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Columbia - The State 05/08/08
Developers sound off on wetlands
Criticism of DHEC hints of coming battle over state’s coastal regulations By SAMMY FRETWELL Coastal business interests fired the first shots Wednesday in what’s expected to be a fight over wetlands protection next year in South Carolina.
Developers and their representatives blasted the state’s coastal management law — which restricts the destruction of wetlands from Hilton Head Island to Myrtle Beach — as illegal, bureaucratic and hard to understand.
At a legislative hearing few lawmakers attended, many speakers said the state Department of Health and Environmental Control has overstepped its authority and needs clearer rules for development of coastal freshwater wetlands.
DHEC officials declined to speak at the hearing, but critics said permits take months to obtain.
“As a landowner in South Carolina, you should not have to employ legal counsel to go spend months’’ negotiating with state regulators for development projects, said Marc Cherry, a Charleston real estate agent. “Wetland regulations are not growth tools.’’
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/398668.html
Myrtle Beach - The Sun News 05/08/08
Carolina Bays route may change
Subdivision could change road's path
By Mike Cherney
The S.C. Department of Transportation could tweak the route of the estimated $180 million extension of Carolina Bays Parkway that would expand the highway from S.C. 544 to S.C. 707, said Mike Barbee, a DOT program manager.
Construction is scheduled to start in 2010 and finish in 2013. Work has already begun on revising an environmental impact study to determine whether the route needs to be changed for environmental reasons, Barbee said earlier this week.
Federal law requires the DOT to revisit the study, completed before the first portion of Carolina Bays Parkway between U.S. 501 and S.C. 9 was built in 2002, because more than three years have passed since its completion, Barbee said.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/news/local/v-print/story/443065.html
Hilton Head - Island Packet 05/08/08
Can Daufuskie's "oyster homes" be saved?
By MICHAEL WELLES SHAPIRO
The old tin-roofed houses hearken back to a time on Daufuskie Island when the oyster business was thriving, a native island population flourished and tourists were almost unheard of.
But industrialization came to nearby Savannah, polluting the Savannah River and contaminating Daufuskie's once-famous oyster beds. The island's black population left in droves to find work in Savannah, Bluffton and on Hilton Head Island. Many of the distinctive homes that date back to the early 1900s stood empty.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/492559.html
Charleston - Post and Courier 05/06/08
Snake hunter has close call with rattler By Nadine Parks It wasn't the first time snake hunter Ted Clamp had been bitten.
It was, however, his first strike by an Eastern diamondback rattlesnake and his first time getting a dose of an improved antivenin that he helps produce.
Brothers Ted and Heyward Clamp are co-owners of Edisto Island Serpentarium. Ted Clamp took a hit from a four-footer Sunday afternoon while hunting the venomous snakes along the Georgia coast.
The brothers were having a good day and had bagged seven of the rattlers by about noon. As Ted Clamp tried to place one of them in his bag, the snake was hung up on a fold in the bag, turned his head and struck Clamp in the left hand.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/may/06/snake_hunter_has_close_call_rattler39786/?print
Greenville News 05/06/08
Conservation, growth can go hand in hand
By Lewis Gossett
Perhaps the greatest conservationist to occupy the Oval Office, President Theodore Roosevelt once said, "Conservation means development as much as it does protection. I recognize the right and duty of this generation to develop and use the natural resources of our land; but I do not recognize the right to waste them, or to rob, by wasteful use, the generations that come after us."
Certainly, President Roosevelt was a champion for the great cause of preserving our natural legacy; yet, he also understood that environmental protection and economic growth are not mutually exclusive. In that spirit, we announce the formation of Citizens for Sound Conservation, a group dedicated to both the economic and environmental health of our state.
http://www.greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080506/OPINION/805060331/1008&template=printart
Columbia - SC Fishing Report.com 05/06/08
On Saturday I had a small booth at the DNR Marine Resources Center Open House at Fort Johnson outside Charleston. As Captain Hiott predicted, it was a great event. DNR had tons of exhibits and attractions set up, the weather was beautiful, and the waterside location was outstanding. In addition to lots of stuff geared towards fun for children, there was a wealth of information available for adults and particularly fishermen. I certainly plan to make it back next year.
http://www.scfishingreport.com/Pages/sc_message_boards/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=177&t=544&sid=267242bc56a20c6f522cb69c78e81790
Hilton Head - Island Packet 05/05/08
Local fish stocking program fears loss of revenue
By LIZ MITCHELL
Less money from the state could endanger research and fish stocking programs in the Lowcountry, according to Al Stokes, the manager of Bluffton's Waddell Mariculture Center.
Stokes and others say the local economy also will suffer because the center helps bring in recreational fishermen.
"It's the resources and beauty of South Carolina that attracts people here," Stokes said. "We are bringing in dollars and managing a lot of the economy for the state, but we get short-changed."
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/489670.html
Hilton Head - Island Packet 05/05/08
ATVs become neighborhood nuisances in Bluffton
By MICHAEL WELLES SHAPIRO
They come out at night, off-roading speedsters, engines roaring as they wind through Bluffton's power line easements and otherwise quiet neighborhoods.
All-terrain vehicles have become a nuisance for some Bluffton residents and business owners who are tired of the motorized four-wheelers buzzing through the few remaining scraps of available open land.
All-terrain vehicles tearing through neighborhoods is "not an uncommon problem," says Bluffton Police Chief David McAllister, as the once predominantly rural landscape has turned to asphalt, homes and stores.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/489677.html
Hilton Head - Island Packet 05/05/08
Okatie River to be studied for pollution to protect shellfish beds
By LIZ MITCHELL
The Okatie River is in trouble and a state agency has made it a top priority to restore it for shellfish harvesting.
