What’s at Stake

Wetlands are highly productive ecosystems, defined as areas covered or saturated with enough water to support plants that thrive in wet soils. Since colonial times, South Carolina has lost about one-third of its original wetland acreage. Wetlands deliver a number of valuable services: they reduce flood damage, store water in times of drought, provide habitat to many species and recharge and filter groundwater supplies. Water quality is also improved when wetlands, commonly referred to as “nature’s kidneys,” trap nutrients and sediments. 

The federal Clean Water Act’s Section 404 permitting program has slowed loss of wetlands in the past several decades, but federal protections are diminishing today in response to court decisions that have muddied the waters as to which wetlands are protected by federal law.

The Department of Health & Environmental Control (DHEC) had once estimated that these at-risk wetlands accounted for about 300,000 acres or about 9% of all the state’s wetlands – but the total acreage of unprotected wetlands could now be much higher due to decreased protection laws. Of particular concern are wetlands not adjacent to large navigable rivers, including Carolina Bays, seepage pocosins and pond cypress swamps.
 
In Georgetown and Horry County, about 45 percent of the land is considered to be wetland. In Georgetown and Horry counties, eight percent of the wetlands were lost between 1992 and 2001. That number continues to rise. More than 97 percent of the Carolina Bays have been destroyed or seriously altered.

Challenges

Many states have used state regulations to replace lost federal protections. The General Assembly has considered the issue several times in recent years, but a consensus bill was not enacted.

South Carolina’s existing state law has been interpreted by conservationists, DHEC and the only court to examine the issue to protect all wetlands. They have been interpreted to fall within the definition of “waters of the state.” The debate at the federal level leaves protection laws unclear, however, and critical wetlands unprotected.

Both those who develop land and the conservation community understand the need for clear state laws that protect these wetlands. Because continued debate on a federal level leaves crucial ecosystems at risk and those seeking permits without direction, all will benefit from a state law that fills in the gap without overlapping.

Fast Facts

Carolina Bays are an unexplained phenomenon of the landscape of North and South Carolina. They are shallow, poorly drained basins that are oval and aligned along a northwest-southeast axis.

Unaltered Carolina Bays function as wetlands. At one time, 4,000 Carolina Bays existed, fewer than 500 still remain.

The Waccamaw River has the distinction of being the only river in the world to originate in a Carolina Bay.

For more information, contact Amy Armstrong or Jimmy Chandler, SCELP, 843-527-0078.   

Take Action

If you suspect that wetlands are being filled or drained, call DHEC at (843) 238-4528 and the Army Corps of Engineers at (866) 329-8187.

Support the adoption of county or municipal ordinances to protect wetlands. As of now, isolated wetlands are not protected. We must focus efforts to preserve these wetlands.

Help to prevent permits that violate environmental protection laws from being issued.

Links

U.S. EPA Wetlands Division

Association of State Wetland Managers

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Wetlands Reserve Program