Роде
Sixteen
THE STATE
December 30, 1933
I
FAGTS ABOUT OUR STATE GOVERNMENT
No. 8— Department of Conservation and Development
(This is the eighth of a series of
articles appearing in The State de¬
scribing the operations of various de¬
partments of state government of North
Carolina .)
By
R. BRUCE ETHERIDGE
Director
*
Measured in terms of years, the
N. C. Department of Conservation
and Development is “the baby" a mom;
the major departments of the State.
This agency was created, upon the
recommendation of former Governor
A. W. McLean, by the General Assem¬
bly of 1926 out of the old State Geolog¬
ical and Economic Survey, which pre¬
viously hail widely varied activities.
Since its creation, the Department
of Conservation and Development has
grown steadily bv means of added
duties and consolidations until its field
now includes one of the widest scopes
of any agency of its kind in the Nation.
The second step in importance in
the creation of the Department was
the duties given over to it by the Gen¬
eral Assembly of 1927. This legisla¬
tive body, also upon the suggestion of
former Governor McLean, enacted
North Carolina's first State-wide game
law; and the same session consolidated
the North Carolina Commercial Fish¬
eries Commission Board with the De¬
partment of Conservation and Devel¬
opment.
As a result of these mergers and ad¬
ditions the administration of all pro¬
grams dealing with North Carolina’s
natural resources has been brought
under the supervision of one State
agency. This set-up has drawn na¬
tional and even international atten¬
tion, and officials in other States have
on several occasions sought informa¬
tion to assist in reorganizing their
conservation activities. The North
Carolina Department of Conservation
and Development is truly an example
of effective consolidation of State func¬
tions.
For administrative purposes, the
Department of Conservation and De^
velopmont is grouped into six divi¬
sions. each of which operates under a
chief and over which the director has
R. BRUCE ETHERIDGE
- ★ -
general supervision. These Divisions
are as follows: Commercial Fisheries.
Commerce and Industry, Forestry,
Game and Inland Fisheries, Mineral
Resources, and Water Resources and
Engineering. The titles of these divi¬
sions indicate their duties.
A few years ago. the full implica¬
tion of the word “conservation" was
not thoroughly understood nor was its
real significance properly appreciated;
and it will probably not Ik- amiss at
this time to stress its application in
the title of the Department. Reduced
to its simplest definition, “conserva¬
tion" means “wise use" of the State's
natural resources. A <|Uotation from
the law establishing the Department of
Conservation and Development and
outlining its duties will help to explain
the purposes of its creation. This law
directs the Department as follows:
“By investigation, recommendation
and publication to aid — (a) In the
promotion of the conservation and de¬
velopment of the natural resources of
the State; (b) In promoting a more
profitable use of lands, forests and wa¬
ters; (c) In promoting the develop¬
ment of commerce and industry. . .
Because of the general nature of its
work, the field covered by the Depart¬
ment of Conservation and Develop¬
ment probably has a wider range than
that of any other State agency. Its
operations extend to activities not cov¬
ered by other Departments, and it has
become a clearing house for informa¬
tion concerning the State.
In short, the Department seeks to
lead the way toward a more profitable
utilization of every natural advantage
offered by North Carolina, and, in
addition to its definite field, it extends
its cooperation to every other State
Department. Institution, Commission,
or Board to bring about this objective.
While some of the specific duties of
the Department involve the enforce¬
ment of restrictive measures to pre¬
serve the State's natural resources for
the welfare of all the people, its major
objective is the education of the pub¬
lic to a better appreciation of such
divine gifts as the forests, wild life,
water resources, and mineral resources.
The final goal of the Department’s
program is to bring those making use
of our natural resources to such a state
of mind as will result in a general
voluntary cooperation in conserving
nature’s gifts. When this point is
reached there will be no need of regula¬
tions, and our resources will be viewed
as ours to use and pass on to future
generations in fully as good or per¬
haps better condition than that in
which we received them.
There are some who may view the
State's conservation program as mere¬
ly a reflection of maudlin sentiment.
Such an attitude, however, docs not
present the work correctly. As has
been said on several occasions, “con¬
servation is a dollars and cents pro¬
gram.’’ It deals with a great part of
the fundamental wealth of the State.
After careful studies, those who have
given considerable attention to con¬
servation estimate that the income of
North Carolinians could be increased
by at least $50,000,000 and possibly
$ 100.000,000 annually through the
practice of an adequate conservation
policy.
The conservation movement, while
yet young as compared with other
State activities, has made very definite
progress. During the last year, con¬
servation has received great momentum
through the cooperation of the Federal
government. President Roosevelt is an
avowed conservationist and his leader¬
ship in this field has enabled more
(Continued on page twenty-eight)
