Reports, News & Events

2025 Sewer Spill Report

Wed, 28 Jan 2026 20:02:17 GMT

Since 2013 we have published an annual sewer spill report for Congaree Riverkeeper's jurisdictional area, which includes the Lower Saluda, Lower Broad, and Congaree Rivers, and their tributaries. In 2025 there were more than 100 reported sanitary sewer overflows (SSO's) totaling more than seven million gallons of sewage spilled in our watershed.

This report was compiled using data from the SCDES Sewer Overflow Database , public notifications, and communications with local sewer providers.

Sewer overflows are a serious water quality concern. They can contaminate waterways and create both ecological and public health issues. River users who are exposed to sewer overflows may experience health problems including infections, rashes, and gastrointestinal issues.

2025 Sewer Spill Summary

The more than 7.8 million gallons of sewage spilled makes 2025 one of the worst years for sewer spills in the 13 years we've published this report.

The chart below shows 2025 as the worst year for overall volume of reported spills, but, as we have pointed out in previous reports, identifying spills and estimating volumes can be very difficult during flood events. So while previous years like 2015 and 2024 likely had higher than reported totals, last year was certainly still one of the worst, and by any measure an incredibly bad year for sewer spills.

Approximately 74% of the total volume of sewage spilled last year was caused by one event, the Town of Lexington's August 8th pump station failure that spilled 5.76 million gallons of sewage into Twelve and Fourteen mile creeks, tributaries to the Lower Saluda River.

Several of the other larger spills of the year, including another 1.3 million gallon spill from the Town of Lexington, were related to a significant rain event on May 12th that dropped several inches of rain across the Midlands in a short period of time.

All of these spills emphasize the need for regular maintenance and upgrades of our local sewer systems. Sewer infrastructure is often buried underground or tucked away, but just because it is out of sight doesn't mean it can be ignored. Sewer providers must invest in regular and ongoing maintenance and must design and update their systems to withstand more frequent and more damaging rainfall and flood events.

Top 10 Reported Sewer Spills

May 12th Sewer Overflow in West Columbia

SSO Hotspots

12 Mile and 14 Mile Creeks

These creeks, tributaries to the Lower Saluda River, were impacted by the Town of Lexington's two largest sewer spills.

Reeder Point Branch

The City of Columbia's largest spill in 2025 impacted Reeder Point Branch, a tributary to Mill Creek and eventually the Congaree River. This creek has experienced at least one major spill every year for the last the last 6 years. The City of Columbia even experienced another spill impacting Reeder Point Branch this January.

Important Notes

This report only represents the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Several sewer providers in the Midlands had spills that impacted other waterbodies outside of our jurisdiction. For example, the Town of St. Matthews spilled more than 500,000 gallons into a tributary to Lake Marion, the Town of Chapin spilled more than 120,000 gallons into Lake Murray, and the Town of Lexington spilled more than 80,000 gallons into Lake Murray (in addition to the spills listed above).

Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are more than 500 gallons, or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to SCDES, or that we had information about. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems experience spills but fail to report the information to SCDES and/or the public.

Past Reports

Click the links to view the past reports from 2023 and 2024 .

2025 In Review

Mon, 22 Dec 2025 16:08:29 GMT

Another busy year of fighting for our rivers is in the books.

Is it the end of the year already? It feels like we were just admiring the sight of snow along river in January. 2025 was another busy year, both on the water and off. We took on some new issues, continued our advocacy on several ongoing ones, engaged with citizens and decision makers, and worked day in and day out to protect our rivers. Take a look at some of the highlights and accomplishments from the last year:

With the help of 200+ volunteers we removed more than 7,500 pounds of trash from our rivers and streams through our volunteer cleanups ( see the full 2025 Cleanup Summary here ).
We responded to more than 50 pollution reports, investigating and responding to issues including sewer spills, illegal dumping, and construction runoff.
We continued to lead local water quality monitoring efforts, including the Midlands Rivers Coalition .
We initiated a federal lawsuit to address industrial plastic "nurdle" pollution impacting the Congaree River.
We continued our work to clean up dangerous PFAS "forever chemical" pollution, including our ongoing lawsuit against a carpet manufacturer on the Saluda, tracking other industrial sources, and advocating for stronger PFAS policy and regulations.
We continued to participate in South Carolina's water planning efforts, including serving on the WaterSC stakeholder working group and helping develop the newly updated State Water Plan .
We submitted comments and provided testimony on permits, policies, and proposed legislation at the local, state, and federal level. This included actions like opposing federal environmental rollbacks, advocating for wastewater outfall signage at the State House, and participating in local planning efforts.
And we engaged with thousands in the community through our outreach and education efforts.

We could not do this vital work protecting the Broad, Saluda and Congaree Rivers without the help of of our many donors, volunteers and partners. Thank you so much to everyone who continues to support our work for clean water and healthy rivers!

If you would like to support our work you can make a donation here.

2025 Cleanup Summary

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 16:49:29 GMT

In 2025 we held 14 rivers and stream cleanups and, with the help of 210 volunteers, we picked up more than 7,500 pounds of trash from our local waterways. Since 2019 we've partnered with the South Carolina Aquarium to track the trash we collect at our cleanups through the Litter Journal app . The data we collect helps us identify litter trends, inform advocacy and policy, and educate the public. This year we collected and recorded 15,817 pieces of trash and debris at our cleanups.

Glass bottles and fragments were the most common item we picked up this year, making up more than 25% of the total number of items we recorded. Though, more than half of that glass came from one cleanup along the West Columbia Riverwalk, a consistent problem area for broken glass.

Plastic bags (11.1%) , plastic bottles (8.9%), plastic food wrappers (8.6%), aluminum cans (8.4%), and styrofoam (8%) made up the rest of the most common items, and were found at every cleanup.

As we have seen every single year we've produced this annual cleanup summary, plastics were the largest category by a significant margin, making up half of all the items we documented.

In addition to the common items, we also pick up several large and/or odd items at the cleanups. This year we recored 13 tires and tire pieces, 2 shopping carts, several plastic buckets, numerous road reflectors, a surprising number of sports balls, and a disappointing number of full dog poop bags. Among the more unusual items recored were a prop skull, a helium tank, $11 in cash (thanks to the volunteers for donating the money), and a full bag of potatoes.

Thank you to all of our fantastic volunteers, we couldn't do this without you! Thanks to the community organizations and local businesses who joined us for cleanups, including Canoeing for Kids , Riverbanks Zoo staff, SC7 and SCDNR Staff, several USC clubs, USC Law School students, and PWC . Also, thanks to Palmetto Pride and SCDNR for providing supplies, and to our local government partners, including Richland County, City of Columbia, City of Cayce, and City of West Columbia for hauling off and disposing of the trash.

Midlands Rivers Coalition 2025 Sampling Season Summary

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 16:06:35 GMT

The ninth season of the Midlands Rivers Coalition 's weekly recreational water quality monitoring just concluded at the end of September. This season was a mixed bag of results, with several weeks of swimming advisories, but also lots of "all greens."

The numbers below provide a snapshot of the season:

11 sites on the Broad, Lower Saluda and Congaree Rivers were sampled every week for 21 weeks, from May - September
269 total bacteria samples were collected (231 regular samples and 38 follow-up samples)
49 samples did not meet the state standard for contact recreation (38 regular samples and 11 follow-up samples)
86% of all samples collected this season met the state standard for contact recreation (an improvement from last year's 78%)
8 weeks with at least one swimming advisory issued (but only 3 of those had advisories continue after follow-up sampling )
Finished with 6 straight weeks of All Greens! From 8/14 - 9/24 all samples met the state standard for contact recreation and there were no swimming advisories issued
10 of the 11 sample sites had multiple swimming advisories issued this season
Once again, only one site, the Saluda Shoals Canoe Landing (aka Upper Landing) had zero advisories this season

Stormwater runoff is a significant source of pollution, and a major driver of the high bacteria levels and swimming advisories. Remember, we often see elevated bacteria levels in the 24-48 hours after significant rain events. River users should always pay attention to the weather and use their best judgement. Sewer spills also contribute to water quality issues, and the coalition used the website to notify the public of several spills impacting the rivers this season.

Thank you so much to all of the Midlands Rivers Coalition partners who help make this effort possible. Weekly water quality monitoring will resume in May of 2026.

Congaree Riverkeeper Threatens to Sue Over Plastic Pollution

Wed, 10 Sep 2025 15:50:16 GMT

Pollution of the Congaree River violates federal Clean Water Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, groups say

Nurdle pollution from the Alpek / Eastman plant

Today, Congaree Riverkeeper, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center , told two major plastic manufacturing companies it intends to sue in federal court if their ongoing pollution is not remedied within 90 days. The two companies, Alpek Polyester USA, LLC (Alpek) and Eastman Chemical Company (Eastman), operate a large industrial plant on the banks of the Congaree River near Congaree National Park. According to the letter, the plant is engaged in multiple forms of illegal pollution: releasing large numbers of plastic pellets—known as “nurdles”—into the Congaree River; discharging the toxic chemical 1,4-dioxane without authorization; and violating pollution limits in its discharge permit designed to protect aquatic life.

Plastic pollution presents a major threat to the environment and public health, according to numerous studies. Once released into the environment, nurdles break up and multiply into toxic microplastics that can build up in the bodies of fish, wildlife, and people, causing myriad health risks ranging from reproductive and respiratory harms to colon and lung cancer.

“Thanks to Alpek and Eastman, plastic pellets are going right into the Congaree River, a popular fishing spot upstream from Congaree National Park,” said Bill Stangler, Congaree Riverkeeper. “Those who enjoy our waters and wetlands shouldn’t have to worry about plastic pollution every time they paddle, fish, or recreate along the Congaree.”

The letter also alleges that the plant is among the Nation’s largest dischargers of the chemical 1,4-dioxane, which has been designated as a probable carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The plant’s discharges of 1,4-dioxane are unauthorized, according to the letter––as are its routine violations of pollution limits for “biochemical oxygen demand,” which were set to protect aquatic life in the Congaree.

“What we see at the Alpek-Eastman Plant is a ‘who’s who’ of illegal pollution: plastics littering the area that can lodge in fish and people; large discharges of a toxic chemical; and high levels of organic pollution,” said Carl Brzorad, a Staff Attorney at SELC. "We’re prepared to take this to federal court if Alpek and Eastman don’t clean up their act.”

The letter states that the pollution at the plant violates the federal Clean Water Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, noting that these violations are subject to penalties of up to over $90,000 per day. If these violations are not addressed, the letter says, the groups will file a citizen suit in federal court to stop the pollution.

You can read more in these articles:

The State Newspaper - Hazardous pellets, harmful chemicals discharging to Congaree River, group says

The Post and Courier - Columbia-area industrial plant accused of polluting Congaree River, emitting ‘likely carcinogen’

Click to view a copy of the Notice of Intent to Sue letter.

2024 Sewer Spill Report

Thu, 27 Feb 2025 16:11:41 GMT

For the last twelve years we have published an annual sewer spill report for Congaree Riverkeeper's jurisdictional area, which includes the Lower Saluda, Lower Broad, and Congaree Rivers, and their tributaries, using data from DHEC's Sewer Overflow Database as well as other spills we investigated. In 2024 there were more than 100 reported sanitary sewer overflows (SSO's) totaling well over a million gallons of sewage spilled in our watershed.

Sewer overflows can contaminate waterways and impact water quality, creating both ecological and public health issues. River users who are exposed to sewer overflows may experience health problems including infections, rashes, and gastrointestinal issues.

2024 Sewer Spill Summary

Hurricanes and Data Constraints

The Midlands were impacted by two hurricanes in 2024: Debbie in August and Helene in September. Both storms brought significant rainfall and flooding, and resulted in numerous sewer spills across the region.

Identifying and addressing sewer spills during flood events can be very difficult. The spill location can be underwater or in areas that are unsafe to access for days, and estimating volumes can be nearly impossible. For example, the City of Columbia was unable to provide volume estimates for the spills during Helene and the flooding that followed and were only able to provide a list of locations where spills were confirmed (see below).

Additionally, during the flooding after Helene the City of Columbia's wastewater plant on the Congaree River experienced flooding and was only able to provide partial treatment to the wastewater being discharged into the river.

Another example of the difficulty of storm-related spills and the limits of some of this data is the spill that the City of Cayce reported in late October (several weeks after Helene) that impacted 6 Mile Creek. The City estimated the spill volume at "over 5,000 gallons" based on when they first observed the spill, but it was likely flowing for several weeks and much larger.

All this is to say that the 1.1 million gallon total on the chart above is significantly lower than the actual volume of sewage spilled into the watershed in 2024.

SSO Hotspots

Broad River / Columbia Canal

The Broad River and its tributaries (including the Columbia Canal, a drinking water source for the City of Columbia) experienced numerous SSOs throughout the year, including during the two hurricanes. The video below shows a large spill impacting the Columbia Canal in March of 2024.

Lower Saluda River

The Lower Saluda River and its tributaries experienced several large SSOs from various sewer providers.

Gills Creek / Lake Katherine

The Gills Creek watershed experienced multiple large SSOs during both hurricanes.

