Name: Cece Grant

Age: 60

Party affiliation: Democrat

Campaign website:  www.cece4wake.com

Occupation & employer: Mortgage Loan Officer

Years lived in the area: 4

1. Why are you running for the position of Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisor? In your answer, please explain your understanding of the role and why it is important.

Ten years ago, I began working on environmental issues because I believed we could build healthier communities by protecting the natural resources we all depend on. Since then, I’ve advocated for sustainable agriculture, worked to reduce industrial pollution, and developed common sense solutions to address climate change. After working on environmental policy at the national level, I want to bring that experience home and focus on practical local solutions. I also want to expand the District’s reach so more residents can benefit from its conservation programs.

2. What are the three most pressing issues facing the Conservation District and Board of Supervisors? How do you plan to address these issues? Please be specific.

“The most important challenge facing the District is how we protect Wake County’s natural resources while our population and development continue to grow. I see three closely connected priorities:

  1. Preserving farmland and access to local food;
  2. Protecting clean water and strengthening resilience to flooding; and
  3. Making conservation resources more visible and accessible throughout the county.

First, I would strengthen farmland preservation efforts. Wake County is losing agricultural land as development pressure increases. Working farms are not only part of our landscape; they support our local food system, economy, and quality of life. I would advocate for strong and continued support of farmland preservation tools, work with farmers and landowners to increase awareness of available programs, and advocate for additional resources to protect priority agricultural land.

Second, I would expand the District’s role in protecting water quality and building resilience to flooding. Heavy rainfall, erosion, flooding, and polluted runoff affect neighborhoods as well as farms. I would support greater use of conservation programs that help property owners and communities keep more stormwater on the land, restore streams, reduce erosion, and protect water quality. I also believe land conservation must become a bigger part of how Wake County plans for growth, because protecting forests, wetlands, stream buffers, and other natural areas helps protect both our water supply and our communities from flooding.

Third, I would expand the District’s reach into urban and suburban Wake County. Many residents assume Soil and Water serves only farmers and rural areas. I want to ensure the District serves all of Wake County by directing more conservation resources toward the problems residents are actually experiencing—from stormwater and erosion in rapidly developing neighborhoods to well-water concerns and limited access to fresh food.

That means bringing programs and technical assistance directly into communities, expanding well-water testing and conservation education, and supporting projects such as community gardens and urban agriculture in neighborhoods where access to fresh food is limited. My goal is not simply to make more people aware of the District, but to make its resources stronger and more accessible to the 1.2 million people that it serves.”

3. As the Triangle continues to grow, what steps does the region need to take to ensure adequate water supply going forward? What role should the Board of Supervisors play in long-term water supply and conservation planning?

“Water security has to become part of how we plan for growth. As the Triangle adds more homes and businesses, we are increasing demand for water while also clearing and paving over the forests and open land that help protect our water supply. We need to protect the watersheds that supply our drinking water, preserve forests and stream buffers, reduce unnecessary water use, and make water conservation a routine part of development and land-use planning.

The Soil and Water Conservation District does not control the county’s water supply, but it should have a stronger voice in long-term planning. The District can bring conservation expertise to discussions with Wake County, municipalities, utilities, and neighboring counties about protecting water sources and reducing demand.

Most importantly, we need to recognize that water supply and land conservation are interconnected. Protecting the land around our rivers, streams, lakes, and reservoirs is one of the most effective ways to protect the water we will depend on as the Triangle continues to grow.”

4. This year’s drought heavily affected farmers. What should the Board of Supervisors do to support farmers in recovering from the drought and associated losses, and going forward as climate change increases the likelihood of worsening drought?

In the short term, the District should help farmers connect with every available source of financial and technical assistance for drought recovery. Farmers shouldn’t have to navigate a maze of programs on their own while also dealing with crop losses and financial stress.
Longer term, we need to help farms become more resilient to both drought and extreme rainfall. 

Again, healthy soil is one of our best tools to protect against severe weather events. Conservation practices that build organic matter and keep soil covered can help the land hold more water when conditions are dry and absorb more rainfall when storms come.

We need to recognize the connection between climate change, farmland preservation, and food security. Losing farms to development while the farms that remain face increasingly difficult growing conditions makes our local food system more vulnerable. The District should be a strong advocate for preserving working farms while helping farmers adopt practices that make their land more resilient to a changing climate.

5. Climate change is also contributing to worse inland flooding, like the Triangle saw from Tropical Storm Chantal in 2025. How can the board support the county’s climate resilience?

We cannot prevent extreme rainfall, but we can do much more to help our communities absorb it. Going back to the development issue, it is important for the public to understand that we are replacing forests, fields, and other land that naturally absorbs water with roads, rooftops, parking lots, and other hard surfaces. We are creating the problems that we are suffering from. 

The District should target conservation assistance to areas experiencing repeated runoff, erosion, and flooding, helping residents implement projects that keep more stormwater on the land instead of sending it downstream. Conservation needs to be part of our growth strategy, not something we address after problems occur.

As part of Wake County’s One Water Plan, we should also identify the land that is most important for absorbing stormwater, protecting floodplains and streams, and safeguarding our water supply—and ban that land from non-sustainable development. Forests, wetlands, stream buffers, and open space aren’t just nice environmental amenities. They are part of our infrastructure, and protecting them now is far less costly than trying to manage the flooding that results after they are gone.

6. Most candidates in this race have listed protecting farmland as a priority. What steps can and should the Board of Supervisors take in protecting farmland, and how would you balance that goal with the pressures of growth and development?

“As noted above, farmland preservation is one of my top three priorities. I would strengthen the District’s existing farmland preservation efforts, make sure farmers and landowners understand the tools available to them, and advocate for additional resources to protect the agricultural land most at risk of development.

To be clear, I am not advocating that we stop growth. The more strategic question is where and how we grow. County and municipal leaders should direct development toward places that can sustain it, while being much more intentional about protecting our most valuable farmland, forests, watersheds, and other natural areas. We can accommodate growth without treating every undeveloped acre as land waiting to be developed.”

7. What steps should the county take to prevent water pollution, whether from runoff or chemicals like PFAS? What role should the Board of Supervisors play in safeguarding clean water?

“Clean water is one of my top priorities because prevention is far less expensive for taxpayers than forcing the government to pay to clean up contamination after it reaches our drinking water. For water runoff, that means protecting stream buffers, wetlands, forests, and other natural areas that filter water before it reaches our rivers and reservoirs. It also means reducing erosion and helping farms, homeowners, and communities better manage stormwater.

Chemicals like PFAS require a different approach. Conservation practices alone cannot solve industrial contamination. We need strong monitoring, transparent public reporting, and accountability for industries responsible for pollution. I spent years working on industrial pollution at the Sierra Club, and I strongly believe that polluters—not taxpayers or affected communities—should bear the cost of cleaning up contamination they cause.

The Soil and Water Conservation District is not the county’s environmental regulator, but it can be a strong advocate for clean water. It can monitor threats to our watersheds, educate residents, support projects that reduce pollution at its source, and make sure conservation is part of countywide decisions about growth and water quality.”

8. Are there any other issues you would like to address?