This Land, Your Land

State Sen. Joe Sam Queen has introduced a bill to create a 17-member Mountain Resources Commission to advise local governments about development in 27 western North Carolina counties, according to the Asheville Citizen-Times. "One of the first threats the group could tackle, Queen said, is development encroaching on lands like Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Appalachian Trail, the Blue Ridge Parkway and the region's state parks."