Reeder Point Branch

The City of Columbia had two of the larger spills of the year near their sewer pump station off Bluff Road that impacted Reeder Point Branch, a tributary to Mill Creek and eventually the Congaree River.

Additional Important Notes

This report only represents the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Some sewer providers in the Midlands had spills that impacted other waterbodies outside of our jurisdiction. For example, the Town of Chapin and Richland County had several spills impacting Lake Murray, Palmetto Utilities impacting the Spears Creek / Wateree River watershed, and the Town of St Matthews impacting the headwaters of Lake Marion.

Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are more than 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC or that we had information about. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems experienced spills but did not officially report the data to DHEC (like the Westwood Estates Apartments that regularly has spills but fails to report them).

Past Reports

Click the links to view the past reports from 2022 and 2023 .

2024 In Review

Sat, 21 Dec 2024 19:34:36 GMT

Take a look at some of the highlights and accomplishments from the last year.

We've been busy in 2024 - on the water organizing cleanups and collecting water quality samples, at the State House and city halls advocating on policy issues, and even filing a lawsuit in federal court to hold polluters accountable. Below are just some of the highlights and accomplishments from the last year:

With the help of nearly 200 volunteers we removed more than 9,000 pounds of trash from our rivers and streams through our volunteer cleanups.
We responded to dozens of citizen pollution reports, investigating and responding to issues from fish kills and flood damage to sewer spills and stormwater runoff.
We filed a Clean Water Act lawsuit to address PFAS "forever chemical" pollution from an industrial facility impacting the Saluda River and downstream communities.
We continued to lead local water quality monitoring efforts, including the Midlands Rivers Coalition.
We submitted numerous comments and provided testimony on permits, regulations, and proposed legislation at the local, state, and federal level.
We worked to ensure that the City of Cayce keep protections in place that would prevent the development of a massive new quarry along the Congaree River and adjacent to the Congaree Creek Heritage Preserve.
We worked with partners to help publish a national report on the dangers of pollution from plastic production facilities, including one right here on the Congaree River.
We continued to support South Carolina's water planning efforts, helping finalize the first-ever Broad River Basin Plan and were appointed by the Governor to the newly formed WaterSC working group.
And we engaged with thousands in the community through our outreach and education efforts.

We could not do this important work protecting the Broad, Saluda and Congaree Rivers without the help of all of our donors, volunteers and partners. Thank you so much to everyone who continues to support our work for clean water and healthy rivers! If you would like to support our work you can donate here.

2024 Cleanup Summary

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 18:02:57 GMT

This year we held 14 cleanups and, with the help of nearly 200 volunteers, we picked up more than 9,000 pounds of trash from local rivers and streams. Since 2019 we've partnered with the South Carolina Aquarium to track the trash we collect at our cleanups through the Litter Journal app . The data we collect helps us identify litter trends, inform advocacy and policy, and educate the public. In 2024 we collected and recorded 13,575 pieces of trash and debris at our cleanups.

Below is a brief analysis of our river and stream cleanup data from the last year.

Plastic bags (both retail and non-retail) were the most common item we picked up, making up almost 13% of the total number of items we recorded. We picked up dozens of plastic bags at every single one of our cleanups this year. Glass, plastic bottles, plastic food wrappers, aluminum cans, and styrofoam made up the rest of the most common items, and were found at virtually every cleanup.

Overall, plastics made up more than 53% of all the items we documented. Not surprisingly, plastics were again the most common category of trash by a significant margin.

In addition to the most common items, we also pick up a number of large or unusual items at the cleanups. This year we picked up 20 tires and tire pieces, 3 shopping carts, several hoses, an inflatable pool, a rolling trash can, a tv, a vaccum, and a bike.

Thank you so much to our amazing volunteers who came out and helped clean up our rivers and streams; we couldn't do any of this without you! Thanks to the community organizations and local businesses who joined us for cleanups, including the Gills Creek Watershed Association (and Canoeing for Kids for providing boats), various USC clubs, soldiers from Fort Jackson and several others. Also, thank you to Palmetto Pride and SCDNR for providing supplies, and to our local government partners, including Richland County, City of Columbia, and City of Cayce for picking up and disposing of the trash.

Pollution from Plastic Plant Impacting Congaree River

Tue, 26 Nov 2024 19:09:48 GMT

Thousands of pounds of toxic chemicals are being discharged into the Congaree River from this plastic plant every year.

Earlier this month the Environmental Integrity Project released a report, Plastic's Toxic River, detailing the widespread pollution impacts from plastics manufacturing plants on waterways across the country.

The report examined data from several plastics manufacturing facilities, including the Alpek Polyester Plant (formerly DAK Americas and Carolina Eastman) that discharges thousands of pounds of the toxic chemical 1,4-dioxane into the Congaree River every year. 1,4-dioxane is a byproduct of PET plastic manufacturing, and is a likely carcinogen, yet there is currently no limit in their permit on the amount of this dangerous chemical Alpek can dump into the Congaree River.

This unchecked pollution from plastic production is unacceptable, and our federal and state agencies need to take action now to protect our river and downstream communities. While we won't be holding our breath for the EPA to take meaningful action any time soon, the Clean Water Act already requires the use of the best available technology to treat pollutants like 1,4-dioxane, and we will be asking the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services to comply with the law and require Alpek treat for 1,4-dioxane when their already expired permit is renewed.

You can also read more in these articles:

The State Newspaper - Toxin was released into Congaree River. But agencies did little to stop it, greens say

Statehouse Report - Regulators do little as tons of toxin dumped into waterways, report says

Hurricane Helene Flooding

Mon, 07 Oct 2024 20:41:09 GMT

The Congaree River near its crest on the morning of Sept. 30th from the Gervais Street bridge.

On September 26th Helene made landfall on Florida's gulf coast as a category 4 hurricane before moving northward and impacting several southeastern states. The storm brought rainfall and high winds to the Midlands, and significantly more rainfall to the top of our watershed in the Upstate and western North Carolina. All that water eventually worked its way down the Broad and Saluda Rivers to the Congaree.

The Congaree River at Columbia crested at 30.58 feet on the morning of Monday, September 30th. This was major flood stage and will be a top 10 historic flood crest for the river. For reference, the Congaree River crested at 31.8 ft during the 2015 floods. You can see the current river level and forecast here.

The Broad River at Alston crested overnight Sunday/Monday at a historic high of 29.48 ft.

While inflow into Lake Murray was very high (up to 55,000 cfs) the Lower Saluda maintained flows in the red flow range (~17,000 cfs) for several days. A spillway gate was partially opened to compensate for a generating unit that was down for maintenance. You can find updates on the Saluda Hydro operations here.

Flooding did occur in neighborhoods directly along the Broad and Congaree Rivers, including the Riverland Park neighborhood in the City of Cayce where about a dozen homes were flooded.

The Columbia Canal, which was significantly damaged in the 2015 floods, held up fine, and despite several internet rumors, there were no serious issues with any of the local drinking water plants.

The City of Columbia wastewater treatment plant on the Congaree River did experience some flooding that impacted operations, but staff remained on site working to provide partial treatment to incoming wastewater. There were numerous sewer overflows during the initial rainfall and in the days following that impacted multiple waterbodies across the Midlands.

On Tuesday, October 1st Santee Cooper confirmed that one of their power transmission towers south of I-77 near the mouth of Congaree Creek had collapsed into the Congaree River. The removal and replacement of the tower us expected to take several weeks and boaters should use extreme caution and avoid the area if possible.

Midlands Rivers Coalition 2024 Sampling Season Summary

Thu, 03 Oct 2024 19:37:14 GMT

The Midlands Rivers Coalition just wrapped up our eighth season of weekly recreational water quality monitoring at the end of September. This season saw many bacteria samples over the state standard for contact recreation, resulting in several swimming advisories.

Take a look at the numbers below for a snapshot of the season:

11 sites on the Broad, Lower Saluda and Congaree Rivers were sampled every week for 22 weeks
291 total bacteria samples were collected (242 regular samples and 49 follow-up samples)
64 samples did not meet the state standard for contact recreation (49 regular samples and 15 follow-up samples)
Only 78% of all samples collected this season met the standard for contact recreation (a significant decrease from last year's 92%)
10 weeks with at least one swimming advisory issued (6 of those advisories continued even after follow-up sampling )
4+ weeks straight (7/17 - 8/15) with at least one active swimming advisory
10 of the 11 sample sites had multiple swimming advisories issued this season
Only 1 site, the Saluda Shoals Canoe Landing (aka Upper Landing) had 0 advisories this season

Why were there so many high bacteria results? While a few of the high samples occurred during dry weather, most followed significant rainfall events. So, it would appear that stormwater runoff was a primary driver of the water quality issues, though sewer overflows may have also contributed to some.

Thank you so much to all of the coalition partners who help make this effort possible. Weekly water quality monitoring will resume in May of 2025.

Riverkeeper Sues Shaw Industries Over PFAS Pollution

Tue, 02 Jul 2024 21:21:03 GMT

Shaw Industries’ PFAS discharges threaten rivers and drinking water sources

Congaree Riverkeeper, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, has filed a lawsuit in federal court against Shaw Industries due to Shaw’s illegal discharges of PFAS "forever chemicals" into the Lower Saluda River. The lawsuit comes after a March notice letter notifying Shaw of our intent to sue over the pollution at its Columbia plant.

“Shaw is polluting a scenic trout fishery and drinking water source for thousands of South Carolinians with highly toxic PFAS chemicals,” said Carl Brzorad, SELC Senior Associate Attorney. “The case we filed today seeks to stop this unlawful pollution.”

Shaw, a global flooring manufacturer, operates a 470-acre facility on the banks of the Lower Saluda River in Columbia where it produces synthetic components used to make carpets. The case alleges that Shaw is discharging PFAS into the river without a permit as required by the federal Clean Water Act, and that PFAS and other toxins are escaping from Shaw’s unlined wastewater lagoons and contaminating groundwater and the river.

PFAS are often referred to as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down in the environment and build up in the bodies of exposed people and fish. Harmful at extremely low levels, PFAS have been linked to cancers and other serious illnesses.

“The Lower Saluda River is a beloved part of the Midlands – a designated State Scenic River, a popular recreation destination, and home to an abundance of wildlife,” said Bill Stangler, Congaree Riverkeeper. “By discharging PFAS into the Lower Saluda, Shaw harms our precious resources and the drinking water source for the communities of West Columbia and Cayce.”

Earlier this month, the City of Columbia also sued Shaw Industries, naming the company when seeking damages against multiple companies for manufacturing, using, and/or releasing PFAS upstream of Columbia’s drinking water intakes.

You can read more in these articles:

The State Newspaper - Toxic chemicals in SC river traced to Irmo manufacturing plant, lawsuit says

The Post and Courier - Environmental groups sue manufacturers for allegedly pumping 'forever chemicals' into Columbia river

WISTV - Groups sue Columbia carpet manufacturer for “forever chemical” pollution

An aerial view of Shaw's wastewater treatment lagoons near the Lower Saluda River.

Weekly Water Quality Monitoring Returns

Wed, 01 May 2024 15:22:21 GMT

The eighth season of recreational water quality monitoring by the Midlands Rivers Coalition kicks off this month. From May through Septemebr samples will be collected at eleven sites along the Broad, Saluda and Congaree Rivers every Wednesday, and the results will be posted on Thursdays.

The Midlands Rivers Coalition is made up of stakeholders from environmental organizations, academia, local and state governments, recreation providers and businesses, all working to make water quality information more frequently and readily available to river users so they can make informed decisions, and to educate river users on water quality issues.

Be sure to check HowsMySCRiver.org , and our social media platforms, for the latest results and advisories.

Broad River Basin Plan Completed

Sun, 10 Mar 2024 15:50:31 GMT

In February, after working for more than a year and a half, the Broad River Basin Council completed and published a Broad River Basin Plan. The Council is a working group of stakeholders in the watershed covering diverse water interests, including water utilities, electric power utilities, local governments, conservation groups, agriculture, industry and economic development, and water-based recreation

The plan includes an assessment of current and future water availability in the basin and documents water management strategies that can help ensure water is available for all future uses in the basin for the next 50 years.

You can view the full Broad River Basin Plan, an executive summary, meeting notes, and information about upcoming River Basin Council meetings on the SCDNR website here.

Riverkeeper Threatens to Sue Over PFAS Pollution

Mon, 04 Mar 2024 17:01:39 GMT

Columbia carpet facility threatens rivers and drinking water sources. Riverkeeper to sue if illegal PFAS pollution not addressed.

An aerial view of the Shaw Industries wastewater treatment plant near the Lower Saluda River

Today, Congaree Riverkeeper, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, warned Shaw Industries that the groups will file a lawsuit if the carpet manufacturer fails to stop its illegal discharges of PFAS, a class of toxic “forever chemicals” that can bioaccumulate and affect human health even at low levels.

In a letter notifying Shaw of their plans, the groups outlined how Shaw’s discharges and other illegal actions at its Columbia plant violate the federal Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

“Shaw is discharging toxic chemicals that harm public health at very low levels into a State scenic river and a drinking water source for thousands of South Carolinians,” said Carl Brzorad, SELC Attorney. “We won’t let Shaw pass off the burden of dealing with this PFAS pollution to those downstream – it has to stop.”

