Our Mission
Kentucky Heartwood seeks to protect and restore the integrity, stability, and beauty of Kentucky’s native forests and biotic communities through research, education, advocacy, and community engagement.
Support our work
Kentucky Heartwood runs on a very small budget. By donating and becoming a member, you are helping protect some of the most incredible forests in the world.
The millions of creatures, from the fungi to the treetops thank you!
Kentucky Heartwood is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Donations are tax deductible.
Recurring monthly donations are available and appreciated.
Choose the subscribe option to donate monthly, or use the Donate button to give a one-time donation.
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Old-growth forest threatened by logging in the South Redbird project, Daniel Boone National Forest
The United States Forest Service and Trump administration have put forward a dangerous new proposal to end longstanding requirements that the Forest Service notify the public, allow for public comment, and analyze environmental impacts when approving logging, road building, pipeline construction, and other activities on 193 million acres of national forest lands across the country, including the Daniel Boone National Forest and Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area in Kentucky. The U.S. Forest Service has extended its comment deadline to Aug. 26. More information and directions on how to comment are in our Blog Post here.
14th Annual Kentucky Heartwood Music Festival
Thanks to everyone for a great festival!
Congratulations to the winners of the music competitions!
8-12 years olds
1st Phoebe White
2nd Sophie Dufour
3rd Margaret Wilkerson
13-18 year olds
1st Charity Gilbert
2nd Katrin Wilson
3rd Emily Reed
Congratulations to the winners of the music competitions!
8-12 years olds
1st Phoebe White
2nd Sophie Dufour
3rd Margaret Wilkerson
13-18 year olds
1st Charity Gilbert
2nd Katrin Wilson
3rd Emily Reed
Forest Service proposes large logging project near Cave Run Lake, is loose on details - The Forest Service has released their formal proposal (scoping document) for the “Improving Conditions in the Blackwater Watershed” project, which would approve thousands of acres of logging on the east side of Cave Run Lake. Comments on the Blackwater project are due by Friday, June 21st, 2019. Directions for commenting are at the end of our action alert here.
Spring Newsletter, May 2019
Our newsletter is available in an easy to read version, above, and as a ready to print publication, below.
Volunteer Opportunity: We could always use help spreading the word about what is happening on our public lands. So, if you know of a place that would be good to put our newsletters, please lend a hand by printing out as many as you need and distribute them where you see fit. Or, let us know how many you need and we will mail them to you. Thank you!
(Printing tips: print orientation is landscape, two sided printing - flip on short end, and collate.)
To view past editions of our newsletter click here.
Volunteer Opportunity: We could always use help spreading the word about what is happening on our public lands. So, if you know of a place that would be good to put our newsletters, please lend a hand by printing out as many as you need and distribute them where you see fit. Or, let us know how many you need and we will mail them to you. Thank you!
(Printing tips: print orientation is landscape, two sided printing - flip on short end, and collate.)
To view past editions of our newsletter click here.
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Rise & Root Rewilding Project
Rise & Root Rewilding offers single-day nature camps to give kids a taste of the wild, play games, learn the basics of ecological systems, and get in touch with their animal senses; we also host an ongoing Forest School where kids have the opportunity to build deep connections with place and one another in a safe yet challenging environment facilitated by our mentors. More information and registrations forms are here.
Forest Service proposes to weaken protections for endangered bats to increase logging on Daniel Boone National Forest. Comments due by April 15
The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to reduce protections for endangered bats in an effort to increase logging on the Daniel Boone National Forest. Comments on the Draft Environmental Assessment are due by Monday, April 15th.
Directions for sending comments, links to project documents, and more information here.
Directions for sending comments, links to project documents, and more information here.
Pine Creek Project
Four thousand acres of logging proposed in London District of the Daniel Boone
Overlook on the Rockcastle River in the Pine Creek project area
The Forest Service has proposed yet another new, large logging project, this time proposing over 4,000 acres of timber harvesting in the London District of the Daniel Boone National Forest in Laurel, Pulaski, and Rockcastle Counties. Learn more here.
Kentucky Heartwood will hosted a presentation and forum in Corbin on the evening of Thursday, January 24th to discuss the Forest Pine Creek Forest Restoration Project. Click here for details.
Kentucky Heartwood will hosted a presentation and forum in Corbin on the evening of Thursday, January 24th to discuss the Forest Pine Creek Forest Restoration Project. Click here for details.
Hope for Hemlocks is a project of Kentucky Heartwood to save the Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), a tree of enormous ecological importance and breathtaking beauty. Hemlocks in the east, including Kentucky, are being decimated by an invasive insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae). Thousands of acres of hemlock forests on public and private land have already been destroyed, but this isn't the end of the story.
Join us as we use all the available tools to stop this ecological catastrophe. We need volunteers and donors and partners. We especially need your voice.
On our website, www.hopeforhemlocksky.org, you'll find the history and science of hemlocks and adelgids, alongside the resources and information needed to preserve hemlocks for generations to come.
Join us as we use all the available tools to stop this ecological catastrophe. We need volunteers and donors and partners. We especially need your voice.
On our website, www.hopeforhemlocksky.org, you'll find the history and science of hemlocks and adelgids, alongside the resources and information needed to preserve hemlocks for generations to come.
Forest in Little Egypt protected from logging through citizen engagement and the NEPA process.
Forest Watch
Follow the links for more information about the following projects on the Daniel Boone National Forest:
- Forest Plan Amendment
- South Red Bird Project
- Blackwater IRMS
- Pine Creek Forest Restoration Project
- Greenwood project
- Beaver Creek
- Climax and Little Egypt
- Upper Rock Creek
We are excited to share this video with the world! Take a journey through the history of Kentucky Heartwood. Shot and edited by Sellus Wilder, and produced by Joel Dufour.
Kentucky Heartwood Challenges Major Timber Project on Kentucky’s Daniel Boone National Forest
Rare Species and Restoration Take Back Seat to Logging Plans
Read our press release, including our formal objection, by visiting our blog post for this story (scroll to bottom of the post to download the pdf of our objection).
Read our press release, including our formal objection, by visiting our blog post for this story (scroll to bottom of the post to download the pdf of our objection).
Old Growth Forest website for Kentucky
Kentucky Heartwood's project, dedicated to the past, present, and future of old-growth forests in Kentucky, featuring information, photos, and maps of a growing number of old-growth forests.
Visit and learn more about Kentucky Old Growth.
Visit and learn more about Kentucky Old Growth.
We Saved Pisgah Bay!
After more than a year of hard work, Kentucky Heartwood and our allies with the Coalition to Preserve Land Between the Lakes succeeded in convincing the Forest Service to withdraw the Pisgah Bay Project and more than 4,000 acres of commercial logging!
Click here to learn more.
Click here to learn more.
Did you know that the third oldest known shortleaf pine on the planet lives in Rockcastle county, Kentucky, in the Daniel Boone National Forest? It is 319 years old (as of 2016). It stands in a forest that was proposed for logging in 2010. After a public campaign led by Kentucky Heartwood members to save Climax and Little Egypt, the logging project was withdrawn. This tree stands because people cared and stood up to protect our public forest!
Logging has begun in Upper Rock Creek
More info & pictures here,
If this upsets you as much as us, please consider becoming a member or donating to Kentucky Heartwood so that we can have the resources to effectively challenge these projects!
If this upsets you as much as us, please consider becoming a member or donating to Kentucky Heartwood so that we can have the resources to effectively challenge these projects!