The river is one of 970 impaired waterways in the state. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control is taking steps to change that.
Currently, shellfish harvesting is restricted along the Okatie except at the river's confluence with the Colleton River, said Mike Monday, DHEC's shellfish manager and water quality coordinator for Beaufort County.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/489668.html
Columbia - The State 05/05/08
Man drowns after canoe capsizes
LEXINGTON COUNTY
A 29-year-old Belvedere man drowned in Lake Murray early Saturday morning after his canoe capsized, said Lt. Robert McCullough, spokesman for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.
Nicholas Moore and another man were in a canoe between 20 to 50 yards offshore just off Pine Point Drive in Lexington when the boat capsized. The other man swam to shore, and after Moore did not surface, his friends called authorities around 4 a.m., McCullough said.
http://www.thestate.com/local/story/395628.html
Charleston - Post and Courier 05/01/08
DNR readies open house
Agency to highlight its education role
By Sally Watts
Ask most Lowcountry residents what the S.C. Department of Natural Resources does, and they'll say that DNR enforces hunting, fishing and boating laws. And they're right.
But while law enforcement is a critical part of DNR's role, it's not all the agency does. On Saturday, a free open house at DNR's Marine Resources Division at Fort Johnson will give Lowcountry residents a chance to see another side of the agency and its work.
Boat rides in Charleston Harbor on a marine research vessel, how-to clinics on fishing and shrimp baiting, seafood cooking demonstrations and a raft of activities for kids are planned for the open house from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the 22-acre facility on James Island.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/may/01/dnr_readies_open_house39209/?print
Columbia - The State 04/29/08
Farmer tries to block dump
POWER PLANT WASTE IN LOWER RICHLAND
By SAMMY FRETWELL
A mountain of power plant waste is about the last thing Heath Hill wants near his cornfield in Lower Richland.
Hill, a 57-year-old farmer and businessman, says the tainted refuse could pollute groundwater he uses for farming and drinking.
Earlier this month, Hill appealed in state administrative court to stop a landfill that will pile waste an estimated 170 feet above the flat plain of Lower Richland. He is challenging a state permit allowing SCE&G to dump tons of tainted waste each year at its coal-fired power plant along the Wateree River.
“They acted too fast,’’ Hill said of SCE&G and the state’s environmental protection agency. “They thought they could put this thing down our throats.’’
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/389525.html
Columbia - The State 04/22/08
Cassatt woman killed in shooting with deputies A 52-year-old Cassatt woman was killed Monday night after authorities say she shot at two Kershaw County sheriff’s deputies and a Department of Natural Resources agent who were serving arrest warrants.
Lori Ellis, who has a criminal history dating back to 1972 in New York and in South Carolina, was being served warrants for a liquor law violation, a fraudulent check and two traffic violations, said Kershaw County Sheriff’s Capt. David Thomley.
http://www.thestate.com/breaking/story/383236.html
Columbia - WIS-TV 04/22/08
Woman shot, killed after confrontation with authorities CASSATT, SC (WIS) - The Kershaw County Sheriff's Office says a woman was shot Monday night when authorities attempted to serve some bench warrants.
Captain David Thomley with the Kershaw County Sheriff's Office says 52-year-old Lori Jean Ellis was fatally shot shortly after 11pm.
According to Capt. Thomley, two Kershaw County deputies and a South Carolina Department of Natural Resources officer went to her home on Dogwood Lane in Cassatt to execute four bench warrants for failing to appear in court on various charges.
http://www.wistv.com/global/story.asp?s=8208074&ClientType=Printable
Charlotte Observer 04/22/08
`NATURE-DEFICIT DISORDER'
Lesson for kids: Get outside more
Staying inside said to take toll on imagination and experience MOIRA E. MCLAUGHLIN Washington Post When was the last time you built a treehouse or studied a worm slithering along? How about the last time you embarked on a make-believe adventure in your yard or hung from a tree branch, daydreaming?
If it's been a while, Richard Louv would like to change that. Louv, an author and nature lover, says kids don't spend enough time outside. So they lose out on the benefits of nature.
He calls this condition "nature-deficit disorder" and has made it the subject of his newest book, "Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder" ($13.95, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill).
http://www.charlotte.com/162/story/591105.html
Columbia - The State 04/22/08
New rules for wetlands?
Conservationists fear proposal will alter freshwater wetlands regulations and open coast to more development By SAMMY FRETWELL Two legislators have taken steps that could change 30 years of established wetlands regulation along the booming S.C. coast.
Conservationists say the proposed changes could weaken state rules protecting Carolina bays and swamps from Myrtle Beach to Hilton Head Island. That could open thousands of acres of wetlands to development.
Supporters say the legislators only are trying to clarify a confusing set of rules.
State Reps. Bill Witherspoon, R-Horry, and Dwight Loftis, R-Greenville, introduced a resolution last week that tells the state’s environmental agency to enact new development rules to govern coastal freshwater wetlands.
Witherspoon and Loftis took their measure directly to the House floor for debate this week, instead of holding a public hearing in a House committee, as is often the case. “There is no way to get our side heard,’’ said Cary Chamblee, a lobbyist for the state Sierra Club and Wildlife Federation. “To go directly to the Legislature on something this huge is pretty significant.”
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/382727.html
Charlotte Observer 04/22/08
Careful: Litter sting today
STEVE LYTTLE
Think twice before throwing trash out your car window this morning in Charlotte.
For starters, that is littering -- and you're making the Charlotte area a little less beautiful.
But it also might cost you money.