Shaw Industries owns and operates a 470-acre facility that manufactures fiber and nylon pellet chips for use in carpets. The plant is on the Lower Saluda River, designated a State Scenic River by the state legislature and protected as a drinking water source for West Columbia and Cayce. Shaw’s dumping of untreated wastewater containing PFAS into the river threatens those cities as well as wildlife and the many recreators who enjoy the Lower Saluda.

“Every time Shaw illegally releases PFAS into the Lower Saluda, they put the health of the river and downstream communities at risk,” said Bill Stangler, Congaree Riverkeeper. “The citizens of South Carolina deserve clean water, especially those in West Columbia and Cayce who rely on the river for drinking water.”

If Shaw fails to remedy the violations of the Clean Water Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act by the end of applicable notice periods, the groups will move forward with a lawsuit.

You can read more in these articles:

The State Newspaper - Long-time Irmo plant under scrutiny for chemical releases to Saluda River, group says

The Post and Courier - 'Forever chemicals' from Columbia plant threaten Saluda River's drinking water, advocates say

Click to view a copy of the Notice of Intent to Sue letter.

2023 Sewer Spill Report

Tue, 30 Jan 2024 19:45:18 GMT

For the last eleven years we have compiled an annual sewer spill report for Congaree Riverkeeper's jurisdictional area (which includes the Lower Saluda, Lower Broad, and Congaree Rivers, and their tributaries) using data from DHEC's Sewer Overflow Database . In 2023 there were 114 reported sanitary sewer overflows (SSO's) totaling 4,190,509 gallons of sewage spilled in our watershed. This is a very significant increase from previous years.

2023 Sewer Spill Summary

The more than 4 million gallons of sewage spilled in 2023 marks the second largest total volume of sewage spilled in all the years we've compiled these annual reports. Approximately 94% of that total volume is related to two specific events experienced by the City of Columbia: a nearly 3.5 million gallon spill on April 9th (discussed more below), and a half a million gallon spill in August caused by a mechanical issue. All of these spills highlight the need to invest in sewer systems, conduct regular preventative maintenance, and perhaps most importantly, to learn from past mistakes so they won't happen again.

Wastewater Plant Upsets and Bypasses

While this report focuses on sewer overflows (when untreated wastewater spills from the collection system before it reaches a treatment plant), sewer providers in our area also experienced several "unanticipated bypass" or "plant upset" events at their wastewater treatment plants. These events occur when wastewater leaves the treatment plant before being fully treated, and generally have similar impacts to sewer overflows.

The City of Columbia experienced three bypass events at their wastewater treatment plant in 2023, the most significant of which was the April 9th (Easter Sunday) event. The bypass event was caused by a complete loss of utility power at the wastewater treatment plant. The loss of power caused wastewater flowing to the treatment plant to backup and spill out of the collection system, impacting several waterbodies, including the Congaree River and Gills Creek. The other bypass events occurred on February 8th and September 13th. You can read more about the April bypass event as well as the City's efforts to address sewer spills in this article from The Post and Courier.

The Town of Lexington also experienced a significant bypass event from the Watergate wastewater treatment plant in March of 2023 impacting 14 Mile Creek, a tributary to the Lower Saluda River. The aging wastewater treatment plant, which the Town took over from Blue Granite Water several years ago, discharged partially treated wastewater into the creek for nearly 2 weeks. The plant has since been connected to the regional sewer system and the discharge to 14 Mile Creek has been eliminated.

Top 10 Reported Sewer Spills

Important Notes

This report only represent the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Some sewer providers in the Midlands had spills that impacted other waterbodies outside of our jurisdiction. For example, the Town of Chapin had numerous spills impacting Lake Murray, Palmetto Utilities impacting the Spears Creek / Wateree River watershed, and the Town of St Matthews impacting the headwaters of Lake Marion.

Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are more than 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC or that we had public information about. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems experienced spills but failed to officially report the data to DHEC, including the City of West Columbia and the Westwood Estates Apartments (formerly Riverbend Apartments).

Past Reports

Click the links to view the past reports from 2021 and 2022 .

2023 In Review

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 20:18:16 GMT

Here are a few highlights and accomplishments from the last year.

2023 marks 15 years since Congaree Riverkeeper was founded, and it seems appropriate that this year saw several significant victories, but also many new issues and challenges that we rose to meet.

Let's look back at some of the highlights and accomplishments the last year (the first one is a big one).

We continued our advocacy and sampling efforts to address pollution from PFAS “forever chemicals.”

With the help of more than 200 volunteers we removed more than 10,000 pounds of trash from our rivers and streams through our volunteer cleanups.

We continued to lead local water quality monitoring efforts, including the Midlands Rivers Coalition ( HowsMySCRiver.org ).

We responded to dozens of citizen pollution reports, investigating and responding to issues including sewer spills, construction runoff, illegal dumping and more.

We continued to support South Carolina's water planning efforts, both at the state level and as a member of the Broad River Basin Council, which just published a draft Broad River Basin Plan .

We were featured or quoted in dozens of news articles and stories about our rivers and the issues we work on.

And we engaged with thousands in the community through our outreach and education efforts.

We absolutely couldn't do this work protecting our rivers without the help of all of our donors, volunteers and partners. Thank you so much to everyone who continues to support our work for clean water and healthy rivers!

2023 Cleanup Summary

Tue, 12 Dec 2023 06:55:53 GMT

This year we held 14 cleanups and, with the help of 225 volunteers, picked up more than 10,000 pounds of trash from rivers and streams across the watershed. Since 2019 we've partnered with the South Carolina Aquarium to track the trash we collect at our cleanups through the Litter Journal app . The data we collect helps us identify litter trends, inform advocacy and policy, and educate the public. In 2023 we collected and recorded 17,433 pieces of trash and debris at our cleanups.

Below is a brief analysis of our river and stream cleanup data from the last year.

Glass bottles and fragments were the most common item we picked up, making up just over 20% of the total number of items we recorded. Most of that glass came from one spot (and one very dedicated group of volunteers) along the banks of the Congaree River. Styrofoam, plastic food wrappers, plastic bottles, aluminum cans, and plastic bags made up the rest of the most common items, and were found at virtually every cleanup.

Overall, plastics made up more than 50% of all the items we documented. Plastics were, once again, the most common category of trash by a significant margin.

We also regularly pick up a number of large items at the cleanups. This year we picked up 26 tires, 4 shopping carts, and 3 TVs from local waterways. You can see a few of the more unique items we found this year in the photos below.

We can't do these cleanups alone, so thank you to Palmetto Pride and SCDNR for providing supplies, and to our local government partners, including Richland County, City of Columbia, City of Cayce, and City of West Columbia for picking up and disposing of the trash. Thanks to the Gills Creek Watershed Association for partnering with us for River Sweep, and to Canoeing for Kids for providing boats. Most importantly though, thank you to the dedicated volunteers who came out and helped clean up our rivers and streams!

You can sign up for our volunteer email list to receive notifications about upcoming cleanups with Congaree Riverkeeper here.

Congaree River Coal Tar Cleanup Complete!

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 18:31:09 GMT

13 Years and 38,000+ tons later, the Congaree River coal tar cleanup is done.

In mid-October contractors forDominion Energy completed work on Area 2 of the Congaree River coal tar cleanup project. DHEC conducted a final site inspection and certified that "to the extent practical, all residual TLM and sediment from the Area 2 removal area has been removed." This marks the competition of the removal phase of the coal tar cleanup project. In total, more than 38,000 tons of tar and material were removed from the Area 1 and Area 2 cofferdams.

The Area 2 cofferdam has been removed from the river. The contractors will continue land-side activities for the next several weeks, including stabilizing the banks, planting grass and trees, and removing remaining equipment and materials. In addition to removing the toxic tar, many historic artifacts were also recovered during the cleanup. Those items are being catalogued and preserved, and are expected to be displayed in a local museum some time in the future.

This significant milestone comes more than a decade after the coal tar issue surfaced in 2010 . While this project was complex, and at times contentious , we are very pleased to see it come to a successful conclusion that protects the health of the river and our community. We appreciate the work of the many groups involved in this cleanup effort, including Dominion Energy, their contractors, SCDHEC, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Governor's Office, the City of Columbia, the Southern Environmental Law Center, and many others.

It is important to remember that this cleanup only happened because citizens stood up, spoke up and demanded it. This is an example of what can happen when communities rally around their rivers and fight to hold polluters accountable.

You can read more in this article from The State Newspaper: Toxic gunk cleansed from Congaree River 13 years after first reported. What’s next?

You can read about some of the historic artifacts that were recovered during the cleanup in this article from The Post and Courier : Cannonballs, Confederate sabers and a burned wheel hub tell a 158-year-old story .

And y ou can find project updates and photos on the SCDHEC website here.

Midlands Rivers Coalition Sampling Season Summary

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 19:14:12 GMT

The Midlands Rivers Coalition just wrapped up the seventh season of weekly recreational water quality monitoring. And we ended the season with all greens! You can see the results and map at HowsMySCRiver.org .

Here's a quick look at the sampling season by the numbers:

11 sites were sampled every week for 22 weeks
260 total bacteria samples collected (including regular and follow-up samples)
22 samples did not meet the state standard for contact recreation
91.5% of all samples collected this season did meet the standard for contact recreation
4 swimming advisories were issued (2 of those were lifted the next day after follow-up sampling)
1,800+ total website users, 16,000+ website clicks
~4,000 average weekly social media reach

Thanks so much to all of the coalition partners who help with this effort. Weekly water quality sampling will resume in May of 2024.

Scrap Yard Lawsuit Settled

Mon, 03 Jul 2023 18:51:06 GMT

After more than two years of litigation and negotiation, we’re happy to announce that we have reached a settlement in the zoning appeal we brought over the proposed scrap yard near Gills Creek. We were able to work with the Gills Creek Watershed Association , South Carolina Environmental Law Project , and City of Columbia to come to this resolution that helps protect Gills Creek and the surrounding community. Through our efforts we helped stop an illegal scrap yard from operating, required the new property owner to take measures to protect the environment, and sent a message to the Board of Zoning Appeals and other local decision makers that they must be thoughtful, thorough and follow the letter of the law when reviewing these types of projects.

As part of this settlement the property owner will be required to:

Conduct an environmental assessment of the property and undertake remediation measures identified as a result,
Construct a stormwater detention pond,
Plant and maintain a vegetated buffer along the creek,
Comply with the conditions of the City Engineer's Floodplain Management Report, and
Meet all applicable standards and requirements of DHEC's Industrial Stormwater General NPDES Permit.

You can read more in this article from the Post and Courier:

Part of legal fight over Columbia scrap yard ends, owner accepts environmental protections

And you can view the settlement agreement below.

Columbia Bans High PAH Pavement Products

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 00:01:32 GMT

On June 20th Columbia City Council voted to ban the use of high PAH pavement products (aka coal-tar-based sealants) in the City. The ordinance will take effect July 1, 2023.

Coal tar based sealants contain pollutants including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), that are toxic to aquatic life and can be harmful to human health. There is no reason we should allow these harmful pollutants to be regularly washed into our local waterways. Congaree Riverkeeper began working with the Mayor and council members on the effort to ban coal-tar-based sealants last year and we are very pleased to see the ordinance passed. This is an important step by the City of Columbia to protect our water resources, and hopefully an inspiration for other local governments to do the same.

T he USGS has conducted several studies on the impacts of coal-tar-based sealants on human health and aquatic life. You can find those studies and additional information here.

You can view the full ordinance language and a presentation to the Health, Social and Environmental Affairs Committee on page 385 of the agenda packet here.

Coal Tar Cleanup Activities Resume

Wed, 10 May 2023 23:33:49 GMT

The second year of the Congaree River coal tar cleanup project is underway. Dominion Energy’s contractor is installing a rock berm in the center of the Area 1 cofferdam to help with dewatering. After that they will work to seal any seeps in the dam. Once the area has been dewatered they will clear it for potential unexploded ordinance. They will also be installing an on-site wastewater treatment plant. The contractor hopes to begin removal activities by mid-May (assuming the river cooperates).

DHEC will be posting regular updates on their website here.

You can also read more in this story from WLTX.

Weekly Water Quality Monitoring Returns

Wed, 03 May 2023 23:18:37 GMT

The seventh season of recreational water quality monitoring by the Midlands Rivers Coalition kicks off this month. Samples will be collected at eleven sites along the Broad, Saluda and Congaree Rivers every Wednesday, and the results will be posted on Thursdays.

The Midlands Rivers Coalition is made up of stakeholders from environmental organizations, academia, local and state government, recreation providers and businesses, working to educate river users on water quality issues.

Be sure to check HowsMySCRiver.org for the latest results and advisories.

