NPCA submitted the following position to members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture ahead of a hearing scheduled for October 21, 2025.
NPCA supports this legislation to study the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT) for potential national scenic trail designation. The 300-mile BMT is an important recreational resource near urban southeastern centers and wends in and out of forests for 93-miles in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The biodiversity found along the BMT is nearly unparalleled in the temperate world. Whether we are talking birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, flowering plants, or tree species, the trail provides opportunities for solitude, wildlife watching, and appreciating the diverse ecosystems that it passes through. The BMT boosts economic activity in several rural communities along the trail’s length. A national scenic trail designation would bring thousands more hikers to the trail annually, further increasing economic activity in rural communities in North Georgia, East Tennessee, and Western North Carolina.
