DATE: September 13, 2006
CONTACT:
John Kelly , (864) 656-3015
jkelly@clemson.edu
CONTACT:
Mac Horton, (803) 788-5700, ext. 26
mhorton@clemson.edu
CONTACT:
Austin Jenkins, (864) 313-4233
robertj@clemson.edu
WRITER:
Debbie Dalhouse, (864) 656-6737
ddalhou@clemson.edu
EXPERT:
Environmentalist donates land in Camden
COLUMBIA — A celebration to honor philanthropist Margaret Lloyd will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 14, at Clemson University’s Sandhill Research and Education Center in Columbia. The ardent environmentalist has given more than 850 acres to the University to establish an environmental education center on the Wateree River in Camden.
“We are most grateful for Margaret Lloyd’s generosity, not just to Clemson University but to future generations,” said John W. Kelly, Clemson University vice president for Public Service and Agriculture.
“We will use her gift to showcase education on environmental conservation and the human connection to the natural world. We plan for this project to become one of the nation’s leading environmental education centers, bringing in speakers from around the nation,” he said.
The first step is to conduct a detailed survey of the flora and fauna over the next several years. Austin Jenkins, natural resource manager for the Sandhill Center and the Camden property, will conduct the survey. The tract includes more than a mile of land along the Wateree River, with bottomland hardwoods and upland pines.
“We want the process of planning and building on this property to serve as an example to urban planners, designers, engineers, builders, university students and the public,” said Mac Horton, director of Clemson’s Institute for Economic and Community Development located at Sandhill. “We plan to have the smallest possible development footprint on the property. The majority of land will be left natural, with minimal impact.”
Margaret Lloyd advocates the interdependence of humans and nature and the importance of working with – not against – nature. She and her husband, the late Richard Lloyd, moved to the area in the 1940s. They bought several tracts of land and donated property for the Historic Camden Revolutionary War Park and the Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County. But Margaret bought this 853-acre tract, known as Hard Scramble, herself to learn about wildlife management.
Up to 100 acres of the Hard Scramble property may be set aside to develop homes using the latest in “green,” or environmentally friendly, technology. The residential project would help fund construction and environmental education programs in Camden. These programs will complement environmentally sustainable economic and community development programs at Clemson’s Sandhill Research and Education Center in northeast Richland County.
END
DIRECTIONS TO SANDHILL CENTER
Take Interstate 20 East toward Florence, to exit 80, Clemson Road. Turn left onto Clemson Road and travel approximately 2.5 miles. From the new overpass (still on Clemson Road), travel approximately another one-fourth mile on Clemson Road and take the first right into the Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development at Sandhill REC.