2022 Sewer Spill Report

Tue, 31 Jan 2023 18:15:57 GMT

For the last decade we have reviewed the data from DHEC's Sewer Overflow Database to compile an annual sewer spill report for Congaree Riverkeeper's jurisdictional area (this includes the Lower Saluda, Lower Broad, and Congaree Rivers, and their tributaries). In 2022 there were 118 reported sanitary sewer overflows (SSO's) totaling 369,612 gallons of sewage spilled in our watershed. This is a significant reduction from the last few years.

2022 Sewer Spill Summary

* On February 16th, 2022 the City of Columbia experienced an "unanticipated bypass" at their wastewater treatment plant. As a result, approximately 182,000 gallons of sewage that entered the plant were not fully treated before being discharged to the Congaree River. While the bypass was not reported as an SSO, it was certainly a significant discharge of sewage into the Congaree River.

2022 saw the lowest total sewer spill volume in the 10 years that Congaree Riverkeeper has been publishing these annual reports. While some of that can be attributed to a drier year (significant rainfall is often a cause or contributor to sewer spills), the reduction is also likely a result of the infrastructure investments that utilities, particularly the City of Columbia, have been making in their systems. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of gallons of sewage spilled into our local waterways is entirely too much, and investment in sewer spill reduction needs to remain a priority in our region.

SSO Hotspots

Reeder Point Branch

Once again Reeder Point Branch, a tributary to Mill Creek in southeast Richland County experienced one of the largest spills of the year. There have been significant SSO issues in the Reeder Point Branch / Mill Creek area for the last several years, and addressing this should be a priority for the City of Columbia.

Broad River Watershed

Spills into the Broad River and its tributaries from several utilities accounted for nearly 1/3 of the total volume of spills reported in 2022.

Top Five Reported Sewer Spills

Important Notes

This report only represent the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Some sewer providers in the Midlands had spills that impacted other waterbodies outside of our jurisdiction, like Lake Murray, the Wateree River watershed, or tributaries to Lake Marion near St. Matthews.
Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are more than 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC or that we had public information about. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems fail to officially report their spills to DHEC.

Past Reports

Click the links to view the past reports from 2020 and 2021 .

2022 In Review

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Tue, 20 Dec 2022 05:14:55 GMT

Let's take a look at some of the highlights and milestones from the last year.

2022 was another busy year on our rivers. As the year winds to a close let's take a look at some of the highlights and accomplishments.

In 2022 Congaree Riverkeeper:

Organized cleanups with 138 volunteers that removed 12,559 pieces of trash and debris from our waterways. Take a look at the numbers in our 2022 Cleanup Summary here.
Responded to dozens of citizen pollution concerns, from fish kills and sewer spills to construction runoff and illegal dumping.
Helped lead local water quality monitoring efforts, like the Midlands Rivers Coalition ( HowsMySCRiver.org ).

Continued to advocate for the Congaree River coal tar cleanup, which is now underway.

Participated in a large national PFAS sampling effort , conducted additional follow-up sampling, and continued our advocacy efforts to address these dangerous forever chemicals .

Engaged with thousands in the community through our outreach and education efforts in schools, at summer camps, on screens, and more.

Continued our litigation efforts, alongside our partners, on both the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Gills Creek scrap yard lawsuits.

Submitted numerous public comments on proposed permits, policies, and regulations at the local, state and federal level.

Continued to support South Carolina's water planning efforts , both at the state level and as a member of the Broad River Basin Council.

Additionally, this year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act , gave away a SweetWater kayak , and won our second Free Times Best Of Award for Best Green Initiative .

Of course, we couldn't do this important work without the help of our donors, volunteers and partners. Thank you to everyone who supported our work for clean water and healthy rivers!

2022 Cleanup Summary

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Thu, 15 Dec 2022 17:12:48 GMT

In 2022 Congaree Riverkeeper conducted 15 river and stream cleanups, and with the help of 175 volunteers we picked up and recorded 12,559 pieces of trash and debris . For the last several years we've partnered with the South Carolina Aquarium to track all the trash we collect at our cleanups through their Litter-Free Digital Journal app . The data we collect helps is identify litter trends, inform public policy, and educate the public.

Below is a brief analysis of our river and stream cleanup data from the last year.

Glass bottles and fragments were the most common item we picked up, making up 15% of the total number of items we recorded. Plastic bags, plastic food wrappers, styrofoam and plastic bottles made up the rest of the top five most common items.

When we look at the overall categories of trash, plastics made up nearly 60% of all the items we picked up and recorded. Once again, plastic was by far the most common category of trash.

In addition to plastic and glass, we also picked several unique items. Tire dumping has long been an issue, but it seems to be getting worse, and this year we picked up 36 tires from our waterways. Among the other interesting items we picked up were a kiddie pool, a toilet, a few shopping carts, dozens of shoes, and a surprising amount of broken ceramic pieces (nearly 100).

Thank you to our partners at Palmetto Pride for supporting our cleanup program this year with a litter prevention grant and cleanup supplies!

And most importantly, THANK YOU SO MUCH to the dedicated volunteers who came out and helped clean up our rivers and streams! You made a huge impact, and we've got the data to prove it.

You can learn more about the Litter-Free Digital Journal, and sign up to record the trash you pick up here.

Y ou can sign up to receive notifications about upcoming cleanups with Congaree Riverkeeper here.

Invisible, Unbreakable, and Unnatural: Waterkeeper Alliance Publishes National PFAS Sampling Report

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Fri, 28 Oct 2022 16:52:27 GMT

Contamination from PFAS chemicals, often called forever chemicals becuse of their persistence in the environment, is a growing concern for both rivers and communities around the country. We partnered with Waterkeeper Alliance and more than 100 Waterkeeper groups to conduct one of the largest PFAS sampling efforts in the country.

The sampling showed a startling amount of contamination across waterbodies (83% of the samples showed detection of at least one PFAS compound). Our sampling of the Lower Saluda detected between seven and thirteen different PFAS compounds at sites along the river.

You can read the full Waterkeeper report, "Invisible, Unbreakable, and Unnatural", here.

And you can read more in these articles:

The Guardian - More than 80% of US waterways contaminated by ‘forever chemicals’

The State Newspaper - ‘Forever chemicals’ taint rivers across SC; drinking water threatened

NRC Publishes Environmental Impact Statement for Westinghouse Nuclear Fuel Plant

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Tue, 30 Aug 2022 16:45:34 GMT

In late July the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission completed their Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the troubled Westinghouse nuclear fuel plant. The agency recommended a new 40 year operating license, concluding that the economic benefits outweighed the impacts to the environment and the surrounding community. The EIS states that the impacts to surface and groundwater resources would be small because Westinghouse "would comply with the SCDHEC’s NPDES permit, the SCDHEC Consent Agreement, and the proposed license conditions." Unfortunately, we've seen time and again that Westinghouse doesn't follow the rules and has a history of trying to cover up their problems.

You can see the EIS and other updates about the facility here.

You can read more about the EIS and Westinghouse's many issues over the last several decades in these articles from The State Newspaper:

UPDATE: On September 12th, despite a history of environmental issues and concerns raised by the community, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission granted Westinghouse a new 40-year operating license for their nuclear fuel plant in Richland County. You can read more in this article from The State Newspaper.

Congaree River Coal Tar Cleanup Update

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Thu, 28 Jul 2022 16:35:20 GMT

The construction of the coffer dam for Dominion Energy's coal tar removal project on the Congaree River began last month. The contractor for the project has been making steady progress, and the rock dam has been built out. The next steps for this project include installing a liner and placing fabric formed concrete mats to reinforce and armor the dam. After the dam is completed teams will relocate mussels from the cleanup area and screen for possible unexploded ordinance. Once those steps have been completed over the next few weeks the coal tar removal can begin.

The overall project is expected to take 3-5 years to compete, and there is a smaller phase 2 coffer dam that will be constructed just downstream. River users will not be able to access the area around the Senate Street Landing for the duration of the project. The river is still navigable, and river users can use the nearby river access points at the West Columbia Riverwalk or Granby Park.

You can see regular updates about this project on the SCDHEC website at https://scdhec.gov/congareeriver .

And you can read more in this story from the AP: Work begins to remove coal tar from South Carolina river .

2021 Sewer Spill Report

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Fri, 21 Jan 2022 20:57:33 GMT

For the last nine years Congaree Riverkeeper has reviewed the data from DHEC's Sewer Overflow Database to compile an annual sewer spill report for our watershed. In 2021 there were 129 reported sanitary sewer overflows totaling 1,879,896 gallons of sewage spilled in Congaree Riverkeeper's jurisdictional area.

Sewer overflows can contaminate our waterways, impacting water quality and public health. River users who are exposed to sewer overflows may experience health issues including infections, rashes, and gastrointestinal issues.

Sewer Spill Near Rawls Creek

2021 Sewer Spill Summary

The total volume of sewage spilled into our watershed again saw an increase from previous years, up by nearly half a million gallons from last year, and significantly higher than the three previous years. Once again the trend is moving in the wrong direction.

SSO Hotspots

Lower Saluda River

2021 started off pretty rough for the Lower Saluda with numerous spills totaling nearly half a million gallons in the first two months of the year. Several of those spills were related to extended wet weather in February. Since the beginning of the year spills on the Lower Saluda have dramatically decreased.

Congaree River

Two of the largest spills of the year impacted the first few miles of the Congaree River; the April 21st spill in Cayce near the Riverland Park neighborhood , and the July 21st spill at the City of Columbia's pump station near the Blossom Street Bridge .

Reeder Point Branch

Reeder Point Branch, a tributary to Mill Creek in southeast Richland County was impacted by several spills, including two of the ten largest spills of the year.

Top Ten Reported Sewer Spills

Important Notes

This report only represent the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Some sewer providers in the Midlands had spills that impacted other waterbodies outside our jurisdiction, like Lake Murray and the Wateree River.
Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are over 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems fail to officially report their spills to DHEC (like the spill at the Riverbend Apartments in the video below).

Past Reports

Click the links to view the past reports from 2019 and 2020 .

2021 In Review

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Wed, 29 Dec 2021 17:02:18 GMT

Let's take a look at some of the highlights and milestones from the last year.

At Congaree Riverkeeper we're continually working to protect our rivers. As another year comes to a close, we want to take a quick look at some of 2021's highlights and accomplishments.

With the help of more than 150 volunteers we removed 11,128 pieces of trash and debris from our waterways. Check out the numbers in our 2021 Cleanup Summary here.
We responded to dozens of citizen pollution concerns, including sewer overflows and a large diesel fuel spill .
We engaged thousands of people with our education and outreach efforts.
The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Carolina Water Service can't charge their customers the $400,000+ in attorney's fees related to the lawsuit that we filed to end their illegal pollution of the Lower Saluda River.

Along with our partners at the Gills Creek Watershed Association, and represented by SCELP, we appealed a decision that would allow a scrap yard to operate on the banks of Gills Creek .

We've been working hard to try and undo the regulatory rollbacks of the previous administration, from our NEPA lawsuit , to submitting comments on Clean Water Act revisions and numerous other efforts.

We continued to lead local water quality monitoring efforts like the Midlands Rivers Coalition .

We continued to engage in the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's proposed relicensing of the troubled Westinghouse Nuclear Fuel Plant in Richland County, submitting multiple rounds of public comments. You can read the latest on that issue here.

Additionally, we were featured in a plastic pollution documentary that recently aired on SCETV, we were highlighted as Fig Magazine's Social Mission partn er throughout the year, and we won our first ever Free Times Best Of Award for Best Green Business or Initiative .

Of course, we couldn't do this important work without the help of our donors, volunteers and partners. Thank you to everyone who supported our work for clean water and healthy rivers!

2021 Cleanup Summary

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Tue, 28 Dec 2021 17:29:22 GMT

For the last several years we've partnered with the South Carolina Aquarium to track all the trash we collect at our cleanups through their Litter-Free Digital Journal app . In 2021 we conducted 14 river and stream cleanups, and with the help of more than 150 volunteers we picked up and recorded 11,128 pieces of trash and debris . The data we collect at our cleanups is important not just to identify litter trends and trash hotspots, but also to help educate the public and shape public policy.

Here is a brief analysis of our river and stream cleanup data from 2021.

Styrofoam was by far the most common item we picked up, making up 18.6% of the total number of items we recorded. Plastic bottles, plastic bags, miscellaneous plastic, and aluminum beverage cans made up the rest of the top five most common items.

When we look at the overall categories of trash, plastic makes up two thirds of every item we picked up and recorded. If it wasn't already clear from the chart below, our trash problem is primarily a plastic problem.

If you want to learn more about the plastic pollution problem impacting South Carolina's waterways, check out this documentary featuring Congaree Riverkeeper and our partners at Charleston Waterkeeper and the South Carolina Aquarium that recently aired on SCETV: Macroplastics in SC Waters: Connecting the Midlands to the Coast.

In addition to lots of plastic, we also picked up some pretty odd items, including several creepy toys (including a dismembered doll head, a trashy my little pony, and a weird Christmas pickle), a pair of foam mattress toppers that were a pain to drag out of the water, an ironically discarded adopt-a-street sign, and almost enough car parts and tires to build a new vehicle.

You can learn more about the Litter-Free Digital Journal, and sign up to record the trash you pick up here.

