Goose Creek joins Ashley Cooper stormwater partnership

Published: May 16, 2012

Carolina Clear image by: Carolina Clear

GOOSE CREEK — The Ashley Cooper Stormwater Education Consortium welcomed a new member Wednesday when the city of Goose Creek became the latest to join a regional effort to protect area water quality.

Mayor Michael J. Heitzler signed a resolution to adopt a regional stormwater pollution prevention and education strategy, joining 10 other area communities that partner with Clemson University’s Carolina Clear program to tackle stormwater issues on a regional basis.

Carolina Clear’s goal is to minimize polluted stormwater runoff by educating the general public, youth, builders, developers, homeowners and government officials about how they can keep water in the state’s streams, rivers and basins as clean as possible.

In 2008, representatives from local governments signed a joint resolution to adopt a regional stormwater education and awareness strategy through the Ashley Cooper consortium, a regional partnership between communities and educators from universities, state agencies and nonprofits.

The Environmental Protection Agency emphasizes public education as a fundamental component in reducing stormwater runoff pollution. The EPA requires that certain municipalities and counties educate and involve the public as part of the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II stormwater permit program.

Kim Counts, co-coordinator of the Ashley Cooper consortium said that ultimately it is everyone’s responsibility — from local governments to the public — to keep surface waters as clean as possible.

Most of the area’s drinking water comes from surface water, with the Goose Creek Reservoir serving as the primary source of Charleston-area drinking water. This means that such simple acts as picking up after dogs or limiting the amount of fertilizer used on lawns can help keep rivers, lakes and streams clean, Counts said.

“It’s a public health issue and a safety issue,” she said. “Healthy coastal watersheds are closely tied to the region’s economy. Much is at stake when we don’t as individuals take action to protect our waterways.”

The Ashley Cooper Stormwater Education Consortium is a regional collaboration involving the Carolina Clear program in partnership with 11 communities: Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties; the cities of Charleston, Folly Beach, Goose Creek, Isle of Palms and North Charleston; and the towns of Sullivan’s Island and Summerville.

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Carolina Clear
Carolina Clear is a stormwater education and involvement program of the Clemson University Restoration Institute and the Center for Watershed Excellence. The program’s goal is to minimize polluted stormwater runoff by motivating the general public, youth, builders, developers, homeowners and government officials to action to protect water quality and keep water in the state’s streams, rivers and basins as clean as possible.