Keep Charlotte Beautiful and local law enforcement agencies are teaming on this Earth Day to conduct a litter sting this morning. Police will be patrolling area streets, looking for motorists who violate the littering laws. They also will be watching for drivers who are breaking other rules.
http://www.charlotte.com/breaking_news/story/591222.html
Columbia - The State 04/21/08
Monk: Inglis an unlikely environmentalist U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis, R-S.C., has news for you:
The era of cheap gasoline is over. SUVs will be things of the past. Gas will cost so much people will give them up.
“The resale value of them is dropping by the day,” says Inglis, who represents South Carolina’s most conservative area — the Greenville-Spartanburg corridor. “In several years, $4 a gallon gasoline will be a fond memory.”
In recent years, Inglis, 48, has become the most active of the eight-member S.C. congressional delegation on the intertwined issues of energy, the environment and the economy, according to political analysts, and business and environmental sources.
Inglis is now far greener than the other five S.C. Republican Congress members, but not as green as the two Democrats — Rep. John Spratt and Rep. Jim Clyburn — according to the League of Conservation Voters.
“Inglis understands true conservatism encompasses conserving energy, land and other natural resources,” says Dana Beach, S.C. Coastal Conservation League executive director.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/381833.html
Augusta Chronicle 04/20/08
It takes an outdoor store to save a Village Well, well, well.
I guess developers of the stalled Village at Riverwatch had an ace up their sleeves after all.
After nearly three years of on-again off-again (mostly off) activity at the proposed retail site near River Watch Parkway and Interstate 20, project backers have secured the holy grail of outdoor retail: Bass Pro Shops.
http://blogs.augusta.com/node/1382
Orangeburg - Times and Democrat 04/18/08 Bill would allow specialty dog food to be sold in SC COLUMBIA, S.C. - It would be legal to sell a specialty dog food made of imported venison in South Carolina under a bill approved by the House.
The measure sent to the Senate on Thursday would allow an exception to state law, which currently prohibits the sale of deer or venison except in specific circumstances. The law is intended to protect the state's white-tailed deer population.
Clinton Representative Jeff Duncan says the tweaking enables Eukanuba to sell a high-end dog food that's composed of venison raised on New Zealand farms.
The bill prevents the venison from being processed or packaged in South Carolina.
http://www.thetandd.com/articles/2008/04/18/ap-state-sc/d903ruf00.txt
Rock Hill - The Herald 04/17/08
Group designates Catawba as nation's most endangered river Fast-growing water demand, drought, faulty policies lead to ominous ranking By Bruce Henderson, and Adam American Rivers, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group that has turned out most-endangered lists since 1986, put the Catawba at the top of its 2008 list to be released today.
The group accused Carolinas decision-makers of "sucking their rivers dry" to continue development as an historic drought lingers over the Catawba basin. Neither state, it said, has a long-term water plan to ensure the river survives future growth.
http://www.heraldonline.com/109/story/494198.html
Aiken Standard 04/15/08
Earth Day celebration will be Friday
By HALEY HUGHES Staff writer
The City of Aiken's Environmental Committee will celebrate Earth Day 2008 on Friday.
The fourth annual event will start at 9 a.m. and last until noon at Hopelands Gardens. The public is welcome to attend at no cost.
This year's theme is "Recycling E-waste," said Tim Coakley, assistant director of Public Works. During the event, e-waste, or electronic waste, will be collected in the Hopelands Gardens parking lot off Dupree Place. There will be a small fee collected by the recycling company for the proper disposal of these items.
http://www.aikenstandard.com/0416Earth
Greenville News 04/17/08
Upstate drought still severe
State climatologist asks Upstate residents to limit nonessential water use this spring By Anna Simon CLEMSON BUREAU The Upstate remained in severe drought, while the state Drought Response Committee downgraded other parts of the state Wednesday.
Greenville, Pickens, Anderson, Oconee, Spartanburg and Laurens counties were among 11 counties that remain in severe drought, said Hope Mizzell, state climatologist.
The northern tier of the state is the driest -- northern portions of Greenville, Pickens, Oconee, Spartanburg and Cherokee counties, Mizzell said.
Lake levels remain a concern at Jocassee, Keowee and Hartwell, and stream flow into Upstate lakes from drier North Carolina remains below normal, Mizzell said.
http://greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080417/NEWS01/804170306/1001/NEWS&template=printart
Columbia - The State 04/17/08
Drought’s dry grip eases in S.C.
Winter rainfall didn’t cure South Carolina’s drought, but it improved conditions in much of the state.
All but two counties sank to severe drought conditions last summer. On Wednesday, the state drought committee decided only 12 counties in the Upstate still merit that status.
Thirteen counties in the northern Midlands (including Kershaw) and along the Savannah River were changed to moderate status. The rest of the state (including Richland and Lexington counties) is now in the least serious drought category, incipient.
http://www.thestate.com/local/story/378333.html
Charleston - The Post and Courier 04/17/08
Drought eases in Lowcountry
By Bo Petersen
Near normal rainfall for the year has eased the severe drought that was declared in the Lowcountry seven months ago, a state committee decided Wednesday.
Drought status has been taken down two notches for Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties. The counties are now in incipient drought, meaning there is the threat of a drought. But nearby Colleton County is still considered in moderate drought, and 12 Upstate counties still are in severe drought.
Six months of little or no rainfall last year left the Lowcountry as dry as the worst of the 1998-2002 drought. In the Spartanburg-Oconee counties region, rainfall in places is still less than half of normal. Rainfall in Charleston was more than nine inches for the year as of Wednesday, but more than three inches below normal.