Y ou can sign up to receive notifications about upcoming cleanups with Congaree Riverkeeper here.

And finally, THANK YOU SO MUCH to the dedicated volunteers who came out and helped clean up our rivers and streams! You made a real impact, and we've got the data to prove it.

SC Supreme Court Rules on CWS Attorney's Fees

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 15:06:08 GMT

Court denies polluter recovery of legal fees associated with Congaree Riverkeeper lawsuit.

We spent years in court fighting to end Carolina Water Service's pollution of the Lower Saluda River, eventually prevailing in our lawsuit and eliminating the discharge from the I-20 wastewater plant .

And when CWS tried to pass the cost of their illegal pollution on to their customers and stick them with a $400,000+ legal bill, we stepped up again; testifying to the Public Service Commission and filing an Amicus Brief with the SC Supreme Court .

Yesterday, the South Carolina Supreme Court affirmed the PSC ruling that denied recovery of the legal fees associated with the federal lawsuit that Congaree Riverkeeper brought against CWS.

This was not only a win for the ratepayers, but an important message to polluters that we'll fight to hold them accountable.

You can find the court's opinion here.

And you can read more in this article from the Post and Courier.

Westinghouse EIS Public Comment Period Open

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 19:56:35 GMT

On July 31st, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission published the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Westinghouse Electric Company's request to renew its operating license for the Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility located in Richland County for an additional 40 years.

The official 45-day public comment period on the draft EIS began when notice was published in the Federal Register on August 6, and comments will be accepted until September 20th.

You can view the draft EIS here: https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML2120/ML21209A213.pdf

And you can find instruction on how to submit comments here: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/08/06/2021-16595/westinghouse-electric-company-llc-columbia-fuel-fabrication-facility

The NRC will also host a virtual public meeting on August 26th from 6:00 - 9:00 pm. You can find more information on the meeting here: https://www.nrc.gov/pmns/mtg?do=details&Code=20211027

Midlands Rivers Coalition Kicks Off 5th Sampling Season

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Fri, 07 May 2021 15:38:56 GMT

The Midlands Rivers Coalition kicked off its 5th season of recreational water quality monitoring this week. From May through September, bacteria samples are collected from 11 sites on the Broad, Lower Saluda and Congaree Rivers every Wednesday, and the results are posted to HowsMySCRiver.org (and shared on Congaree Riverkeeper's social media platforms) on Thursdays. If a sample does not meet the state standard for contact recreation, a swimming advisory is issued and a follow-up sample is collected.

The Lower Saluda, Broad, and Congaree Rivers are recreational destinations for public fishing, canoeing, kayaking, tubing, swimming and wading; and these activities involve contact with natural waters. As with most natural bodies of water, these rivers can be negatively impacted periodically by short-term events such as runoff from heavy rains, sewer overflows and other events. The coalition aims to enhance public awareness of these issues and provide river users with water quality data so they can make informed decisions.

Riverkeeper Appeals Gills Creek Scrap Yard Decision

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 18:07:34 GMT

Earlier this week, Congaree Riverkeeper and the Gills Creek Watershed Association , represented by the South Carolina Environmental Law Project , appealed in circuit court a recent decision by the City of Columbia Board of Zoning Appeals to allow an auto scrap yard to operate at 2420 Shop Road, just a few hundred feet away from Gills Creek.

in January Congaree Riverkeeper began to receive complaints about a scrap yard operating illegally at this site. In March we submitted a letter to the Board of Zoning Appeals opposing the zoning special exception to operate a scrap yard. The company, American Scrap Iron and Metal, also has a history of environmental violations and numerous fires at their other scrap yard facilities in the Midlands.

We brought this appeal because the operation of a scrap yard at this site has the potential to harm Gills Creek, adjacent properties, and the surrounding community, and the Board of Zoning Appeals made an error and failed to follow the required criteria in their decision to allow it.

The City of Columbia has also appealed the zoning special exception.

2020 Sewer Spill Report

Thu, 28 Jan 2021 17:06:10 GMT

This marks Congaree Riverkeeper's eighth year compiling and analyzing data from DHEC's sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) database to publish an annual sewer spill report. In 2020, there were 168 reported sanitary sewer overflows resulting in more than 1,387,000 gallons of sewage spilled in Congaree Riverkeeper’s jurisdictional area.

2020 Sewer Spill Summary

The total volume of sewage spilled in our area in 2020 is more than double last year's, and a significant increase from the last three years.

Many of the larger spills reported last year (approximately 1/3 of the total volume of sewage spilled) were related to the February 2020 flooding .

While the City of Columbia experienced the most spills and highest volume of sewage spilled, 2020 also marked another year of significant spills from Richland County Utilities in the Broad River watershed.

Important Notes

This report covers sanitary sewer overflows (generally when sewage spills out of the collection system before it reaches a treatment plant) , but does not include some issues at wastewater plants, like the plant upset at the Palmetto Wastewater Reclamation (Alpine) WWTP that impacted the Lower Saluda in September.
The table above only represents the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Several sewer providers in the Midlands had spills that impacted other waterbodies, including including Blue Granite Water Company (Lake Murray) and Palmetto Utilities (Spears Creek/Wateree River watershed) .
Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are over 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems fail to officially report their spills to DHEC.

Top Ten Reported Sewer Spills

* The City of Columbia reported multiple spills on 2/6 and 2/7 impacting the Saluda River, Lake Katherine (Gills Creek), Crane Creek, and Kinley Creek.

SSO Hotspots

Lower Saluda River

Multiple sewer providers had significant spills (as wells as the wastewater plant upset noted above) that impacted the Lower Saluda River. These spills are particularly concerning because of the high number of recreational river users on the Lower Saluda. Unfortunately, 2021 is not off to a great start either, with the City of Columbia reporting more than 100,000 gallons of sewage spilling into the Lower Saluda already this year.

Broad River

Both Richland County Utilities and the City of Columbia experienced several significant spills that impacted the Broad River and its tributaries.

Past Reports

Click the links to view past reports from 2017 , 2018 , and 2019 .

2020 Milestones & Accomplishments

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Tue, 22 Dec 2020 17:09:49 GMT

As we all know, 2020 has been a challenging year for everyone. However, despite this year's hurdles, we've continued our work to protect the Broad, Saluda and Congaree Rivers. Here are just a few of the this year's accomplishment and milestones:

Organized volunteer cleanups that removed more than 7,000 pounds of trash from our rivers and streams.
Helped lead and conduct local water quality monitoring efforts, including weekly sampling and public notification by the Midlands Rivers Coalition ( HowsMySCRiver.org ).
Continued our legal and advocacy efforts to compel Dominion Energy to clean up its toxic coal tar from the Congaree River, which is now making significant progress.
Filed an amicus brief with the South Carolina Supreme Court opposing efforts by Blue Granite Water Company (Carolina Water Service) to charge their customers more than $400,000 in attorneys' fees for the lawsuit we won in federal court.
Successfully advocated for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to conduct a full Environmental Impact Statement as part of relicensing the Westinghouse Nuclear Fuel Facility in Lower Richland County.
Joined other conservation organizations to sue the current Administration for their efforts to roll back one of the country's bedrock environmental laws, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
Responded to dozens of citizen pollution reports, including sewer spills and illegal dumping.
Engaged with thousands of citizens through our outreach and education activities.
FERC issued a new license for the Parr Hydroelectric Project on the Broad River. This license, which is the result of years of study and negotiations, should bring significant improvements to the Broad River.
The Town of Lexington took ownership of Blue Granite Water Company's Watergate Sewer System, setting the stage for the elimination of another sewer discharge in the Lower Saluda River watershed.

Despite these important accomplishments, our rivers still face many threats, and we know we'll be busy in the coming year. But, with your support we'll face those challenges and continue our work for clean water and healthy rivers.

FERC Issues Parr Hydro License

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 17:24:12 GMT

On November 25th, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a new hydropower license for the continued operation and maintenance of Dominion Energy's Parr Hydroelectric Project on the Broad River in Newberry and Fairfield Counties. The Parr Hydroelectric Project includes both the Parr Dam and the Fairfield Pumped Storage Facility (Monticello Reservoir). The License was issued for a term of 50 years.

This new license is the culmination of more than 8 years of studies and negotiations. The license (along with the Comprehensive Relicensing Settlement Agreement that was signed in 2018) should provide significant improvements to the Broad River, including:

Improving minimum flows
Improving dissolved oxygen
Reducing flow fluctuations downstream of the dam
Improving water quality conditions in the west channel below the dam
Improving recreation facilities
Establishing a Habitat Enhancement Program to fund restoration and research projects in the watershed

Now that the license has been issued, we will work with Dominion Energy and stakeholders to implement the license terms and adaptive management plans.

You can read the full FERC order issuing the license below, and you can see all of the relicensing documents at www.parrfairfieldrelicense.com .

Congaree Riverkeeper Files Amicus Brief with SC Supreme Court

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Mon, 30 Nov 2020 21:06:08 GMT

In 2015 Congaree Riverkeeper sued private sewer company Carolina Water Service (now Blue Granite Water) in federal court to hold them accountable for their illegal pollution of the Lower Saluda River. In 2017 a federal judge ruled in our favor, finding that CWS had been violating the Clean Water Act. In 2018 the illegal sewer discharge from the I-20 wastewater treatment plant was eliminated, and in 2019 we entered into a settlement agreement with CWS to resolve the remaining portions of the litigation.

Despite having lost in federal court, CWS later asked the SC Public Service Commission for permission to charge their customers more than $416,000 in legal fees associated with our lawsuit. The PSC ruled against allowing the recovery of these legal fees from customers, and CWS eventually appealed that decision to the South Carolina Supreme Court.

Last week, the Supreme Court granted Congaree Riverkeeper leave to file an amicus brief in the case. In our brief we argue that allowing the recovery of attorney's fees would diminish the significance and value of the important victory in our litigation, unnecessarily punish the utility’s ratepayers, and undermine the purposes of the Clean Water Act and its citizen suit provisions.

You can read the full amicus brief here.

And you can see all the filings for the case here.

Congaree Coal Tar Update

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 19:54:16 GMT

There has been some significant progress on the effort to clean up the coal tar in the Congaree River over the last few months. On September 19th, Dominion Energy submitted a permit application to the US Army Corps of Engineers for the proposed coffer dams. You can view a copy of the Corps permit application here.

DHEC will host a virtual public meeting on November 17th to provide updates on the latest version of the cleanup plan, answer questions, and solicit feedback from the public. The agency will be accepting public comments through January 18th, 2021.

Congaree Coal Tar Virtual Public Meeting

When: Tuesday, November 17th, 6:30 pm

2020 Legislative Recap

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 20:10:28 GMT

Last week the South Carolina legislature wrapped up a two week special session, marking the likely end of this year's legislative session. The 2020 legislative session at the State House was a bit different than most years, but despite the shortened session and other issues dominating the conversation, there were still several important conservation accomplishments this year.

Defending the ability of local governments to fight plastic pollution : At the beginning of the session, S.394, a bill that would prevent local governments and municipalities from banning plastic bags and other single use plastic containers , had already passed out of committee and was on the Senate floor. Several Senators objected to the bill, and it didn't move any further, preserving the ability of local governments to fight against plastic pollution.

Resilience : Last week the legislature passed S.259, a bill that creates an Office of Resilience, establishes a Resilience Reserve Fund, and requires local comprehensive plans to include a resilience element . Read more about the resilience bill in this article from the Post & Courier .

Native Turtle Protections : The legislature also passed H.4831, a bill that establishes protections for native turtles and amphibians to prevent illegal wildlife trading. You can read more about the bill in this article from The State Newspaper.

State Water Plan : The legislature hasn't passed a new state budget for this fiscal year, but they did pass a continuing resolution to keep government running. While State Water Planning activities are underway, it is unclear if there will be additional funding allocated for water planning this year. We will continue to advocate for funding this critical effort when the legislature returns in January.

Westinghouse EIS Process Begins

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 20:10:00 GMT

On July 31st the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced in the Federal Register their intent to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Westinghouse Fuel Fabrication Facility in Richland County.

This announcement officially begins the EIS scoping process. Scoping is how the NRC will decide what issues will be reviewed in the preperation of the EIS. The public can submit comments on the scoping process through August 31st.

You can read the full announcement from the NRC, including how to submit comments, here: https://www.govinfo.gov/…/…/FR-2020-07-31/pdf/2020-16150.pdf

Congaree Riverkeeper Sues Trump Administration over NEPA Rollbacks

crk@congareeriverkeeper.org (Congaree Riverkeeper) — Wed, 29 Jul 2020 17:43:40 GMT

Today, Congaree Riverkeeper, along with several other environmental organizations from across the Southeast and represented by SELC, sued the Trump administration over recent rollbacks of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

“NEPA has given a voice to communities of lesser means that often bear the brunt of polluting projects,” says SELC Senior Attorney Kym Hunter. “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.”

"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.

Read more in this press release from SELC.

Read the full complaint here.

March Water Quality Report | 2020

Thu, 02 Apr 2020 15:43:39 GMT

On March 30th and 31st we conducted our regular water quality sampling at river and stream sites across the Midlands. Three samples (Gills Creek, Smith Branch, and Stoops Creek) exceeded the e. coli standard for contact recreation of 349 per 100 ml.

