You've found the place for folks who love Tennessee's public lands.  We are a  501c3 nonprofit working to protect and preserve our best wild places.  From the Land Between the Lakes to the Cherokee National Forest, Tennessee Heartwood advocates for the wild.  Visit our site to learn more about what we do, from outdoors excursions to legal advocacy, we're always on the trail!

Welcome to Tennessee Heartwood

Action Alert!  The Foothills Project in the Chattahoochee National Forest- Massive Logging Without Public Oversight.  Comments due by Friday January 10.

Georgia's Chattahoochee National Forest along the border with Tennessee's Cherokee is facing an unprecedented logging proposal that not only would affect an area of 157,000 acres, with potential logging of up to 60,000 acres, constructing 360 miles of new bulldozer paths to facilitate prescribed burning, and herbicide application across as much as 74,500 acres. What is even more astounding is an unprecedented loss of public participation and oversight. Where citizens have had the right to an informed comment period to voice objections on logging projects on their National Forests- with access to maps of the areas proposed for logging and an environmental analysis- this single comment period is for a project area ten times larger than a normal project, that would be broken into smaller project areas where the agency doesn't even have to inform the public where the logging would take place, or even notice that it was happening.  This is unprecedented in nearly half a century of public rights on National Forest policy anywhere.   Click HERE to read an in-depth article by Ben Benton of the Chattanooga Times Free Press that includes a link to more information about the project and where the public can register an official comment.  Don't let our rights to have a say on the future of this mountain treasure disappear. 

Citizens Losing Rights to Speak on the Future of Our Federal Lands

26The Forest Service has released a draft set of changes to its rules for management decisions on National Forests.  Our 188 million acre forest system has traditionally given the public strong rights to participate in long-term forest planning and on local forest projects that range from recreation to timber sales.  This has included a clear path for average citizens to seek redress to the agency and ultimately the courts if necessary.  Now is the time for people to take action before the August 26 public comment deadline and let their voices be heard...Click Here for More information and how to speak out!

Victory at Tumbling Creek!!
Forest Service Withdraws Dinkey Timber Sale

​The culmination of several years of our work to protect Tumbling Creek-the Dinkey timber sale has been withdrawn! This is why we are here- on the ground, focused watchdogging and advocacy. And that focus includes staying to play a long game when necessary. This sale was first announced in early 2014, and since then, there has been a lot of field work, research, meetings, and legal work. But what made the difference was our long-term monitoring of some of the other timber sales that have happened in the Cherokee, sales with logging similar to what would have happened at Tumbling Creek if the sale had gone through. .... MORE