When the Rivers Run Dry : Water--The Defining Crisis of the Twenty-First Century Grasping the extent of development sweeping across the Haywood County landscape is not always easy. So Marc Pruett, the county’s erosion control officer, came up with a little anecdote to put things in perspective. He tallied up all the private roads currently permitted for construction across the county — 73 miles worth in all. “That would be like putting on your walking shoes and walking to Clyde, on to Canton, all the way to Asheville, up to Mars Hill and on over Sams Gap and down to Erwin, Tennessee,” Pruett said.

Two candidates — Commissioner Chairman Mark Swanger, who is running for re-election, and Bill Upton, the superintendent of Haywood County schools — believe the county has a responsibility to facilitate discussions about growth in communities throughout the county. Swanger and Upton both supported what Swanger calls “community self-determination.” “Lots of counties in Western North Carolina have tried land-use management from the top down. All it does is create a huge controversy and nothing gets accomplished,” Swanger said. “I think you need to recognize the uniqueness of each community and let them craft some good policies that are specific to their community — not a one-size fits all.”

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