Written By Brian Conte
Photography by David Howard
magine yourself parachuting over Beaufort County. Now, visualize the landing. As your feet touch ground, what does the surface of the earth look like? If you picture your feet touching water or marsh grass, you would be correct 50% of the time. In other words, approximately half of the area that makes up Beaufort County is salt marsh or rivers. Amazing.
Water attracts tourists and new residents and prevents locals from considering moving anywhere else. From the smells of the marsh at low tide, to the sounds of laughing gulls and kingfishers, to the salty taste of oysters collected from the May River. Water dominates the Lowcountry experience.
As we drive around this county, we see sights unique to this area. On Highway 17 near Gardens Corner, an eerie forest of dead, live oaks is visible from the road. Rising sea levels have caused the soils to become too salty for these trees to survive. When you cross the bridge to Hilton Head Island at low tide, you can see expanses of oyster beds. Sub-tidal oysters (oysters that are exposed part of the tidal cycle) can only be found in this part of the country. As you drive on Highway 170, hummock islands dot the landscape. These hummocks are created in areas with slightly higher elevations. Many of these islands are remnants of Native American oyster grounds.
Water is the common thread that runs through all of these scenes. When discussing water, there are two very important issues to consider: quantity and quality. As a community, our quality of life depends on our ability to strike a balance between these two issues. Beaufort Country has recognized this need and has formed the Storm Water Utility. However, I believe our ability to successfully manage water will not be decided by our public officials, but by the actions of private citizens.
It all starts when the first drop of rain hits ground. Some of this water will be taken up by soil and plants or percolate into our groundwater, raising our groundwater table. A large percentage of the rainwater will be transported into our rivers and estuaries in the form of storm water runoff. The remainder will be taken up into the atmosphere to continue the cycle.
We count on the Beaufort County Public Works Department to manage much of our storm water. They receive the phone calls when backyards are flooded or when roads are covered by water. Too much surface runoff results in property damage and poses threats to public safety. Storm drains and sewers are designed to move runoff from your neighborhood to the nearest body of water. Contrary to popular belief, storm sewers do not carry storm water to wastewater treatment plants.
Planning departments also regulate storm water by forcing developments to control the water on their property. These come in the form of best management practices (BMPs). The most common examples are the retention ponds found next to large parking lots and in residential complexes. They serve to slow down the progression of water and increasing the volume of water that infiltrates the groundwater. In the Lowcountry, a one-foot change in elevation can determine which areas get flooded and which areas stay dry. Managing storm water is an extremely difficult task.
There are many project steps residents can take to make this easier. Years ago I attended a talk given by Dean Moss, general manager of the Beaufort Jasper Water and Sewer Authority (BJWSA). He explained that most water utilities experience a peak in water consumption around 6 a.m. This is the time when residents run the dishwasher, flush toilets and take showers. BJWSA, however, experiences a peak in water consumption starting at 4 a.m. This is the hour when many automatic timers are set to water our yards. Here are a few things we can all do:
Know your properties drainage. The next significant rainfall, grab an umbrella and walk outside. Note how far it is to the nearest storm sewer, ditch, wetland, stream or surface water. Are there ways you can reduce the amount of storm water leaving your property?
Aim roof gutters or downspouts away from foundations and paved surfaces. For roofs without gutters, plant grass, spread mulch, or use gravel under the drip line to prevent soil erosion and increase the ground’s capacity to absorb water.
Plant native vegetation. Native plants require very little extra irrigation. Regularly check your automatic watering systems. Many irrigation systems are timed to water when you are asleep.
Manually run the systems every month, to make sure you are not watering sidewalks and streets. Water quantity is inextricably linked to water quality. If we move water too quickly off the surface of the earth, we prevent natural processes from removing harmful constituents in the water. Excess sediment, fertilizers, and metals are filtered out of storm water if they are given time to be taken up by plants or enter the ground water.
How is storm water impacting our water quality? One way we can answer that question is by monitoring fecal coliform levels in our rivers. The Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) tests hundreds of locations in Beaufort County. Fecal coliform bacteria spend most of their lives inside warm-blooded animals. They enter the environment through human and animal waste. These bacteria are transported into our waterways through storm water runoff.
Fecal coliform bacteria do not pose a direct threat to human health. However, they serve as a warning that other pollutants might be present. Most notably, pathogens carrying cholera and hepatitis A are often found in areas with high fecal coliform counts. Recent studies have also suggested the co-occurrence of fecal coliform with petroleum products. Large counts of fecal coliform bacteria indicate areas impacted by storm water runoff. Hundreds of acres of shellfish beds in Beaufort County have been closed for this reason.
Households are the number one polluters in the Lowcountry. Replace your old image of an industry dumping toxic pollutants through a discharge pipe with a picture of your neighborhood. This poses a more difficult problem for regulators because the source of the pollution is seldom known. These steps will help reduce the amount and type of pollutants we contribute:
Plant native vegetation near rivers and ponds. These plants slow down the progression of storm water and can filter out pollutants before they reach the surface water.
Clean up after your pets, it might not be glamorous, but it is important.
Inspect your septic tank yearly. This not only prevents spills but also prolongs the life of the system.
Follow the directions for fertilizer and pesticide application carefully. Never “double up” on these chemicals, thinking that more is better.
Water will always dominate the Lowcountry landscape. How we manage storm water and protect water quality will define the Lowcountry landscape. It will take the active participation of residents to maintain the delicate balance of water quantity and water quality.
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