APALACHICOLA, Fla. (WCTV) – Deep in the woods near the Apalachicola River, a small tour of journalists is sworn to secrecy: They promise not to reveal the location of one of the world’s rarest trees, known as a Torreya.
While roughly 200 of those trees remain, there are many others in the thousands of acres owned by Aurora Sustainable Lands in the Apalachicola River Basin. Representatives for Aurora believe the company is one of the largest private landowners in Florida.
Their lands protect Tallahassee, acting as a natural barrier between the Gulf and the state’s capital. That barrier is now more important than ever, according to the vice president for carbon operations, Cakey Worthington. The numerous logging operations in the area just don’t provide the same level of protection as an untouched forest, Worthington said…