"People look around, see their green lawn and think, how can we still be in drought conditions," said Hope Mizzell, state climatologist. But factors such as ground water recovery and Upstate stream flow to the Lowcountry are also considered by the State Drought Committee.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/17/drought_eases_lowcountry37607/?print
Florence Morning News 04/17/08
State officials: 12 SC counties still rated as severe draft
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- Winter rains may have eased the drought that has gripped South Carolina, but the state is not in the clear yet.
The (Columbia) State reports that only 12 counties in the state's northern areas are still rated as experiencing severe drought conditions.
On Wednesday, the state Drought Response Committee upgraded more than a dozen of South Carolina's central and western counties to moderate drought status. The rest of the state is now in the least serious drought category, incipient.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SC_DROUGHT_SCOL-?SITE=SCFLO&SECTION=US
Greenville News 04/17/08
Jocassee accident victim identified
By Terry Cregar
STAFF WRITER
The Oconee County Coroner’s Office has released the name of the man who died Wednesday after a boat he was fishing from capsized on Lake Jocassee.
Coroner Karl Addis identified the victim as Walter R. Hendricks, 61, of Inman.
Addis said an autopsy is being performed today to determine the cause of Hendricks’ death.
Hendricks and two others launched an 18-foot boat from Devils Fork State Park in Oconee County Tuesday night and fished through the night.
http://greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080417/NEWS01/80417023
Columbia - The State 04/17/08
Catawba river endangered
A national environmental group has put the Carolinas’ Catawba-Wateree at the top of the list of imperiled rivers
By SAMMY FRETWELL
sfretwell@thestate.com
The Carolinas’ failure to protect the Catawba River — an expansive waterway under siege by growth and drought — has made it the country’s most endangered river, a new report says.
American Rivers says the Catawba-Wateree system is at the center of a clash between development in the Southeast and a limited water supply — and without better state management, everyone will suffer.
“People across America should look at what’s happening on the Catawba-Wateree as a preview of coming attractions —and this movie isn’t a comedy, it’s a horror film,’’ said American Rivers president Rebecca Wodder.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/378351.html
Columbia - The State 04/17/08
Carolinas' waterway named most endangered in U.S.
By KATRINA A. GOGGINS - Associated Press Writer
COLUMBIA, S.C. --A river that flows between North and South Carolina has been named the most endangered waterway in the nation by an environmental advocacy group that considers it threatened by potential overuse and the region's persistent drought.
American Rivers put the Catawba-Wateree River ahead of nine others on the group's top 10 list for 2008. The designation is the latest bit of bad news for the 300-mile river, which is also the focus of a legal fight between the Carolinas that's made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
"People across America should look at what's happening on the Catawba-Wateree as a preview of coming attractions, and this movie isn't a comedy, it's a horror film," said Rebecca Wodder, president of the Washington-based group.
http://www.thestate.com/statewire/story/378468.html
Charleston - Post and Courier 04/17/08
Rivers cited most at-risk in nation
Advocates raise alarm for Catawba-Wateree
By Bo Petersen
A "water war," worsening droughts and a growing, thirsty population make the Catawba-Wateree river system the most endangered river in the country, an environmental advocacy group announced Wednesday.
With the designation, American Rivers hopes to focus public attention on what it called "backwards water management plans" and to push legislators in North Carolina and South Carolina to approve water-sharing agreements that would regulate users and water levels left in the rivers and streams.
The Catawba flows from the North Carolina mountains and joins the Wateree in the Midlands. The system provides nearly half the water that flows into the Marion-Moultrie lakes, the source of drinking water for most of the Lowcountry. The system is the focus of a South Carolina lawsuit against North Carolina over proposed water withdrawals from its basin. The lawsuit is now being heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The "endangered" designation comes as South Carolina legislators grapple with a proposed state water plan, a law that would create a permitting system and set withdrawal limits for most large surface water users.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/17/rivers_cited_most_at_risk_nation37605/?print
Columbia - The State 04/17/08
Logjam is dooming water withdrawal bill
By SAMMY FRETWELL
An impasse between big business and conservation groups has all but killed a plan to protect rivers and drinking water across South Carolina.
Without a law to oversee water withdrawals:
n South Carolina’s drinking water plants and industries could be vulnerable if new companies divert water upstream.
• The Palmetto State will have a harder time striking deals with Georgia and North Carolina for the use of common rivers, including the Savannah and Catawba, negotiators say.
The bill, which has bogged down in the Legislature, would, for the first time, require permits — and state oversight — for new or expanding industries that want to draw at least 3 million gallons per month from a river.
Catawba Riverkeeper David Merryman said it’s a shame the Legislature could not reach an agreement.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/378348.html
Myrtle Beach - The Sun News 08/17/08
Senate finds no tourism funding
Area lawmakers give up on getting promotion money
By Zane Wilson
COLUMBIA --Faced with overwhelming opposition, Horry County's four senators abandoned their attempt to regain tourism promotion funding in the state budget around midday Wednesday.
The action came on Hospitality Day at the Statehouse, as hundreds of people from the industry watched in the gallery and lobby.
"It was a valiant effort," said Myrtle Beach City Councilman Randal Wallace, who was in the lobby as the senators gave up their drive to reinstate at least $10 million in 2-1 matching funds for tourism promotion.
"Yeah, our guys put on an effort," said Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce President Brad Dean, also watching from the lobby.
"It's clear at this point that the Senate does not want to invest in tourism," Dean said.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/news/local/story/420071.html
Beaufort Gazette 04/17/08
Hunting Island continues to be one of S.C.'s fastest eroding beaches
By IAN LESLIE
Hunting and Harbor islands' beaches are among the five coastal areas most threatened by erosion in the state, with Hunting Island losing up to 50 feet of sand last year, according to the State of the Beaches report released Wednesday.
