Updated Masthead with new logo
ACSEC E-Newsletter

September/October 2016

For More Information, Follow Us on Facebook!

 

 

Like us on Facebook

Like us on Facebook 
Good Foot logo

CLICK THE DROPS BELOW FOR MORE INFO

button pond
New Resource!
Pond Management
button pesticide
Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
button pet
Pet Waste Management
 
Button Auto
Car Care
button septic
Septic System Maintenance
Button Boat
Clean Boating
button oil
Fats, Oils, and Grease
button hhm
Hazardous Household Materials
button litter
Litter and Illegal Dumping
Button Construction-Sediment
Construction Site Sediment

button fertilizer
Be Wise When You Fertilize



 
Programs and Resources  




Create Your Own Carolina Yard!


rain garden manual cover
Build Your Own Rain Garden!

rain barrel manuel
Residential Rainwater Harvesting Manual


Coast a Syst Cover

Coastal Friendly Living Guide and Links to other SC Sea Grant Publications

Tidal Creek Cover
This booklet explores tidal creek ecosystems and the various threats to the valuable services they provide

Community Assoc Stormwater Mgmt cover
Guide for Community Associations

Stormwater Pond Maintenance

Backyard Buffers cover 

Clemson Extension Logo

Home and Garden 

Information Center

 

CEPSCI logo
Certified Erosion Prevention and Sediment Control Inspector

Clean Marina Logo/Flag

Carolina Clear w/tag
  
Free for Teachers:

 

New SC Standards-Based 

Watershed Lessons and Interactive Whiteboard Activities

 

 

SC Green Steps Program

 

 

Disposing of Household Waste

 

County Solid Waste and Recycling Center Info 

Berkeley County

Charleston County 

Dorchester County

 

Interactive Maps

 

SC Watershed Stewardship Map

 

SC NEMO LID Atlas

 

Sea Grant Logo
SC Coastal Information Network Website Search for Training Opportunities
 

Volunteer Opportunities
 
Litter Sweeps
Adopt a Highway logo 
 
Community Pride 
 
Beach Sweep/River Sweep logo
 
Palmetto Pride
 
KAB logo
KAB Affiliates
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Storm Drain Marking
Storm Drain Marker
Mark Storm Drains In Your Neighborhood and Promote Awareness that Storm Drains and Ditches Connect to SC's Waterways
 Email Angela Crouch
 
 
 
 
  
Oyster Reef Restoration and Water Quality Monitoring 
SC DNR logo

SCORE Program

 
Top Pic: Salt Marsh Heroes

This August, a group of volunteers from Keep Charleston Beautiful, Surfrider Charleston Chapter and The Barrel of Charleston gathered together to clean a local salt marsh. Thank you to all the volunteers across the community who offer their time to keep our Lowcountry looking its best. 
Tip of the Month:
Septic Maintenance for Healthy Homes and Yards 

SepticSmart week is September 19th-23rd!


Follow these septic tank use and maintenance tips to prevent backups in the home, stinky situations your backyard, and polluted runoff from entering your nearby creek or stream.
  • Have your tank inspected and pumped every three to five years.
  • Keep wipes, fats, oil, grease, paint, food scraps, coffee grounds, or other materials that may clog pipes out of your drain.
  • Conserve water by checking and repairing any leaky sinks or toilets.
  • Know where your septic tank drain field is located and protect it! Never park or drive over it.
  • Be careful when landscaping around your drain field. Avoid planting deep-rooted or woody plants, like trees, in this area. 


To find our more information on SepticSmart week and this image, visit: https://www.epa.gov/septic.

In the Stream header final

"From Seeds to Shoreline" Featured on SCETV's "Making It Grow"

The youth wetland restoration program, "From Seeds to Shoreline," was featured on SCETV's "Making It Grow!" See our students in action alongside Amanda McNulty, engaging in a salt marsh service learning project in the low country!

