July 2020 - South Carolina Wildlife Federation

Lawsuit: Long Savannah Project Would Destroy 209 Acres of Wetlands

Posted on July 30, 2020December 12, 2024 by admin

The developer’s proposal would not only exacerbate West Ashley’s notorious flooding, it would destroy more than 200 acres of valuable wetland habitat and create a mixed-use development unaffordable for the majority of the present community, according to the appeal.

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Conservation groups are challenging the state environmental agency’s authorization of a 3,172.6-acre mixed use development in Charleston’s West Ashley—one of the largest proposed developments in the city’s history—and one that stands to threaten the health and livability of the community as it would allow the permanent destruction of 209 acres of wetlands.

On Thursday, the Sierra Club and South Carolina Wildlife Federation, represented by the South Carolina Environmental Law Project (SCELP), and the Charleston Waterkeeper, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), filed Requests for a Contested Case Hearing with the South Carolina Administrative Law Court, asking the court to reverse South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control’s (DHEC) decision to issue 401 Water Quality and Coastal Zone Consistency certifications for the Long Savannah project.

The groups point to a number of critical flaws with the proposed development:

· DHEC’s authorizations allow filling 137 acres and excavating 72 acres of wetlands adjacent to Church and Rantowles Creeks. Wetlands provide numerous benefits for people and wildlife, include protecting and improving water quality, providing wildlife habitat and storing floodwaters. This type of “fill and build” activity is exactly what has led to repeated flooding in adjacent neighborhoods.

· Although the proposed construction will be conducted over a 30-year period, DHEC’s authorization failed to account for how climate change will affect flooding on the site over that period. More extreme storm events and potential sea level rise impacts on the property, such as in the area surrounding Rantowles Creek, must be considered to avoid placing more residents in harm’s way.

· Further, DHEC failed to consider how this project impacts the economic stability of West Ashley. Under their own guidelines, the agency must evaluate the extent to which a project is in the national interest and includes consideration for the maintenance or improvement of the economic stability of the surrounding coastal community. The developers’ originally proposed average home price of $338,834 far exceeds the national, state and county definitions of affordable housing. In fact, it would be more expensive than 73 percent of the other homes in West Ashley.

“This development is not priced for the people who actually live in West Ashley,” SCELP attorney Lauren Megill Milton said. “So what the community is getting is a development that they cannot afford, that will destroy a precious habitat for wildlife that they enjoy watching and that will exacerbate floods that will destroy the affordable housing they already live in.”

“The Long Savannah Project mirrors other recent developments in the Lowcountry that lie in low areas. Conventional approaches not only cause the obliteration of natural drainage systems and destroy wetland habitats, they also do not take into account flooding due to a changing climate. This project should take a lesson from the Dutch Dialogues, a year long effort to conceptualize a more resilient Lowcountry by adapting developments to water systems, not adapting water systems to development,” said Sara Green, executive director of the South Carolina Wildlife Federation.

“This project is based on outdated ideas about where and how we can build in the Lowcountry. Outdated fill-and-build development is why West Ashley floods so bad and so often. We cannot continue down this road. We have to stop building in wetlands. The future of our community and health of our waterways depend on it,” said Charleston Waterkeeper Andrew Wunderley.

“Wetlands are critical to protecting life and property because they soak up large amounts of floodwaters. This massive filling of wetlands will devastate a community already experiencing years of repeated flooding,” said Ben Mack, chair of the Sierra Club of South Carolina.

The conservation groups have requested a contested case hearing and an order from the Administrative Law Court judge to reverse the certifications issued by DHEC staff.

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South Carolina Environmental Law Project is a nonprofit public interest law firm. Its mission is to protect the natural environment of South Carolina by providing legal services and advice to environmental organizations and concerned citizens and by improving the state’s system of environmental regulation.

For more than 30 years, the Southern Environmental Law Center has used the power of the law to champion the environment of the Southeast. With more than 80 attorneys and nine offices across the region, SELC is widely recognized as the Southeast’s foremost environmental organization and regional leader. SELC works on a full range of environmental issues to protect our natural resources and the health and well-being of all the people in our region. www.SouthernEnvironment.org

Charleston Waterkeeper’s mission is to protect and restore Charleston’s Waterways for our community and for future generations. We do that through unique mix of boots-on-the-water stewardship and data-driven advocacy designed to protect the public’s right to clean water for fishing and swimming.

The mission of the South Carolina Wildlife Federation is to conserve and restore South Carolina’s wildlife and wildlife habitat through education and advocacy.

The mission of the Sierra Club of South Carolina is: To explore, enjoy, and protect the wild places of the earth; To practice and promote the responsible use of earth’s ecosystems and resources; To educate and enlist humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment; To use all lawful means to carry out these objectives.

