Introducing the Edisto Island Watershed Plan

Beginning in May 2020, Clemson Extension and partners including the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, and the Edisto Island Open Land Trust, worked with the Edisto Island and Edisto Beach communities to create a watershed plan to address pollution in the Store Creek watershed, the South Edisto River-Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway watershed, and the Dawho River-North Edisto River watershed.  These three watersheds are referred to collectively as the Edisto Island Watershed, and they encompass the entirety of Edisto Island and the Town of Edisto Beach.  The plan was completed in Fall 2022 and approved by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control in December 2022. 

What is a Watershed-Based Plan?

A watershed is the area of land that contributes runoff to a lake, river, stream, wetland, estuary, or bay.  If water pollution becomes a problem in a watershed, the development of a watershed plan can provide a roadmap to help communities identify water quality issues and address pollution sources. When implemented, watershed plans can improve and protect water quality in local water bodies, such as the tidal creeks and rivers around Edisto Island. Once a watershed plan is finalized and accepted by SCDHEC, grants are available through the Clean Water Act Section 319 Non-point Source Management Program. This 319 funding, administered through SCDHEC, can be used to implement projects identified in the watershed plan that will reduce pollution.