OR

Clemson University Press Release Officially Launches the "Carolina Rain Garden Initiative!" 
The Clemson University newsstand officially launches the "Carolina Rain Garden Initiative" with these headlines: New Extension program promotes rain gardens to combat floods, erosion and stormwater runoff.

Watch this short video to learn about the
Carolina Rain Garden Initiative


Kick off the school year with Adopt-A-Highway! 
Join others in helping keep our South Carolina community litter-free and beautiful! Through the Adopt-A-Highway program, volunteers work together to keep designated stretches of our state roads litter free through four cleanups per year. You can adopt a new stretch of roadway in your neighborhood, or join an existing effort near you.

To find out more information about Adopt-A-Highway in your community and local contacts, visit the Adopt-A-Highway website.

AAH

Looking Upstream header final
Beach Sweep /River Sweep
September 17, 2016
Beach Sweep/River Sweep is South Carolina's largest one-day volunteer cleanup event of its kind! This September 17th, thousands of South Carolinians will clean beaches, rivers, lakes, marshes, and swamps of aquatic debris. The effort, organized by the S.C. Sea Grant Consortium and S.C. Department of Natural Resources, has taken place annually since 1988 - when Sea Grant first started it. 
Debris data is collected at this event to help better understand the source of litter and identify potential prevention methods.

Learn more and find a sweep near you!

 
Carolina Yards Online Course
Register Today!
Join Clemson Extension's Carolina Yards program for a five week, online class designed to help South Carolina gardeners create and maintain a more environmentally friendly landscape . Enjoy online training at your own pace and from the comfort of home! Here's what you will learn:
  • Week 1: Maintaining Healthy Soils 
  • Week 2: Right Plant, Right Place 
  • Week 3: How to Fertilize & Manage Yard Pests Responsibly
  • Week 4: Smart Watering Techniques
  • Week 5: How to Create a Backyard Wildlife Sanctuary 
Each week includes online presentations, videos and discussion forums with fellow gardeners from around the state. Upon registration, participants will receive a package of materials, including manuals, guides and other useful resources in the mail. Along the way, participants will earn "inches" on the Carolina Yardstick and if enough "inches" are earned, an official yard certification will be awarded! 

Register by October 6 to take advantage of the pre-registration cost of $110. Registration increases to $130 after October 7. Registration closes on October 16.  

SC Water Resources Conference 
October 12-13
Registration Now Open! 
The 2016 South Carolina Water Resources Conference will take place October 12-13 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. 
 
This years conference is entitled "SC Water Resources At a Crossroads: Response, Readiness and Recovery." The conference features four plenary sessions, six tracks, 35 breakout sessions, 108 oral presentations and over 30 poster presentations. 



Street Interview Series Coming To Your Community!
September 22, 2016
On September 22nd, we'll be hitting the streets as part of our Street Interview Series to find residents ready to make their tv debut! As part of this series, we ask residents their perspectives on clean water and water resources in our community; interviews are compiled into a minute long clip and showcased on Fox24. Keep an eye out for us! We might be stopping by your neighborhood and dog park to find out more from you and your furry friends.
street interviews

To see our 2014 edition in our Street Interview Series, visit the
Carolina Clear YouTube station.
SC Native Plants Society Lowcountry Chapter
Native Plant Sale
October 22, 2016
The Lowcountry Chapter of the SC Native Plant Society, in partnership with Charles Towne Landing, will hold a Fall Native Plant Sale:
When: Saturday, October 22nd
Time: 9:00am to Noon (SCNPS members start shopping at 8:30AM)
Where: Parking lot of Charles Towne Landing, 1500 Old Towne Road Charleston, SC 29407

What: A diverse array of colorful perennials, shrubs, trees, grasses will be available for purchase. Native plants make excellent additions to any home landscape as they support wildlife and typically require little to no fertilizers or irrigation once established. Open to the public; admission to the sale is free.