Banner Photo by Parker Gibbons

Media contacts:
Ben Cunningham, Esquire, ben@scelp.org
Lauren Megill Milton, Esquire, lauren@scelp.org
South Carolina Environmental Law Project, (843) 527-0078
Mike Mather, Southern Environmental Law Center, cell/text (434) 333-9464 or email mmather@selcva.org

Lawsuit: Government illegally “cut corners” to ram through NEPA changes

Posted on July 29, 2020December 12, 2024 by admin

The White House rewrite will mask pollution’s full harm to communities, environment

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — A group of 17 environmental organizations in a lawsuit today accused the government of racing through an industry-friendly rewrite of the National Environmental Policy Act by “cutting corners” and discarding decades of rule-making policies that ensure major legal changes are done fairly and transparently.

If allowed to stand, the changes to NEPA – often called the “Magna Carta of environmental laws” – will reduce the public input that has guided major projects for decades, further diminish the voices of communities that have long suffered environmental injustices, and mask the full extent of polluting projects.

The groups are represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center. The lawsuit comes two weeks after President Trump announced the damaging downgrade to NEPA at a press event in Atlanta. In doing so, the Trump administration sidestepped the longstanding legal process that guides law changes.

The Council on Environmental Quality, the agency in charge of the rewrite, “simply jettisoned the rules to give industry executives what they want at the expense of the public,” said Kym Hunter, an SELC senior attorney. “But the Trump administration isn’t allowed to change a law by breaking the law. And we won’t let this administration get away with it.”

The lawsuit’s first paragraph outlines the groups’ main challenge to CEQ’s process:

In its most recent opinion on the strictures of the Administrative Procedure Act, the Supreme Court affirmed that “the Government should turn square corners in dealing with the people” … In other words, while the federal government has the ability to change policies, rules and regulations, it must follow the law, not cut corners, when it does so.

To rewrite NEPA, CEQ held just two public hearings, one in Washington D.C. and the other in Denver. Despite the limited in-person engagement, the agency received more than 1.1 million comments and, under CEQ policy, has a duty to review them. However, the agency moved forward with the rewritten rule four months later.

Meanwhile, responding to much smaller tasks like providing public records took CEQ more than a year and a half, hastened only when a judge ordered CEQ to quicken its pace.

In addition to skirting the law, the rewrite also damages NEPA by removing from consideration “cumulative impacts” and “indirect effects” when assessing large projects.

“Cumulative impacts” take into account how pollution from a new project – for example increased car emissions spurred by a new interstate – are added to pollution already in place from the existing road network. “Indirect effects” are foreseeable changes that happen later, like increased sprawl and development from that new interstate.

Removing those considerations means communities will not be fully informed about the potential harmful consequences of proposed projects like pipelines, highways and intensive development.

“NEPA has given a voice to communities of lesser means that often bear the brunt of polluting projects,” Hunter said. “It is a tool of democracy, a tool for the people. We’re not going to stand idly by while the Trump administration eviscerates it.”

Quotes from participating organizations:

“NEPA has been a critical tool for protecting our rivers and our communities. We will continue to work with our partners to fight this misguided and illegal rollback of one of our country’s most important environmental laws.” – Bill Stangler, Congaree Riverkeeper.

“These new regulations put historic places and cultural landscapes at risk across the country. Congress enacted NEPA to make sure that people have a say in federal decisions impacting resources in their own communities. We cannot let our citizens lose their voice.” – Paul Edmondson, president, National Trust for Historic Preservation.

“Whether it’s informing proposed actions on our national forests or addressing waterways damaged by irresponsible tourism development, NEPA has been an invaluable tool for Appalachian communities and their transition away from a declining coal economy. We look forward to challenging this unacceptable rollback and ensuring that current and future generations retain their voice in how our public lands and natural resources are managed.” – Wally Smith, vice president, The Clinch Coalition.

“We cannot allow yet another rollback of a bedrock environmental law. This new National Environmental Policy Act rule favors mining, drilling and other projects that will push imperiled wildlife to the brink of extinction. From polar bears threatened by oil drilling in the Arctic, to North Atlantic right whales being killed by vessel strikes and fishing gear entanglements, to Florida panthers struggling to recover in the face of unrestricted development, we will never stop fighting to protect wildlife.”– Jane Davenport, senior attorney, Defenders of Wildlife.

“The National Environmental Policy Act is the bedrock legislation that helps impacted communities protect special places from ill-conceived infrastructure projects, such as pipelines and dams. For two decades, Alabama Rivers Alliance has engaged in the NEPA process to amplify the voices of ordinary people standing up for their own lands and waters. The current administration’s attempt to topple 50 years of fundamental environmental law is an illegal and transparent gift to industry; another assault on the environment to meet and defeat. We are proud to be joining in this important legal challenge to stop these reckless rollbacks.” – Jack West, policy director, Alabama Rivers Alliance.