All three sites that had exceedences are urban streams, and the slightly elevated bacteria levels may be related to rainfall/stormwater runoff from the previous week.

You can see the full results in the chart and map below.

Click to see interactive map

2019 Sewer Spill Report

Tue, 25 Feb 2020 15:56:57 GMT

For the last seven years, Congaree Riverkeeper has compiled and analyzed data from DHEC's sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) database to produce an annual sewer spill report. In 2019, there were 88 reported sanitary sewer overflows resulting in nearly 700,000 gallons of sewage spilled in Congaree Riverkeeper’s jurisdictional area.

2019 Sewer Spill Summary

The total volume of spills for 2019 is higher than last year, but this total does include several large spills that, according to the permittees, did not enter a waterbody. If those spills that didn't enter a waterbody are removed the total volume is slightly lower than the previous year.

2019 also saw a significant increase in spills from Richland County Utilities, including three of the top four reported spills.

The month of December was a particularly bad month for sewer spills , accounting for more than 33% of the total annual volume spilled. Unfortunately, the wet weather that caused many of those December spills has continued into 2020, and we have seen numerous spills reported in January and February.

Important Notes

The table above only represents the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Several sewer providers in the Midlands, including the Town of Chapin, Richland County Utilities, and Blue Granite Water Company had spills that impacted other waterbodies, like Lake Murray.
According to the permittees, some of the reported spills (including several of the largest reported spills) did not reach a waterway and a significant portion of the volume was able to be recovered.
Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are over 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody.
This report also only accounts for sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems failed to officially report their spills to DHEC, including the Riverbend Apartments (which had multiple spills), the City of West Columbia, and Blue Granite Water.

Top Ten Reported Sewer Spills

SSO Hotspots

Rawls Creek

Blue Granite Water Company and the City of Columbia both had significant spills that impacted Rawls Creek, a tributary to the Lower Saluda River, including the collapse of a containment basin at Blue Granite's Friarsgate wastewater treatment plant that spilled a large amount of sewage sludge into the creek.

Broad River

Both Richland County Utilities and the City of Columbia experienced several significant spills that impacted the Broad River.

Past Reports

You can view past reports from 2017 and 2018 here.

February 2020 Flooding

Thu, 13 Feb 2020 21:25:14 GMT

On February 6th, a frontal system crossed South Carolina, bringing severe thunderstorms and dropping 2-3 inches of rain across the Midlands, and even higher rainfall amounts in the Upstate and North Carolina.

The Congaree River forms at the confluence of the Broad and Saluda Rivers, and the rain that falls in these watersheds eventually works it way down to Columbia.

On the morning of Sunday, February 9th the Congaree River at Columbia crested at 29.19 ft (149,000 cfs). This is the 10th highest crest recorded at this gage. You can view a list of historic crests here.

There was also significant flooding downstream at Congaree National Park.

Impacts

Several neighborhoods experienced flooding, including Congaree Park in West Columbia and Riverland Park in Cayce, as well as Chestnut Hill Plantation along the Broad River.
Multiple Sewer spills were reported, impacting the Broad River, Lower Saluda River, Kinley Creek, Swygert Branch, Lake Katherine, and Crane Creek.
The City of Columbia also experienced an " unanticipated bypass of partially treated effluent " at the Metro Wastewater Treatment Plant near I-77, impacting the Congaree River. The access road to the wastewater plant, Simon Tree Lane, was also flooded, and apparently vehicles have been stranded in the water.
The 120 ft floating dock at the Columbia Rowing Club on the Broad River near I-20 was washed away. If you happen to find it, please let us know so we can help them try to retrieve it.
The Vulcan Quarry on the Broad River flooded, and the Norfolk Southern railroad line was washed out.
There was also a train derailment on Friday, February 7th, near Columbia International University and the Broad River . Three engines and eight cargo cars derailed. According to DHEC and the US Coast Guard National Response Center database there was no significant release into the environment.

January Water Quality Report | 2020

Fri, 31 Jan 2020 21:34:34 GMT

On January 28th and 29th we conducted our first round of water quality sampling of 2020. Only one sample, Rocky Branch, was above the standard for contact recreation of 349 per 100 ml.

Interestingly, while a sewer spill was reported near Stoops Creek on January 29th, our sample from the day before was still below the standard. This could be a result of timing, location, or it could be influenced by the upstream discharge of treated wastewater from the Alpine wastewater treatment plant.

You can see the full results in the chart and map below.

Click to see interactive map

New Wastewater Treatment Plant Proposed for Fairfield County

Thu, 30 Jan 2020 18:13:20 GMT

New wastewater plant could discharge into Big Cedar Creek.

The Fairfield County Joint Water and Sewer System, which was established in 2019, is moving forward with plans to build a new wastewater treatment plant that will serve portions of southeastern Fairfield County. The plant is intended to serve a proposed 1,500-acre “industrial megasite” near I-77, as well as other customers in the area.

The Fairfield County Joint Water and Sewer System is proposing to build a 2 million gallon a day (MGD) wastewater plant (with the potential to expand to 4 MGD) that would discharge into Big Cedar Creek, a tributary to the Broad River. The FCJWSS is proposing to build a membrane bioreactor (MBR) tertiary treatment system. While there seems to be some back and forth about the specific location of the WWTP, property off of Syrup Mill Road has been discussed and is the likely site.

Here are some significant next steps in this process:

208 Plan amendments (must be approved by EPAC committee and CMCOG Board)
NPDES Permit Application (must be approved by DHEC, opportunities for public comment)

Some of the issues we’ll be looking at include:

What other alternatives, including both discharge points and treatment options, were considered?
Does Big Cedar Creek have enough consistent flow to handle this new wasteload?
Are there opportunities for wastewater reuse that would reduce the discharge to the creek?
Will the new WWTP be able to accept the flow from the outdated Ridgeway WWTP that already discharges to Big Cedar Creek?
Does the newly formed Fairfield County Joint Water and Sewer System have the staff and resources to run a successful industrial pretreatment program?

You can read more in this article: https://www.blythewoodonline.com/2020/01/cedar-creek-residents-push-back-against-proposed-wastewater-discharge-site/

2019 In Review

Wed, 18 Dec 2019 16:34:29 GMT

2019 was a busy year for Congaree Riverkeeper. We witnessed some hard-fought victories, took on new and emerging issues, and grew our organization at every level. Here are a few of this year’s highlights. We:

Worked with partners to remove an outdated and obsolete dam on Congaree Creek, improving natural stream flows, aquatic habitat, and safety for paddlers.
Reached a settlement agreement with Blue Granite Water Company (formerly, Carolina Water Service) over a long-running lawsuit that eliminated the illegal discharges from the company’s I-20 wastewater treatment plant. As a result of the settlement, Blue Granite contributed $350,000 to local water quality monitoring and planning initiatives.
Set the stage for the elimination of another problematic sewer discharge from the Lower Saluda River, Blue Granite Water Company’s Friarsgate wastewater treatment plant.
Expanded local water quality monitoring initiatives, including continued involvement and leadership in the Midlands Rivers Coalition ( HowsMySCRiver.org ).
Collaborated with researchers from the University of South Carolina to conduct a microplastics study of our local rivers.
Continued our legal and advocacy efforts to compel Dominion Energy (formerly, SCE&G) to clean up its toxic coal tar from the Congaree River.
Participated in the regulatory and legislative process to oppose environmental rollbacks and promote good policy.
Organized volunteer cleanups that removed more than 10,000 pounds of trash from our rivers and streams.
Engaged with thousands of citizens through our outreach and education activities, and
Responded to more than 30 citizen pollution reports, from sewer spills to illegal dumping.

Congaree River Coal Tar Update

Wed, 31 Jul 2019 04:49:27 GMT

When we found out nearly two years ago that SCE&G planned to abandon the effort to remove its toxic coal tar from the bottom of the Congaree River, we wanted to know why removal was abandoned and how the company and regulators came to that decision.

For the past few years, we at CRK have worked to get answers to those questions -- at public meetings, from regulators, and from SCE&G. Finally, last month, an answer: The Army Corps of Engineers never ruled out removal as an option and did not suggest the “cap.” That’s important news for everyone who uses the Congaree River. It means SCE&G can pursue excavation of the 40,000 tons of toxic coal tar from the riverbed – a permanent cleanup.

In new documents presented to us and to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, the Corps wrote that, “SCE&G’s assertion that its decision to abandon the cofferdam approach was exclusively a product of the Corps’ incomplete review of the DA permit application . . . misstates the record.” (emphasis in the original).

“In summary,” the Army Corps wrote, “Corps did not dictate the key decisions by SCE&G and DHEC in this process. . .”

The newly released documents show damming part of the river and excavating the coal tar will be a challenging undertaking, but not one that couldn’t be done or shouldn’t be considered.

In fact, we have long stated that it is the best solution to this problem. SCE&G is responsible for the pollution, and is responsible for doing everything possible to restore the river and ensure its long-term health.

We are very pleased that DHEC has instructed SCE&G to again pursue removing the coal tar from the Congaree River. The agency has been overseeing this project more than a decade, and understands the importance of getting this right. We look forward to working with SCE&G and regulators as they restart the planning and permitting process.

You can view the documents here:

Army Corps Letter 5-23-18

DHEC Letter 6-22-18

And you can read more in these articles:

The State Newspaper - SCE&G provided misleading information on Congaree coal tar cleanup, agencies say

WIS - Black Sludge: Riverkeeper says new documents show SCE&G misled public on river pollution

July Water Quality Report | 2019

Tue, 02 Jul 2019 03:34:57 GMT

On July 22nd and 23rd, Congaree Riverkeeper collected our regular water quality samples from local rivers and streams. Two urban stream sites, Gills Creek and Smith Branch, showed elevated bacteria levels (above the state standard of 349). While there was some rain on the evening of the 23rd, these samples were collected earlier in the day, so it is unlikely that the exceedences were related to stormwater runoff. Other possible sources of bacteria may include wildlife, sewer overflows, illicit connections, failing septic systems, and nearby land disturbance and construction activities.

It is worth noting that two of our sites were also sampled by the Midlands Rivers Coalition on the morning of Wednesday the 24th, after approximately 1 inch of rainfall. While the Saluda River at Saluda Shoals site continued to show low bacteria levels, the Saluda at I-20 site, which is downstream of several tributaries, showed elevated bacteria levies after the rainfall. This helps emphasize something we've long said; that we often see elevated bacteria levies in the 24-48 hours after a significant rain event, especially below where urban streams discharge to the river. You can see the Midlands Rivers Coalition's weekly water quality results at HowsMySCRiver.org .

2019 Legislative Summary

Sat, 25 May 2019 02:52:08 GMT

What We Stopped

The South Carolina Legislature has wrapped up the 2019 session (well, almost), and it was a pretty great year for conservation. Here's how Congaree Riverkeeper's top issues played out, as well as a few other conservation highlights.

The Plastic Bag Ban Bans

The conservation community was successful in stopping S.394, a bill that would have prevented local governments from enacting bans on single use containers like plastic bags, and would have undone any existing bans that have already been passed. The bill passed out of the Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee but is currently stalled on the Senate floor by Sens. Johnson, Senn & McElveen. We're only in the first year of a two-year legislative session though, so we will likely be fighting this bill again in January.

In addition to stopping S.394, we were also able to stop an attempted budget proviso that would have enacted a one-year moratorium on local bans. The proviso was defeated by a 27-15 vote on the Senate floor, sending a strong message about where Senators stand on this issue.

Our partners at the Coastal Conservation League and Charleston Waterkeeper were instrumental in these efforts to protect the ability of local governments to fight plastic pollution.

Weakening Dam Safety

We were able to stop S.107, a reckless bill that would have exempted nearly two thirds of South Carolina's regulated dams from safety regulations. The bill passed out of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee but is currently being blocked on the Senate floor by Sen. Harpootlian. Thanks to our partners at CVSC and American Rivers for work on this important issue. This bill may come up again next year, and we stand ready to fight any attempt to weaken our dam safety laws.

Important Budget Wins

State Water Plan Funding - Despite efforts by the South Carolina Farm Bureau opposing it, the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year includes $1.35 million for SCDNR to begin developing a new State Water Plan. The budget also includes a proviso that $400,000 of that money goes to developing a plan for the Edisto River Basin. While the $1.35M is significantly less than the $10M that SCDNR requested (even less that the $2.5M the governor requested), it will allow us to get to work and start the process.

New USGS Stream Gages and Groundwater Monitoring Wells - In order to develop and implement the State Water Plan we need reliable data about our water resources. The budget includes funding for new stream gages and groundwater monitoring wells that SCDNR has long sought.

Saluda River Greenway Funding - The budget also includes $1.5 million in Parks, Recreation and Tourism funding to extend the Saluda River Greenway in Lexington County.

Continued Water Quality Monitoring & Dam Safety Inspection Funding - The budget appropriately continues funding for ambient surface water monitoring and dam safety inspections under DHEC which we have advocated for in years past.

