third of which are commercially viable. In North Carolina alone, the timber industry was valued at $29.7 billion in 2003. Carolina forests also provide the setting for hiking, camping and a variety of other outdoor activities, as well as wildlife habitat.
Several regions in the Carolinas contain areas classified as wetlands. South Carolina’s Southern Coastal Plain region is 46 percent wetland, while North Carolina contains about 5.7 million acres of wetlands. These fragile ecosystems provide a home for hundreds of waterfowl, wildlife and plant species, many of which don’t grow elsewhere in the Carolinas; in addition, the wetlands produce nurseries for spawning fish. Wetlands also aid in the decomposition of pollutants, reduce sediment deposit in more environmentally sensitive bodies of water and help flood control by storing water overflow.
Fresh water is a vital natural resource in the Carolinas. South Carolina has 15 million acre-feet of water in the form of lakes, but 95 percent of the state’s ground water comes from underground aquifers in the coastal regions. North Carolina also draws most of its water from six groundwater sites, the most productive of which are in its coastal regions, and 2.7 million acres of surface water. Pollution from underground tank leakage and agricultural and urban runoff threaten the potable water supply in both states.
Wildlife and Fish
The Carolinas are home to numerous species of land and aquatic animals, from southern leopard frogs to wild boars to corn snakes. Unfortunately, at time of publication, many of these animals, 1,240 species or more, are threatened, endangered or in need of conservation, including the bog turtle, brook trout, flatwoods salamander, piping plover and the west Indian manatee. Non-endangered species at time of publication include white-tail deer, Eastern wild turkeys, quail and black bears.
- N.C. State University; Natural Resources Inventory of North Carolina; David Drake, et al.; 1997
- University of South Carolina; Summary of Natural Resource Concerns in South Carolina; Robin W. Kloot, et al.; Nov. 2007
- North Carolina Forestry Association; The State of Our Forest Products Industry; Oct. 2003
- North Carolina Forestry Association: North Carolina Forests
- U.S. Department of Transporation; Results of the FHWA Domestic Scan of Successful Wetland Mitigation Programs North Carolina; Bill Gilmore, et al.
- North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Wildlife Profiles
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