“Weakening NEPA rules is a body blow to the structure of environmental protections we’ve built over the last fifty years. Americans have the right to fully participate in decisions about our future and the health of our world and we will defend that right.” — David Sligh, conservation director, Wild Virginia.

“Local communities rely on NEPA to understand how big projects could impact the air they breathe and the water they drink. We must stand up and defend our right to have a say over what happens in our own backyards.” – June Blotnick, executive director, Clean Air Carolina.

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For more than 30 years, the Southern Environmental Law Center has used the power of the law to champion the environment of the Southeast. With more than 80 attorneys and nine offices across the region, SELC is widely recognized as the Southeast’s foremost environmental organization and regional leader. SELC works on a full range of environmental issues to protect our natural resources and the health and well-being of all the people in our region. www.SouthernEnvironment.org

Press Release from the Southern Environmental Law Center

For Immediate Release: July 29, 2020

Contact: Mike Mather, SELC Communications; (434) 977-4090 or cell/text (434) 333-9464; mmather@selcva.org

Great American Outdoors Act Passes!

Posted on July 23, 2020December 12, 2024 by admin

Federal act holds promising future for SC public lands and wildlife

By Sara Green

Posted by Charleston Post & Courier, 7/23/20

South Carolinians and the wildlife that call the Palmetto State home have a promising future thanks to the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act. The bill could be the most important environmental law since the days of Teddy Roosevelt and now is on its way to the president’s desk.

The Great American Outdoors Act will fully and permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund. That means $900 million annually will go to preserving, creating and ensuring access to outdoor recreation for the benefit of all Americans. It also establishes a National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund to support deferred maintenance on National Parks, Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Indian Education lands.

The Great American Outdoors Act also is a valuable climate solution, as shown by its inclusion in a June 30 report by the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis. The report — Solving the Climate Crisis: The Congressional Action Plan for a Clean Energy Economy and a Healthy and Just America — provides a blueprint for action that will achieve economic growth, protect public health and reduce the threat of climate change. Land preservation is one common-sense way of sequestering carbon pollution and reducing our climate impact while also protecting our outdoor heritage and supporting our outdoor economy.

Here in South Carolina, the bill’s passage means more people could have access to green spaces because the state will receive the funds to build and restore parks and public lands. South Carolina has received about $303.5 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund over the past five decades, protecting places such as Fort Sumter National Monument, Cape Romain and Francis Marion National Forest, as well as such small local parks as Rifle Range Road Park in Mount Pleasant. The Outdoor Industry Association found that active outdoor recreation generates $16.3 billion in spending annually in South Carolina, supports 151,000 jobs and produces $1.1 billion annually in state and local tax revenue. Further, about 893,000 people hunt, fish or watch wildlife in South Carolina each year, spending $2.5 billion on wildlife-related recreation. Add in the fact that the Great American Outdoors Act funding has the potential to create jobs restoring our parks and green spaces that are vital to our economic recovery, and we have legislation that is good for wildlife such as red knots and flatwoods salamanders and also good for the economy, reducing our climate change pollution and protecting human health.

The importance of this legislation cannot be overstated, but we shouldn’t stop here. We need to see more bipartisan climate solutions coming through Congress, and we need more champions like Rep. Joe Cunningham, D-S.C., leading the way. Now more than ever, we need role models for action who will shape the future of our country and lay the foundation for the reality that future generations will face here in South Carolina and across the country.

Sara Green is executive director of the S.C. Wildlife Federation.

Posted by Charleston Post & Courier, 7/23/20

Banner Photo by: Cecelia Jeffords

July News & Updates from SCWF

Posted on July 17, 2020December 10, 2024 by admin

July News & Updates from SCWF

The hot South Carolina days of summer are here! Take a break from your outdoor adventures and join our online auction + upcoming free webinars! Then…head back outside for more adventures.

– SCWF Team

Online Bidding is Open! Check out our Wild Summer Auction!

Wildlife art, vacations, outdoor gear, hunting trips, and more! Our online auction is up and running until 10pm on July 26th and you do not want to miss some of these deals. Plus, all the money raised supports our conservation and education programs (like our upcoming free webinars!).

Start Bidding!

Sea Turtle Conservation – Free Zoom Class!

Photo from Susan McLaughlin, SC Aquarium

Join Educator Susan McLaughlin on a tour of our Sea Turtle Rehabilitation facility at the South Carolina Aquarium! Learn about the endangered species of Sea Turtles in South Carolina and get an in-depth view of the process of Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Release. The South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Care Center aids sick and injured sea turtles in partnership with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR). The Sea Turtle Care Center has proudly released 299 sea turtles.

Monday, July 20th at 12pm
Register Here!

Monarchs – Free Zoom Class!

