On December 11th, 2024 the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) issued an Aquatic Resource Alteration Permit to CSX Transportation Inc. for the repair of railroad infrastructure damaged by Hurricane Helene along 2.5 miles of track adjacent to the Nolichucky.   The Scope of work includes borrow of rock above the ordinary high-water elevation from depositional point bars along the Nolichucky River, removal of other track material, and installation of rail piles to form a ...

SB 1876/HB1867 in the Tennessee Legislature aims to criminalize Sandhill Crane hunting. The bill will be voted on Wednesday March 6th by the TN Senate Energy, Agriculture, and Natural Resources Committee. Tennessee has had a hunting season since 2013 as the Eastern population of Sandhill Cranes is high enough that the US Fish and Wildlife Service, state agencies, and wildlife biologists deemed that limited hunting would not affect the populations of this magnificent animal.  30,000 sandhill ...

Public wildlife management areas (WMAs) managed by the state agency are a valuable asset to Tennesseans and Tennessee’s rural economies, and Yanahli is one of the state’s most popular. Hunters and anglers are concerned that should this become law, these properties will be diverted to other uses not compatible with hunting and angling, or will be poorly managed. H.B. 1674 by Rep. Cepicky, and S.B. 1839 by Senator Hensley, if passed, will transfer ownership of the 12,800-acre Yanahli ...

CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease), which is virtually undetectable with the human eye, has been found in deer in Tennessee since 2018. Unlike Blue Tongue or Fibromas, CWD can persist in a herd without any noticeable sign to the average outdoorsman, -woman or other deer. This makes it especially pernicious and harmful, and CWD has been shown to be linked to declines in herd signs in states where it has existed for long periods of time. As of now, no evidence shows whether or not CWD can be ...

It’s time for the #BHAvsCWD Challenge. Since CWD was first detected in Tennessee in 2018, the disease has spread to at least four counties. To help combat CWD, @bhatennessee is hosting a giveaway to encourage hunters to harvest deer in the CWD Unit and have those animals tested to determine the spread and prevalence of this disease in our state. Your hard work will provide biologists and resource managers with the critical data they need to fight the spread of CWD and protect deer ...