The annual report released by the S.C. Department of Health and Environment Control's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management and published since 1991 summarizes changes to the state's beaches during 2007.
The results are based on beach surveys conducted at 399 monitoring stations.
http://www.beaufortgazette.com/local/v-print/story/410100.html
Columbia - The State 04/17/08
Physical activity key to improving kids’ academics, behavior
By WARREN BOLTON
Associate Editor
I WAS TALKING with a friend recently who lamented the lack of adequate physical exercise students get at school these days.
His daughter, an athlete, had already used up her physical education elective for the year and wasn’t afforded time during the day to expend energy, burn off fat and strengthen her body.
Many schools in South Carolina and across America are cutting back on P.E. and recess time due to pressure to meet increased test score and academic standards.
While it’s supremely important to insure children perform academically, we can’t afford to allow physical activity to be squeezed out. If we don’t ensure their physical health, we can — and it appears have — contribute to kids’ becoming overweight and hyperactive.
Report after report points to how sedentary and obese children have become. South Carolina ranks seventh nationwide in overweight children ages 10-17, according to a report from the Washington-based Trust for America’s Health.
http://www.thestate.com/editorial-columns/v-print/story/378518.html
New York Times 04/17/08
Businesses in Bay Area May Pay Fee for Emissions
By FELICITY BARRINGER
SAN FRANCISCO — Air quality regulators in the San Francisco Bay Area appear set to begin charging hundreds of businesses in the region for their emissions of heat-trapping gases.
It is believed to be the first time in the country that any government body would charge industries directly for emissions that contribute to climate change. The regional agency that is considering the fee, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, would be effectively leapfrogging the continuing debate in Sacramento and Washington over how to control emissions.
The businesses affected by the fee — 4.4 cents per ton of carbon dioxide emitted — range from large petroleum refineries and cement plants to small gasoline stations and industrial bakeries.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/us/17fee.html?ei=5070&en=466c0bd22eab0abd&ex=1209096000&emc=eta1&pagewanted=print
Columbia - The State 04/16/08
Lake Murray | Marina strives to keep it clean Dye being used to make spotting illegal dumping of sewage easier By TIM FLACH tflach@thestate.com Lighthouse Marina in Ballentine is putting green dye in boat tanks to make it easier to spot illegal dumping of sewage into Lake Murray.
It’s a low-tech step to help keep the water clean — an effort some of the lake’s dozen major marinas plan to emulate.
In addition, six large marinas are on board to provide disposal free or at low cost while a few smaller ones and neighborhood docks may add stations as well.
“Really, it’s protecting our interest,” Southshore operator Carl Sundius said. “Nobody wants to come to something stinky, smelly and dirty.”
State officials receive reports of illegal dumping in the lake about once a month but say it’s hard to detect. The dye could make it easier.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/377262.html
Charleston - WCIV TV 4 04/16/08
Tossing those Oysters, Causing a Shortage of Shells
Maybe you've hosted an oyster roast or maybe you've had oysters while out to dinner, but if you've done either, there's a good chance after all the shucking, your shells were thrown out.
May not sound like a problem, but tossing them in the trash is creating a critical shortage of shell.
It's important to replenish what we harvest to eat in order to keep the oyster population alive. but, restaurants and residents throw so many of the shells out, South Carolina then turns to other states and purchases the same kind of shells we could have just re-used.
The process seems simple. shuck, suck and save. But the problem, "a lot of people don't know where the nearest drop off is, a lot don't know that we even recycle oysters, a lot don't even know why we do it," said Andy Jennings, a Shellfish Biologist with the Department of Natural Resources.
http://www.wciv.com/news/stories/0408/511711.html
Columbia - The State 04/16/08
Tourism investment imperative in bad times
By GEORGE FLETCHER and DOUG WENDEL
Guest Columnists
Good news, South Carolina — despite the slowing economy, our No. 1 industry continues to do well, employing thousands of people and generating billions of dollars in revenue for the state’s coffers.
Wait — bad news, South Carolina. The Senate Finance Committee has proposed to cut investment in this industry, which creates jobs all over the state, just when we could most benefit from a boost to the tax revenues and the considerable potential for growth and higher income levels it provides.
Tourism, of course, is the industry we’re talking about. Tourism employs 12 percent of South Carolina’s workforce, and it raises more than $300 million per year in state sales and use taxes, most of which is paid by out-of-state visitors. Tourism also generates more than $16 billion in direct and indirect revenue every year.
http://www.thestate.com/editorial-columns/v-print/story/377364.html
Columbia - The State 04/15/08
Scientists: Big quake likely in Calif.
By ALICIA CHANG
AP Science Writer
California faces an almost certain risk of being rocked by a strong earthquake by 2037, scientists said in the first statewide temblor forecast.
New calculations reveal there is a 99.7 percent chance a magnitude 6.7 quake or larger will strike in the next 30 years. The odds of such an event are higher in Southern California than Northern California, 97 percent versus 93 percent.
"It basically guarantees it's going to happen," said Ned Field, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Pasadena and lead author of the report.
The 1994 Northridge earthquake under Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley was magnitude 6.7. It killed 72 people, injured more than 9,000 and caused $25 billion in damage in the metropolitan area.
http://www.thestate.com/nationwire/v-print/story/375608.html
Columbia - The State 04/15/08
Sprinkler use increased to once a week in drought
YORK COUNTY
People in Rock Hill and Fort Mill can use their sprinklers again — though only once a week.