Other Conservation Wins

The conservation community had a handful of other important wins this year, including:

Thanks to the SC Conservation Coalition and all of our partner organizations who worked on these important issues. Most importantly though, thanks to everyone who contacted their elected officials, showed up at the State House, and made their voices heard. This is how democracy works!

Midlands River Coalition Kicks off Third Season of Water Quality Monitoring

Thu, 09 May 2019 04:14:06 GMT

On May 1st the Midlands Rivers Coalition began its third year of water quality monitoring of the major rivers in the Columbia area. The monitoring includes 11 sample locations on the Lower Saluda, Broad, and Congaree Rivers. The testing will be conducted weekly from May through September and published each Thursday on HowsMySCRiver.org .

The Midlands Rivers Coalition is made up of river-related businesses, environmental organizations, academia, local and state government, recreation providers, industry and other users of the rivers.

The first objective is to make water quality information more frequently, and readily, available to river users so they can make informed decisions about when to recreate in the river. During the 2018 monitoring period, the coalition collected over 300 water quality samples. The coalition had great success in quickly sharing the results through the website. In the 2019 season, the coalition is excited to be able to post signs in 21 locations as an additional step in informing and empowering river users. For more information visit HowsMySCRiver.org .

May Water Quality Report | 2019

Thu, 02 May 2019 02:37:04 GMT

On May 28th and 29th we collected our regular water quality samples from local rivers and streams. While all the river samples were well below the state standard for contact recreation of 349/100 mL, our urban stream samples told a different story. Three sites, Smith Branch, Rocky Branch, and 12 Mile Creek showed elevated bacteria levels. These urban streams have had multiple exceedences over the last several years of sampling. It has been pretty dry lately, so these exceedences are not likely related to stormwater runoff. Other possible sources of bacteria include wildlife, sewer overflows, illicit connections, and failing septic systems.

March Water Quality Report | 2019

Wed, 27 Mar 2019 04:16:48 GMT

Earlier this month we collected our regular water quality samples from local rivers and streams. Two sites, Smith Branch and 12 Mile Creek, had results above the state standard for contact recreation of 349/100 mL. Both of these urban streams have had multiple exceedences over the last four years of sampling. These exceedences do not appear to be associated with any rainfall event. The next round of sampling is scheduled for May.

CWS I-20 Lawsuit Settlement

Tue, 26 Mar 2019 04:22:18 GMT

On March 11th the federal court approved a settlement agreement between Congaree Riverkeeper and Carolina Water Service (now Blue Granite Water), finally ending the years long litigation over the I-20 wastewater system. The court granted summary judgment in favor of Congaree Riverkeeper in March of 2017, ruling that CWS had violated the Clean Water Act, and in February of 2018 the discharge from the I-20 wastewater plant finally ended, but the penalty and attorneys fees still had to be decided by the court.

As part of the settlement CWS will contribute funds to local water quality initiatives, including a $250,000 donation to the Midlands Rivers Coalition’s HowsMySCRiver.org water quality monitoring program and a $100,000 payment to the Central Midlands Council of Governments to support regional water quality planning. We are happy to be able to put this case to bed, and to ensure funding for local clean water efforts.

You can read the joint press release from Congaree Riverkeeper and Blue Granite Water here.

You can view the full settlement agreement here .

And you can read more in this article from the Free Times:

Riverkeeper, Private Water Company Reach Settlement in Long-Running I-20 Plant Suit

January Water Quality Report | 2019

Thu, 31 Jan 2019 05:51:55 GMT

On January 29th and 30th we conducted our first round of water quality monitoring in the new year. Only one site, Smith Branch, had results above the state standard for contact recreation of 349/100 mL. Smith Branch is a tributary to the Broad River that drains part of northern part of downtown Columbia. We do not know the source of the elevated bacteria levels in the creek, but possible causes include stormwater runoff (we had small amount of rain the day before sampling), nearby septic systems, and/or wildlife.

We were unable to sample our Congaree River site because the boat ramp we use was inaccessible due to recent high water and mud. The next round of sampling is scheduled for March.

2018 Sewer Spill Report

s.sinclair.taylor@gmail.com (Sean Taylor) — Tue, 22 Jan 2019 05:08:44 GMT

For six consecutive years, Congaree Riverkeeper has compiled and analyzed data from DHEC's sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) database to produce an annual sewer spill report. In 2018, there were 229 reported sanitary sewer overflows resulting in just over 400,000 gallons of sewage spilled in Congaree Riverkeeper’s jurisdictional area. While this marks another significant reduction in the total SSO volume from previous years, there are some important caveats.

2018 Sewer Spill Summary

*While the above numbers depict an overall improvement in the reduction of sewer spills, especially as it relates to the City of Columbia, the data, alone, does not provide a full snapshot of the impact of sewer spills in the Midlands area. For example, in November, an incident occurred at the City of Columbia's wastewater treatment plant that resulted in the “unanticipated bypass” of an approximately 2.25 million gallons of partially treated sewage.

The bypass, caused by a combination of factors including high water and equipment failure, was not reported as a Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO), because the sewage had already entered the treatment plant and gone through the first stage of treatment. Despite the event not being labelled an "SSO," the bypass nonetheless resulted in significant discharge of sewage into the Congaree River. Congaree Riverkeeper met with City of Columbia wastewater staff at the treatment plant in early December to discuss the incident and what actions the City is taking to prevent spills of this nature in the future.

Additional, Important Notes

The table above only represents the reported sanitary sewer overflows within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Several sewer providers in the Midlands, including the Town of Chapin, Richland County Utilities, and Blue Granite Water Company/Carolina Water Service also had spills that impacted other waterbodies, like Lake Murray. This includes a 28,800-gallon spill from Blue Granite Water Company/Carolina Water Service’s Watergate Plant into the lake in December.
Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are over 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody. The City of Columbia is required by its consent decree to report all of its spills, no matter the volume or impacted area.
This report only shows sewer overflows that were reported to DHEC. Some sewer providers and satellite sewer systems fail to officially report their spills, like the December spill at the Riverbend Apartments that Congaree Riverkeeper documented and reported (see video below).

Top Ten Reported Sewer Spills

SSO Hotspots

Lake Catherine / Gills Creek

Lake Katherine, in the Gills Creek watershed, is the number one SSO hotspot with spills regularly occurring whenever the Midlands receives any significant amount of rainfall. The City of Columbia is working on a sewer project that it hopes will resolve the SSO issues. The project should be completed in the next year.

Rawls Creek

Blue Granite Water Company/Carolina Water Service had several SSOs from its Friarsgate system that impacted Rawls Creek, a tributary to the Lower Saluda River that runs through Saluda Shoals Park. While the discharge from the Friarsgate wastewater plant into the Saluda River is scheduled to be eliminated this spring, it is clear that the company still has significant work to do on its collection system.

Top SSO Volumes From Around the State

2018 in Review

Mon, 31 Dec 2018 05:30:43 GMT

https://www.congareeriverkeeper.org/ This last year was a big one for Congaree Riverkeeper. We witnessed some hard-fought victories, took on new and emerging issues, and grew our organization at every level. Here are a few of the year’s highlights.

We:

Eliminated Carolina Water Service’s (CWS) illegal sewer discharge into the Lower Saluda River, after more than 5 years of litigation and multiple court cases;

Expanded local water quality monitoring initiatives, including helping lead the Midlands Rivers Coalition ;

Negotiated and signed a relicensing settlement agreement for the Parr and Fairfield hydropower dams on the Broad River that should improve river conditions for years to come;

Continued our legal and advocacy efforts to compel SCE&G to clean up its toxic coal tar from the Congaree River;

Collaborated with conservation partners to establish new protections for our shared groundwater resources;

Organized volunteer cleanups that removed approximately 10,000 pounds of trash from our rivers and streams;

Engaged with thousands of citizens through our outreach and education activities;

Responded to more than 30 pollution reports, from fish kills to sewer spills; and

Fought for our rivers and communities at the State House, opposing bad bills and promoting good legislation.

November Water Quality Report | 2018

Mon, 03 Dec 2018 05:58:22 GMT

On November 28th and 29th we conducted our final round of water quality monitoring for the year. None of the results were above the state standard for contact recreation of 349/100 mL. We were unable to sample our Broad River site because of high water and access issues. The next round of sampling is scheduled for January of 2019.

2018 List of Impaired Waters

Tue, 20 Nov 2018 05:44:12 GMT

On November 5th, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) released its 2018 draft list of impaired waters, also called the "303(d) List." The Clean Water Act requires that every two years, states develop a list of waterbodies that fail to meet water quality standards. The list is developed primarily from DHEC’s water quality monitoring data, as well as data collected by outside organizations (including Congaree Riverkeeper's data for the first time this cycle). The list includes a location, the use that is impaired, and the cause of the impairment. The "uses" are based on the Clean Water Act’s goals of fishable, swimmable, drinkable water that is capable of supporting the survival and propagation of a balanced indigenous aquatic community. These "uses" are described as: aquatic life support, recreational use support, and fish consumption.

You can view the full 2018 report, including methodology and appendices here.

Impaired Waters

The 2018 303(d) list includes forty-six impairments at forty-three sites in the Lower Broad, Lower Saluda and Congaree River watersheds that make up the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdiction (up from forty-two in 2016) .

View the impaired waters list here.

Six new impairments were listed this year: four for recreational use and two for aquatic life use. Gills Creek is one of three sites across the state that was newly listed this year as impaired for aquatic life support because of lead.

CRK09 - 12 MILE CREEK - REC - ECOLI
CRK08 - STOOPS CREEK - REC - ECOLI
CRK06 - ROCKY BRANCH - REC - ECOLI
C-017 - GILLS CK AT SC 48 -BLUFF ROAD - AL - PB
C-072 - TOMS CK AT SC 48 - REC - ECOLI
C-072 - TOMS CK AT SC 48 - AL - DO

Two sites were removed from the list this year because they attained the recreational standard for E. coli.

B-080 - BROAD RIVER DIV CANAL AT COLA WATER PLANT - REC - ECOLI - Standard Attained
CSB-001R - CONGAREE RVR AT BLOSSOM ST (BROAD RIVER) - REC - ECOLI - Standard Attained

TMDLs

The 303(d) list also includes a list of sites within a developed Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). TMDLs are pollution reduction calculations designed to help waterbodies meet water quality standards and restore uses. The 2018 list includes: thirty-five TMDL sites. Thirty-three of the sites are listed as impaired for recreational use and two are listed for aquatic life support impaired by dissolved oxygen (Gills Creek at Bluff Rd. is listed for both).

View the TMDL list here.

Waters of Concern – Lead

The 2018 report also includes a list of "waters of concern," waters that "while not currently included on the 303(d) List of Impaired Waters, . . . have the potential to be listed as impaired in 2020," according to DHEC. This year's list includes 166 sites, with sites in all eight major river basins in South Carolina, that are listed as waters of concern for aquatic life use support because of lead.

Five sites in the Congaree Riverkeeper watersheds are listed as waters of concern for aquatic life use support because of lead (PB).

B-320 - BIG CEDAR CK AT SC 215 - AL - PB
RS-11041 - CRIMS CREEK AT BRIDGE AT S-36-170; 2.7 MI E OF POMARIA - AL - PB
RS-09323 - LIGHTWOOD KNOT BRANCH AT TRENHOLM RD EXTENSION - AL - PB
RS-09312 - CEDAR CREEK AT BRIDGE ON S-40-2561 NEAR BEULAH CHURCH AND GATE TO MCINTYRE AIRBASE - AL - PB
RS-10408 - BUCKHEAD CK AT SC-419 - AL - PB

It is important to note that these waters of concern (as well as the three sites listed as impaired for lead) are for aquatic life use, meaning that the lead levels may prevent the waters from "providing for the survival and propagation of a balanced indigenous aquatic community of fauna and flora." For pollutants, like lead and other heavy metals, there are acute and/or chronic aquatic life criterion that DHEC compares the data to. Put simply, there may be too much lead in the water for the critters that live in these impaired rivers, streams, and lakes to thrive.

Regarding the 303(d) List release, DHEC stated that it does not believe there are any public health concerns related to these lead impairments or waters of concern. That being said, DHEC must make the case to the public that there is not a public health risk and provide all the supporting data for this claim.

Both the new lead impairments and the waters of concern raise several questions, including:

What is/are the source(s) of the lead? Will DHEC conduct a lead source study?
Since some of the data used to list these sites goes back almost a decade, when did DHEC know that there were lead concerns, and why weren't these sites listed years earlier?

Hydologically Impaired Waters

For the first time, the 303(d) list also includes a waterbody that is impaired for hydrologic alteration (i.e. flow issues): the Upper Saluda River below the Saluda Lake Dam. SC Rivers Forever, a coalition of river conservation groups that includes Congaree Riverkeeper and others, submitted five river segments for listing as impaired due to hydrologic alteration. DHEC chose to only list one. Congaree Riverkeeper will continue to advocate for the listing of waters impaired for flow and will work to address the underlying issues that cause these flow impairments.

