Multiple benefits of large, undeveloped tracts in urbanized landscapes: a North Carolina example

In North Carolina's Research Triangle region, development pressures threaten open space. Expanding municipalities and suburban sprawl have isolated public lands as private landowners subdivide or sell to developers. Large holdings owned by a private corporation and amassed to buffer a nuclear power facility and its reservoir remain intact. These holdings provide unexpected public benefits and foster conservation of a rare plant community type revealed through interdisciplinary research. [UMN]