Under relaxed drought restrictions approved Monday by the two governments, odd-numbered home addresses will be allowed to water on Saturdays, while even numbers can water on Sundays.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/376441.html
Charlotte Observer 04/15/08
SC park fees for disabled vets, seniors targeted in budget
The Associated Press
COLUMBIA, S.C. --
Disabled veterans and seniors may have more than gas prices to worry about when they head to South Carolina state parks this summer.
The state budget the Senate is debating Tuesday would eliminate free admission for disabled veterans and a half-off discount for people 65 and older. Seniors currently get a 35 percent discount.
http://www.charlotte.com/205/story/581952.html
Columbia - The State 04/13/08
Congaree National Park launches another growth spurt with tract purchase
By JOEY HOLLEMAN
Congaree National Park soon will grow by 625 acres as the natural oasis slowly fills in its planned future boundaries.
The newest addition is part of the Silverstone tract, the one large privately owned link remaining in a 30-mile wildlife corridor along the east bank of the Congaree River.
The 625 acres to be added to the park is only about a third of the Silverstone tract. However, the $2 million purchase gives park advocates confidence the National Park Service eventually will own the whole thing.
The Trust for Public Land closed on the purchase of the 625 acres last week. The nonprofit conservation organization plans to sell the property to the Park Service when it has federal money available. The land has been used by a hunt club for years.
http://www.thestate.com/travel/v-print/story/374290.html
Columbia - The State 04/12/08
Greenville | Beekeeper helping rid house of 60,000 bees
A Greenville County woman is working with a beekeeper to rid her home of 60,000 bees living in the walls of her house for a month.
WYFF-TV reports that Jane Walcott is allergic to bees and has been sleeping with anti-allergy medication near her bed to give herself an emergency shot if stung.
Beekeeper Charlie Holden says it will take a few weeks to remove the bees, which he hopes to move to his home, where he keeps around 3 million of the insects in 50 hives
http://www.thestate.com/local/story/373415.html
Charleston - Post and Courier 04/15/08
Boater's body found in creek
Divers find missing Mt. Pleasant man
By Noah Haglund
Search crews found the body of a missing boater in a Berkeley County creek early Monday, a few hours after his family reported him overdue from a fishing trip, authorities said.
The man's Labrador retriever was inside the boat when family members found it on Beresford Creek late Sunday, said Bill Salisbury, Berkeley County chief deputy coroner and captain of the Berkeley County Rescue Squad.
"The engine was still running, the boat was in neutral, and the boat had drifted against a private dock," Salisbury said.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/15/boaters_body_found_creek37279/?print
Spartanburg - Herald Journal 04/14/08
Funeral will be Thursday for Spartanburg teen killed in ATV accident
A Spartanburg teenager died Sunday after an all-terrain vehicle he was riding flipped over and landed on him.
Michael William Watts, 16, of 537 Summerland Drive was riding the ATV behind his residence about 4:30 p.m. Sunday, said Robin Forrest, chief investigator with the Spartanburg County Coroner's Office.
http://goupstate.com/article/20080414/NEWS/804140315/1051/NEWS01
Charleston - The Post and Courier 04/14/08
Salt air not so good for environment
By Bo Petersen
The breezy coastal air, long thought to help clean up pollution, might be making it worse.
Chlorine in the salt air mixes with nitrogen oxide, a chemical compound released by burning carbon fuels like gasoline or diesel, to form nitryl chloride, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study of ports from Charleston to Texas.
Nitryl chloride is suspected of exacerbating ground-level ozone along the coast. Ozone is a chief ingredient in smog and poses a significant health risk, the Environmental Protection Agency said.
'We found unexpectedly high levels of certain air pollutants where pollution from cities and ships meets salt in the ocean air along the Southeast coast of the United States,' Hans Osthoff, a University of Calgary chemistry professor who took part in the study, said in a news release. He said that it 'tells us that emissions from marine vessels may be polluting the globe to a greater extent than currently estimated.'
Jim Roberts, a NOAA research chemist who also took part in the study, said the mixing might make the pollution 10 percent worse.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/14/salt_air_not_so_good_environment/?print
Hilton Head - Island Packet 04/14/08
Man wants bridge to his island but state says no
By BRANDON HONIG
FRIPP ISLAND -- The owner of a small coastal area off Fripp Island will not be permitted to build a bridge over the marsh to gain vehicle access, state regulators ruled, but an appeal is pending.
Jerry Risher purchased the 0.27-acre hummock in 1997, a year after the property's previous owner obtained a permit for a bridge to connect to Fripp's Tarpon Boulevard. A hummock is a tract of wooded land that is higher than a surrounding marshy area.
The permit, however, expired in 2001, and the state enacted regulations in 2006 that prohibit bridges to coastal islands smaller than 1 acre.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/305496.html
Charleston - Post and Courier 04/14/08
State belt-tightening worries tourism folks
By Kyle Stock
Pick your farm animal. The goose that laid the golden egg. The cash cow.
But tourism, the No. 1 industry in Charleston, is taking a hit from lawmakers rationing out the state harvest in Columbia. The state House of Representatives axed from its upcoming budget $10 million earmarked to match local initiatives to promote travel to the Palmetto State. They axed another $550,000 for regional nonprofits that promote tourism and $500,000 to market the state abroad.
If the current plan swings through the Senate and past the governor, the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau will have 25 percent less to spend in the fiscal year starting July 1. Helen Hill, director of the group, is not happy about that.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/14/state_belt_tightening_worries_tourism_fo37115/?print
Charleston - Post and Courier 04/14/08
Beneath water lies a big boat-eating hazard
By Schuyler Kropf
Capt. Steve Little cringes when he recalls the creaking noise a pleasure boat makes once it's hung up on the Charleston Harbor jetties.
