Race is on to save 4,000 acres along Yadkin River. Alcoa selling off the land

Land conservation organizations say they are in a race to protect nearly 4,000 acres on the Yadkin River from development.

The land – along the Tuckertown Reservoir in Davidson, Montgomery, Rowan and Stanly counties – has been put up for sale by Alcoa. The company created the reservoir when it built a dam on the river in 1962.

It is the last dam to be constructed directly on the Yadkin.

Alcoa shuttered its aluminum smelting plant in Badin in 2010, but continues to deal with hazardous waste stored at the site.

The land the company is selling has been accessible to the public for more than 60 years. That could change if buyers choose to develop it.

"This is it," said Grayson Guyer, owner of Lost Highway Gun Dog Kennels in Davidson County. "This is what's left of at least this portion of the Yadkin chain. And if it goes away, it's gone."

Three Rivers Land Trust, which is organizing donors to buy as much of the land as possible, says it has raised more than $400,000 so far. The N.C. Wildlife Habitat Foundation announced this week that it is contributing $40,000 to the effort.

Any of the property purchased will be handed over to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.

The state already owns more than 2,400 protected acres on the east side of the reservoir. The latest effort looks to preserve land to the west.

"Conserving this property means conserving public access, water quality and wildlife habitat, which are deeply important to so many people," said Travis Morehead, executive director of Three Rivers Land Trust.

Among the backers of the effort is Richard Childress, founder and CEO of Richard Childress Racing.

"Public lands have long been the backbone of conservation throughout our country," Childress said in a statement. "I support the Save Tuckertown efforts because of its importance to future generations of hunters and anglers."

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