2016 Charleston Area Stormwater
Pond Man
agement Conference

November 3, 2016
Register today!


Calling all stormwater pond owners and managers!

The 2016 Charleston Area Stormwater Pond Management Conference will provide a forum to share the latest information, resources, and tools for pond management for the Lowcountry community. The agenda includes plenary sessions, two concurrent sessions in the morning and afternoon, and an extended lunch to visit exhibitors. The conference exhibitor area is offered for regional organizations and companies related to pond management. Conference format is divided into two specialized tracks and designed for the pond owner (ex.HOA) or professional manager needs.

When: Thursday, November 3 at 8:30am to 4:00pm
Where: Trident Technical College, Building 920 7000 Rivers Avenue, North

Advanced registration is required. Registration closes October 27, 2016.

To find out more information or to register, visit the 2016 conference website.

The 2016 conference is hosted by the Ashley Cooper Stormwater Education Consortium and organized by the SCDNR ACE Basin NERR Coastal Training Program, SC Sea Grant Consortium, and Clemson Extension's Carolina Clear program.

CHS Pond Conference
 Contractor Best Management Practice (BMP) Training
November 15, 2016
Learn about downspout planter boxes, shorescaping, rain gardens, rainwater harvesting and other best management practices (BMP) at the Contractor BMP Training. This workshop will be held November 15, 2016 at the Clemson Sandhills Research and Education Center in Columbia, SC. Registration to open soon. Email Amy Scaroni to learn more.


Save-the-Date! Rain Gardens for the Home Landscape
November 18, 2016


Learn the basics of rain garden design, installation and maintenance at the "Rain Gardens for the Home Landscape" workshop. The workshop is geared towards home gardeners interested in installing a rain garden. This half-day offering will be held in Berkeley County this November. Email kcounts@clemson.edu to be notified when registration opens.
Flowing Downstream header final
4-H2O "Exploring Lowcountry Waterways" 
Summer Camp

 


Thank you to all our campers, now known as "Watershed Ambassadors,"  and parents who helped to make the 2016 4-H2O Summer Camps some of the best ones yet! We want to especially thank our camp partners, SC Department of Natural Resources, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Old Santee Canal Park, SC Audubon, Charleston County Park and Recreation Commission, Charleston Water Systems & Barrier Island Ecotours! We look forward to seeing everyone again next year. 


Sweetgrass Plots Established
This summer, two Sweetgrass (Muhlenbergia filipes) plots were established at the Boy Scouts Camp Ho Non Wah on Wadmalaw Island. These sweetgrass plants were grown from seeds collected off of an uninhibited island on the Folly River and cultivated at the Clemson Coastal Research & Education Center with the help of the  Tri-County Master Gardeners . The plots will serve the camp as part of an educational colonial village with emphasis on both cultural and natural resources.

 

Thank you! for reading this edition of the Ripple Effect, the Ashley Cooper Stormwater Education Consortium (ACSEC) E-newsletter. Like ripples on the water, we hope you will pass on your knowledge, and this newsletter, to others. 


Thank You!
for protecting SC's water resources!
rain2drain
Storm Drains and Ditches Lead to SC Waterways

 
THE ACSEC MISSON 
 
The ACSEC is a regional partnership between counties, municipalities, universities, state and local agencies, non-profits and other organizations in the Tri-County region. 
 
The ACSEC mission: Improve water quality within the Ashley and Cooper River basins by providing educational opportunities on stormwater impacts and our community roles in supporting healthy, fishable, and swimmable waterways. 
 
Thank You!

For Protecting South Carolina's Waterways 

 

Have a workshop or event request, or just want to know more? Please contact us!
 
Water Resources Extension Agent
 
Guinn Wallover
Water Resources Extension Agent

 
 
Clemson University  Cooperative  Extension Service offers its programs to people of all ages,  regardless  of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital or family status and is an equal opportunity employer.