It's a cacophony of sounds, highlighted by the crackling din of ripping fiberglass. 'If a boat rolls, you'll have metal bending and T-tops breaking,' he said.
With Charleston's boating season back in full swing, Little speaks with authority about the frequency of accidents that occur along the harbor jetties, the submerged mound of stones that defines the harbor mouth but can act like a magnet for boat wrecks.
As a captain with Tow Boat US, Little has pulled three pleasure boats ranging from 20 feet long to almost 50 feet long off the jetty's jagged rocks in the past few months.
'A lot of people go out there and buy a nice boat and don't know the area and end up getting in trouble,' Little said. 'Most of it is not knowing the area and not paying attention.'
Little's comments came shortly before showing off the wrecked underside of a 48-foot Sea Ray. Its owner faces up to $60,000 in repairs to the boat's jetty-damaged under side.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/14/beneath_water_lies_big_boateating_hazard/?print
Columbia - The State 04/14/08
Whale watching done from above
Wildlife Trust teams find surprises in aerial searches for endangered species
By BO PETERSEN - The Post and Courier
CHARLESTON — Squeezing into the tiny cockpit feels like squatting in a bathtub.
One of Rachel Sayre’s shoulders bumps the plane wall, the other bumps the shoulder of Michelle Schatz. Even with headphones on, they hear gears crank on the propeller whizzing just behind their heads.
For hours at a time, all winter long, Wildlife Trust survey team members have perched with a pilot and first officer in the buzzing confines of a four-seat Cessna Skymaster, craning to peer out the windows at the endlessly rolling wave shadows and light of the ocean below.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/375153.html
Columbia - The State 04/14/08
Largest live oak in U.S. gets a little smaller
1,000-year-old tree at Middleton Place loses two large limbs
By DAWN HINSHAW
MIDDLETON PLACE — Over the centuries, a massive live oak tree on the crest of a hill facing the Ashley River has been a place of reverence.
When people walked beneath its canopy, their voices fell to a whisper, as if they were in church.
Couples arranged weddings under its enduring boughs.
But for Velma Floyd, the Middleton Oak — thought to be the largest in the country — has been a place for children dancing in the delight of nature.
Floyd, a volunteer at the 65-acre plantation outside Charleston, said kids on school tours would crowd under the tree and embrace it in a circle, holding hands to see how many of them it took to reach around its 37-foot trunk.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/375170.html
Columbia - The State 04/13/08
Bigfoot in S.C.? | Experts: ‘it’s the real deal’
‘It’ attacked a van in Bishopville and attracted a Bigfoot-hunting team to the state
By RANDY BURNS
The (Sumter) Item
BISHOPVILLE — Something apparently attacked Bob and Dixie Rawson’s van in the early morning hours of Feb. 28.
The Rawsons live about two miles southeast of downtown Bishopville. They woke up Feb. 28 to find the front fender of their 2002 Dodge Grand Caravan chewed up, bite marks through the front grill, wheels on both sides bitten and metal crumpled in a wad. There was also blood on the front and sides of the car.
While there has been no “official” sighting of the Lizard Man since July 1988, the Rawsons’ evidence has created a stir, not just locally but nationwide.
After the Rawsons contacted a Columbia TV station, the story was aired on CNN. In March, filmmaker and self-proclaimed Bigfoot hunter Tom Biscardi and his five-man team visited Bishopville to discover the truth of the Lee County incident.
Equipped with thermal imagers and high-tech cameras, Biscardi conducted initial forensic tests and sent the evidence to California. The team also planned to use its cameras overnight in search of the creature.
The initial evidence found by Biscardi’s team is compelling, he said. “You’ve got the real deal here.”
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/374291.html
Charleston - The Post and Courier 04/12/08
Beach seems to be coming back on own
IOP replenishment project still will go on
By Bo Petersen
Brad Nettles
ISLE OF PALMS — The Wild Dunes beach renourishment project is on the move.
Meanwhile, the offshore shoal that exacerbated the erosion is apparently moving ashore.
State coastal managers recently stood atop the wall of sandbags now protecting condominiums and houses and measured an increase in the beach sand.
"There is indication that the erosion due to the shoal bypass event is subsiding and the beach is starting to build back naturally," Dan Burger, communications director for the S.C. Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, said in an e-mail.
The erosion has been caused by a periodic shoaling of sand at the inlet's mouth; the shoals eventually migrate to the beach.
Whether or not the beach restores itself, whether or not the beach restores itself. It's expected to be an ongoing project to protect both vulnerable tips of the island from on-again, off-again erosion.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/12/beach_seems_be_coming_back_on_own37025/?print
Charleston - Post and Courier 04/11/08
Utility moves on power plant plan
Critics say it's a gamble without approval By Tony Bartelme Santee Cooper is busy importing and staging $146 million in building materials near the site of its proposed Pee Dee coal-fired power plant, even though state and federal regulators have yet to sign off on the controversial project.
Santee Cooper says that it wants to get the plant online as soon as possible and that buying and storing building materials will speed the construction process if regulators give the project a green light.
But critics say it's a $146 million gamble, given concerns about global warming, rising costs for coal, a possible tax on carbon and the project's potential to worsen mercury pollution.
Buying materials now means the utility locks in prices at 2008 levels, "and that could save ratepayers money if they get a permit, but I think they're taking an enormous risk," said Nancy Cave of the Coastal Conservation League.
