The U.S. Forest Service and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission have finalised a US $290 million Good Neighbour Agreement to accelerate Hurricane Helene recovery efforts across Western North Carolina — the largest commitment of its kind ever approved by the U.S Forest Service.
Speaking about the commitment yesterday, Tom Schultz, head of the U.S. Forest Service, said the agency had prioritised community recovery from the moment Helene tore through the Southeast more than a year ago. “Helping communities recover from Helene has been a top priority for the Forest Service since the storm tore through the Southeast,” Schultz said.
“North Carolina’s national forests are an economic powerhouse, bringing billions of dollars into local communities through world‑class outdoor recreation. Restoring access means restoring both livelihoods and the family moments that make these forests so meaningful.”
Wood Central understands the agreement will underpin a 10‑year recovery program across the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests. And under the new arrangement, the Wildlife Resources Commission will remove storm debris, repair damaged roads, manage invasive species, restore impacted watersheds, and improve wildlife habitat.
Wildlife Resources Commission Executive Director Kyle Briggs said the scale of the damage demanded an unprecedented response: “The impacts from Helene were sudden and created immense devastation across Western North Carolina, including severe impacts to aquatic and terrestrial wildlife and their habitats,” Briggs said.
As Helene toppled trees, it also caused billions in timber losses
In December 2024, Wood Central reported that Helene caused more than $1.8 billion in damage to timber stock in Georgia, Florida, and the Carolinas, making the hurricane one of the most destructive for the United States pulp, paper, and engineered wood products industry.
“Georgia alone accounted for about three-quarters of that loss,” according to Grant Blankenship, a journalist at the Georgia Public Broadcaster, who revealed that the Helene had traversed more than 8.9 million acres of Georgian forestland—almost 40% of the state’s 24 million acres of timberlands…causing havoc for landowners who don’t have ‘crop insurance’ to protect their ‘nest eggs.’