You can read more about the 303(d) list, TMDLs and view past lists on DHEC’s website here: https://www.scdhec.gov/south-carolina-303d-list-impaired-waters-tmdl-limits-contaminants#4

September Water Quality Report | 2018

Fri, 28 Sep 2018 05:01:44 GMT

In late September we conducted our regular water quality monitoring at 10 river and stream sites across the Midlands. Two of the sample results, Stoops Creek, and Smith Branch exceeded the state standard for contact recreation of 349 per 100 ml.

After receiving the results we contacted DHEC and started an investigation on Stoops Creek. Palmetto Wastewater Reclamation (aka Ni America, formerly Alpine Utilities) was contacted and after inspecting their sewer system they found a leak at one of their upstream pump stations. According to DHEC the leak has been fixed. Palmetto Wastewater will be collecting follow up samples to confirm the issue has been resolved.

July Water Quality Report | 2018

Tue, 07 Aug 2018 05:05:56 GMT

On July 24th and 25th we collected water quality samples at our 10 river and stream sites across the Midlands. Four of the sample results, Gills Creek, Rocky Branch, Stoops Creek, and 12 Mile Creek exceeded the state standard for contact recreation of 349 per 100 ml. These elevated bacteria results in these urban streams were likely caused by stormwater runoff, as we had received approximately an inch of rain within 48 hours of collecting the samples.

Groups Sign Broad River Hydropower Relicensing Agreement

Mon, 30 Jul 2018 04:54:56 GMT

In June, after nearly 6 years of work, several government agencies and conservation organizations signed a comprehensive relicensing settlement agreement (CRSA) for SCE&G's Parr and Fairfield hydroelectric facilities on the Broad River north of Columbia. The stakeholders that participated in the relicensing process included the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, American Rivers, American Whitewater, Congaree Riverkeeper, and others.

On June 28th, after the signing of the settlement agreement, SCE&G submitted the final relicensing application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Over the next few years, FERC will review the application, seek public comments, and make a final decision on the license.

The settlement agreement and new license should result in several environmental and recreational improvements. Through this process we expect to see improved minimum flows, water quality, and fisheries protection for the Broad River. There will also be improvements to recreational facilities, the establishment of a habitat enhancement fund, and several other initiatives.

You can see the CRSA and Final License Application on the Parr/Fairfield relicensing website here. You can also find more information in this press release from SCE&G and this blog post from American Rivers.

May Water Quality Report | 2018

Wed, 30 May 2018 05:21:46 GMT

On May 22nd and 23rd we collected water quality samples at 9 of our 10 river and stream sites across the Midlands (we were also unable to sample the Congaree River site because of high water). Two of the samples, Rocky Branch and Smith Branch, exceeded the state standard for contact recreation of 349 per 100 ml. These elevated bacteria results were likely caused by stormwater runoff. We had received several days of rainfall in the week leading up to sampling.

2018 Legislative Summary

Fri, 18 May 2018 05:19:43 GMT

Last week, the South Carolina General Assembly adjourned, ending a two year legislative session (well, kinda). We won some battles and lost some, but we, along with our partner organizations and the South Carolina Conservation Coalition , fought for our rivers, our environment, and citizen's right. Below is a recap of several of the bill we worked on at the State House this year.

The Wins

Defeated the Plastic Bag Ban Ban

It was a long hard fight, but H.3529 , the bill that would have made it illegal for local governments to enact bans on plastic bags, did not pass the Senate and is officially dead. This anti-home rule pro-plastic pollution bill was being pushed by the plastic bag industry and their lobbyists and mouthpiece the "American Progressive Bag Alliance". While many groups worked hard to defeat this bill, we have to give a big shout out to our partners on the coast, especially Charleston Waterkeeper and the Coastal Conservation League , for taking the lead on this issue.

Unfortunately, the plastic bag folks have already said they'll be back again next year fighting to make it harder for our communities to deal with the serious issue of plastic pollution.

Established a Catch-and-Release Zone for Trout on the Lower Saluda River

S.1044 passed the House on the last day of session, was signed by the Governor on May 17th, and will go into effect on July 1st. This bill establishes a 2 mile stretch of the Lower Saluda River, from the I-20 bridge to Stacey's Ledge, as a catch-and-release only zone for trout fishing. This effort was supported by the Saluda River Chapter of Trout Unlimited , SCDNR , and Congaree Riverkeeper.

As we prepare for the opening of the Saluda Riverwalk and the increased pressure that will come with it, it is important to put in place regulations and management strategies that will protect this unique fishery. With recent improvement to water quality in the Lower Saluda trout are finally starting to naturally reproduce in the river and the new catch-and-release zone was identified as a critical area for spawning and nursery habitat.

The Losses

Automatic Stay

In March, the Legislature passed S.105 , a bill that limits the automatic stay, an important legal tool that helps prevent irreparable harm to the environment and communities while permit decisions are being reviewed. This is yet another example in recent years of legislators putting the interests of polluters and developers ahead of citizen's rights.

Dam Safety

You would think after two major storms and more than 70 dam failures across the state our legislators would be able to pass some very simple, common sense, dam safety reforms. Well, they didn't.

See more on this piece from WACH Fox.

Other Important Issues and What's Left

The Legislature must return to the State House to finish up work on the budget and several bills dealing with the VC Summer fiasco and energy reform.

Check out this post from our partners at CVSC on other important conservation issues, and what's still left to do.

Midlands Rivers Coalition Kicks Off Weekly Water Quality Monitoring

Thu, 03 May 2018 05:04:26 GMT

On May 2nd the Midlands Rivers Coalition, formerly known as the Lower Saluda River Coalition, began its second year of water quality monitoring of the major rivers in the Columbia area. This year, the monitoring has been expanded to include sampling locations on the Broad River in addition to existing sites on the Lower Saluda and Congaree Rivers. The testing will be done weekly and run from May through September. Weekly data will be posted each Thursday on HowsMySCRiver.org .

Created in 2016, the Midlands Rivers Coalition is made up of river related businesses, environmental organizations, academia, local and state government, recreation providers, property owners, industry and other users of the rivers. One of the main purposes of the coalition is to educate river users on water quality issues related to our rivers.

The Lower Saluda, Broad and Congaree Rivers are recreational destinations for public fishing, canoeing, kayaking, tubing, swimming and wading; and these activities involve contact with natural waters. As with most natural bodies of water, these rivers can be negatively impacted periodically by short-term events such as runoff from heavy rains, sewer overflows and other events. The program aims to enhance public awareness on these issues.

The primary objective of this program is to make water quality information more frequently and readily available to river users so they can make informed decisions on when to recreate in the river. This is the first program of its type for inland waters in South Carolina.

For more information on the program and the coalition visit HowsMySCRiver.org .

March Water Quality Report | 2018

Thu, 29 Mar 2018 05:31:40 GMT

On March 27th and 28th we collected water quality samples at our 10 river and stream sites across the Midlands. None of the samples exceeded the state standard for contact recreation of 349 per 100 ml (all greens!). You can see the full results in the chart and map below.

Saluda NPDES Permits Up For Renewal

Tue, 20 Mar 2018 05:29:34 GMT

SC DHEC is in the process of reviewing three wastewater discharge permit (aka NPDES permits) renewals for the Lower Saluda River.

Here are the three wastewater plants with renewal applications being reviewed (click to see the draft permit).

Palmetto Wastewater Reclamation/Alpine

Palmetto Wastewater Reclamation/Woodlands

Synergy Utilities/Bush River (Formerly DSI)

While the CWS Friarsgate permit is also up for renewal, DHEC is not planning to renew this permit because Carolina Water Service is pursuing a path to eliminate the discharge via connection to a regional sewer system.

You can see a map of the discharge locations and past compliance history on our website here.

DHEC will be hosting a public meeting on April 3rd to discuss the permit renewals. The meeting will also include an update from the Midlands Rivers Coalition on the water quality monitoring program and an update on the regional wastewater plan (aka the 208 plan). This will be informal meeting that will allow for questions and answers.

Details

What

PUBLIC MEETING WITH MIDLANDS RIVERS COALITION

When

April 3, 2018, 6:30pm

Where

DHEC Peeples Auditorium (2600 Bull Street, Columbia)

There will also be a formal permit hearing on the NPDES permits on April 10th.

All permit comments must be received by April 13th. For more information and/or to make comments, contact Drew Edwards/DHEC-Bureau of Water/2600 Bull Street, Columbia, SC 29201 – edwardaj@dhec.sc.gov .

You can find more information about the upcoming meetings and the permit renewals on DHEC's website here: http://www.scdhec.gov/HomeAndEnvironment/Pollution/CleanUpPrograms/Ongoi..

CWS I-20 Discharge Finally Ends

Tue, 06 Mar 2018 06:11:38 GMT

At approximately 1:00 pm on Wednesday, February 28th, after nearly two decades of illegal discharges, six years of work by Congaree Riverkeeper, and multiple court cases, the discharge from Carolina Water Service's I-20 wastewater treatment plant into the Lower Saluda River finally ceased. This is a huge victory for the Saluda, river users, and everybody in our community who cares about clean water and healthy rivers.

None of this could have happened without the people who supported us in the fight, showed up at public hearings, submitted comments, and made their voices heard. Today your river is cleaner because of your efforts, and we’re just getting started.

Video of the FORMER CWS I-20 discharge point on the Lower Saluda River on March 1.

Here is a general timeline of how this issue played out over the years (this is not a comprehensive list):

1999 - CWS told they must connect the I-20 plant to the regional sewer system; NPDES Permit for CWS I-20 expires.

March 2012 - Congaree Riverkeeper begins investigating CWS I-20 discharge and building Clean Water Act lawsuit.

November 4, 2013 - Congaree Riverkeeper, represented by SELC, sends Notice of Intent to Sue letter to CWS, initiating Clean Water Act lawsuit.

January 14, 2015 - After more than a year of attempted negotiations to end the discharge, Congaree Riverkeeper officially files CWA lawsuit in federal court.

July 14, 2015 - DHEC proposes to reissue NPDES permit for CWS I-20 and published draft permit and public notice.

August 25, 2015 - DHEC holds public hearing on CWS I-20 Permit renewal. More than 300 people attend, all but one oppose renewing the permit.

September 4, 2015 - DHEC issues Notice of Intent to Deny NPDES permit for CWS I-20.

August 1, 2016 - DHEC officially denies NPDES permit renewal for CWS I-20 and issues administrative orders.

September 21, 2016 - CWS appeals permit denial to SC Administrative Law Court.

March 30, 2017 - Federal Judge rules in favor of Congaree Riverkeeper in Clean Water Act lawsuit, fines CWS $1.5 million, and orders them the end discharge by April 1, 2018.

September 2017 - The Town of Lexington moves to condemn the CWS I-20 plant.

February 1, 2018 - Town of Lexington officially takes ownership of CWS I-20 system.

February 28, 2018 - Town of Lexington connects flow from I-20 system to its nearby sewer system via a temporary pumping system, ending the discharge to the Saluda River.

2017 Sewer Spill Report

s.sinclair.taylor@gmail.com (Sean Taylor) — Wed, 17 Jan 2018 06:53:03 GMT

For the last five years Congaree Riverkeeper has compiled and analyzed data from DHEC's sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) database to produce a report on the previous year's sewer spills. In 2017 there were 203 reported sewer spills resulting in more than 750,000 gallons of sewage spilled in the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area, a significant reduction in SSO volume from previous years.

2017 Sewer Spill Summary

*Reported to DHEC as 0, CRK Estimate Based on Observation.

For the first time since we started publishing the annual SSO report the total spill volume for the Congaree Riverkeeper watersheds is less that one million gallons. One of the significant causes of the reduced spill volume appears to be a significant reduction in spill volume from the City of Columbia, especially a reduction in the large spills that have impacted Crane Creek for the last several years.

Important Notes

The 2017 summary table above only represents the reported spills within the Congaree Riverkeeper jurisdictional area. Several sewer providers had additional spills impacting other waters in the Midlands, including Lake Murray (Town of Chapin, Carolina Water Service, City of Columbia, and Richland County Utilities) and the Wateree River watershed (Palmetto Utilities Inc, and Town of Winnsboro).
The reported SSO volumes are estimates and are based on field observations and a number of assumptions, including spill duration and flow rates. Spill volumes are often underreported or reported inaccurately. Despite these issues, the SSO volumes in this report are still very helpful in understanding and addressing sewer spill issues in our region.
Most sewer providers are only required to report spills that are over 500 gallons or that impact a waterbody. The City of Columbia is required by their consent decree to report all of their spills, no matter the volume or impacted area.

Top Ten Reported Sewer Spills

SSO Hotspots

Crane Creek

As in past years, Crane Creek, a tributary to the Broad River, was the number one SSO hotspot with several large spills impacting the creek. But, the City of Columbia completed a multi-year sewer line replacement project along the creek in 2017 and there has not been a significant spill reported there since April.

Lake Katherine / Gills Creek

Lake Katherine, in the Gills Creek watershed, is the number two SSO hotspot with spills regularly occurring whenever we receive any significant rainfall. The City of Columbia is working on a sewer project that they hope will resolve the SSO issues. The project is expected to be completed within the next two years.