A resident near the plant, Terry Cook, had stronger words. "I'm disgusted down the line. Santee Cooper has continued to do what they darn well please. You don't spend $146 million on something unless you're sure it's going through."
Santee Cooper is seeking government permits to build two 600-megawatt generators along the Great Pee Dee River near the tiny town of Pamplico.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/11/utility_moves_on_power_plant_plan36844/?print
Augusta Chronicle 04/11/08
New tour boat gets OK from Coast Guard
By Rob Pavey | Staff Writer
A new tour boat that will operate on the Savannah River was certified by the Coast Guard last week and may begin commercial operations sometime next week.
"We were happy to learn we passed everything," said Capt. Jim Bradshaw, who spent 18 months renovating the 51-foot Patriot, which originally ferried tourists in the Boston Harbor area.
Because the boat will transport passengers, it requires Coast Guard inspection, testing and certification before going into service. The Patriot was designed to hold 85 passengers and was certified for 80, Capt. Bradshaw said.
The capacity test involves using barrels filled with water to simulate the weight of people, then evaluating the boat's stability when it is fully loaded.
http://chronicle.augusta.com/cgi-bin/print_story.pl
Charleston - Post and Courier 04/11/08
Extend Mark Clark Expressway? 'Yes!' 'No!'
More than 400 turn out to tell state DOT their opinions of proposed I-526 expansion
By Sophia Rodriguez
James Island — An extended Mark Clark Expressway can't be finished before 2013, but the floodgates of public opinion already are wide open.
More than 400 people showed up at Murray-Lasaine Elementary School Thursday night to tell the state Department of Transportation whether they want the $420 million Interstate 526 extension built. Some also offered possible alternatives to the controversial road that would connect the West Ashley end to the James Island connector, passing through Johns Island.
The meeting was the beginning of the public input process into the Transportation Department's Environmental Impact
Statement for the project. Residents can comment for two more weeks by phone or at the project Web site.
"People are looking at environmental concerns, traffic concerns, community concerns," said Dave Kinard, a project manager with the Transportation Department. "I'm asking people to make comments in writing. The comments will become a part of the official record and the environmental document."
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/apr/11/extend_mark_clark_expressway_yes_no36891/?print
Columbia - The State 04/10/08
SC energy-saving tax break proposals get push after stalling
By JIM DAVENPORT
Associated Press Writer
Three proposals that would provide tax breaks for energy-efficient purchases were nearly defeated Thursday, but South Carolina's Senate leader saved them by agreeing to offer the incentives a year later.
Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell's move came after colleagues raised concerns about whether the state can afford the tax breaks in a tight spending year.
"I just told them this state in my opinion is headed towards an energy shortage," said McConnell, R-Charleston. "This is one of the few things that we can do to help reduce that shortage."
Earlier Thursday, a Senate panel sidelined the proposals, which would have likely defeated them for the year.
"We're going to look at it again and try to work out something so we can try to get it out," said Sen. William O'Dell, R-Ware Shoals.
http://www.thestate.com/statewire/v-print/story/371643.html
Orangeburg - Times and Democrat 04/10/08
Conservation Community opposed bill on surface water permitting
Legislation to grant South Carolina the authority to manage its finite water resources has been approved by the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and is now before the full Senate. This is one of the most important conservation bills the General Assembly has considered in years.
There are currently no state regulations governing water withdrawals in South Carolina, and while it is critical that we take the appropriate measures now to prepare for population growth, economic development and negotiations with neighboring states over shared water resources, it is equally critical that any legislation attempting to manage our surface water resources is done right. Jobs, communities, economic development, recreation and productive fisheries hang in the balance, and once adopted this legislation will set the course of our state’s water use for generations to come.
http://www.thetandd.com/articles/2008/04/10/news/doc47fce15b4365f856102182.txt
Hilton Head - Island Packet 04/10/08
Bluffton considers creating wetlands to halt waterway pollution
By LIZ MITCHELL
A dying nature preserve in Bluffton Park is another symptom of the town's rapid growth, as more and more storm drainage flows from roads and new developments and carries pollutants to local waterways.
Runoff used to flow through that 9.65-acre preserve, but now stagnant water is killing trees and other vegetation. Last year, Bluffton and Beaufort County jointly purchased the tract with plans to turn it into a nature classroom.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/276316.html
Hilton Head - Island Packet 04/10/08
County considers ways to pay the bills in the event of a massive hurricane
By MICHAEL WELLES SHAPIRO
After a hurricane tears through a county, ravaging homes, injuring residents and generally wreaking havoc, the first thing on everyone's mind usually isn't the public purse strings.
But when natural disasters occur, local governments' pocketbooks are also in the path of the storm.
For governments that need property tax revenue to function, the biggest financial challenge after a storm is coming up with the money to rebuild as tax revenue slows to a trickle.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/276311.html
Columbia - The State 04/09/08
The Carolina coast | High-rise heaven?
Condo towers won’t get tougher rules despite perils, costs
By SAMMY FRETWELL
NORTH MYRTLE BEACH — State regulators Tuesday decided against toughening rules that allow high-rise condominiums on one of the most flood-prone beaches in South Carolina.
The decision at Cherry Grove — where condominium towers dominate a 20-block area once reserved for beach cottages — solidifies a state policy of letting less-restrictive oceanfront building codes stand even after taxpayers pay to renourish beaches.
The government has spent more than $100 million in the past two decades to widen South Carolina’s eroding seashore, the foundation of the state’s tourism economy. It spent some $20 million replenishing the shore at North Myrtle Beach in the 1990s and is preparing another multimillion dollar renourishment project this July. The $30 million project also includes other Grand Strand beaches.
http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/369862.html
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