Join SCWF Executive Director, Sara Green, to learn all about Monarch Butterflies – their fascinating life cycle and migration, tagging Monarchs, conservation efforts in South Carolina and in Mexico, how you can create habitat for Monarchs and other pollinators, and even how you can visit the Monarch sanctuaries in Mexico! Added bonus for teachers – we will touch on how you can incorporate Monarchs and Schoolyard Habitats into your curriculum too!

Thursday, July 23rd at 12pm
Register Here!

South Carolina Spectacles – Free Zoom Class!

Search the word spectacle online and you’ll find this definition: “A visually striking performance or display.” We have three such spectacles right here in SC created by a few of our really fascinating animals! Join us for this free webinar to learn more about the spectacles created by the synchronized fireflies at Congaree National Park, the pre-migration staging area of Swallow-tailed and Mississippi Kites in Allendale, and the Purple Martin roost on Lake Murray.

Thursday, July 30th at 12pm
Register Here!

Women’s Outdoor Retreat Update

Click the video above to hear a message from Executive Director Sara Green regarding the 2020 Women’s Outdoor Retreat.

What’s Happening with SC’s Herps?

Eastern Box Turtle Photo by Lovelace Compton

Our beautiful state is part of a worldwide “hotspot” for herpetofauna, the technical term for reptiles and amphibians of a particular region. With several different habitat types from the mountains to the sea, South Carolina is home to 143 species of “herps,” which is remarkable for such a small state…

…continue reading here.

Helping SC’s Herps

Posted on July 5, 2020December 12, 2024 by admin

Amphibians, like frogs and salamanders, are important indicators of environmental health. Most amphibians spend part of their life in water and part on land, and are therefore great indicators of problems in either environment. Toxins have caused deformities in frogs like missing legs or blindness, and this alerts us to problems before it causes illness to humans.

As South Carolina’s human population continues to grow, all of our wildlife face continued threats from habitat destruction due to pollution, climate change, and invasive species. Herps also face significant threat from collection and sale for the pet trade, food and Asian traditional medicine.

Last August, 200 turtles were confiscated from a property in Chester County before they were sold on the black market. This type of activity has been going on for years, but this case received a lot of public attention and highlighted SC’s weak trafficking laws. Our state has become the destination for people to exploit our herps because we don’t have adequate protections in place.

The law currently permits unregulated trapping and sale of striped mud turtles, southeastern mud turtles and eastern musk turtles. For another nine turtle species, the state limits their transport over state lines. A key loophole in the law allows wildlife traders to legally hold as many turtles as they want on their property in anticipation of selling them illegally.

The overseas pet trade has very high profits, and the chance of getting caught has been very low, as are the penalties. Eastern box turtles are in very high demand and can bring in $1000-$5000 each. Other species in demand are spotted turtles, diamondback terrapins, pine snakes, scarlet king snakes, and many others of our native species.

Bills were introduced in the House and the Senate in January that would strengthen our laws and give the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) more tools to apprehend and penalize illegal wildlife traffickers. Both bills enjoy overwhelming support, but the House bill, H.4831, has advanced further and is still eligible to be considered and passed later this year.

The bill would make it unlawful for a person to sell, purchase, trade, possess or transfer any native reptile or amphibian species. It does allow SCDNR to continue to work with stakeholders to allow sustainable trade in important species that are bred in captivity.

The bill would also make it unlawful to release captive non-native reptiles and amphibians into the wild and authorizes SCDNR officials to prohibit or restrict possession of certain non-native species. Invasive species like Burmese pythons and Argentine black-and-white tegu lizards are expanding their reach across the southeastern United States, wreaking havoc on native ecosystems.

Passage of this bill would mean much better protection for our native herps.

But, what about the victims of trafficking cases…what happens to the confiscated animals? Unfortunately, it’s impossible to just release them. Many turtles are territorial and since we can’t identify where they came from, it’s difficult to get them back to their home range. Confiscated animals have also sometimes been exposed to pathogens that could infect wild populations.

The box turtles from the Chester County case became part of the “Bulldogs for Box Turtles” project at the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, run by the University of Georgia. This project creates a conservation strategy for assessing and rehabilitating confiscated turtles. The Chester County turtles had genetics and health samples collected. Through collaboration between SREL, SCDNR, and the U.S. Forest Service, the turtles were then moved to a constructed outdoor enclosure. They have now been released with radio-transmitters so they can be monitored. The behavior and survival rate of these turtles will help shape the conservation strategy for future confiscations.

Hopefully, happier days are ahead for our herps!

Sara Green
Executive Director
South Carolina Wildlife Federation

For more than 89 years, the South Carolina Wildlife Federation has been conserving and restoring South Carolina’s wildlife and wildlife habitat through education and advocacy! For more information: www.scwf.org

Article printed in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal on July 5, 2020