Bluffton wetlands hang in the balance
Letter to the editor
Development is inevitable. However, development can be done while protecting the community at large. On January 23 at 5 p.m., there will be a county meeting to vote on special use permitting to fill non-tidal wetlands for a 38-unit housing development located at 34 Ulmer Road. Not sure where it is located or if it will affect you? It’s the forest right across from the Rec center where citizens go to vote. This is a call to all Bluffton residents. Write to the council or attend the meeting. One of our last unprotected and irreplaceable ecosystems is at stake.
This wetland forest has one of the last unfenced natural freshwater ponds in Bluffton, acting as a habitat corridor connecting fragmented habitats which allow animals to move safely between them. Some of the creatures that live here include Blue Heron, Pileated Woodpeckers, Wood Storks, Anhinga, Osprey, eagles, geese, ducks, foxes, possum and deer. Symphonies of amphibians and owls fill its evenings. Plants such as endangered sundews grow in dappled patches of sunlight alongside wild old willows, elderberries and native blueberries.
Per the plans, there is little to no space between the proposed homes, and less than an 800 ft. buffer between the lowest point of the PF01A classified wetland edge to be developed and the May River. Consequently, it is likely to increase water pollution in the May River. During the summers, the county requests us to limit water usage for irrigation. Occasionally, brown water comes out of our faucets. Reports of increasing pollution in the May River are not uncommon. In 2011 The Town of Bluffton passed the May River Watershed Action Plan to restore and implement preventative measures to protect the May’s water quality and shellfish industry from future degradation due to overdevelopment, a fantastic, proactive step. However, although Ulmer’s wetland is half a mile from Bluffton’s Town Hall, Beaufort County Development Council still has the final say in what is to befall us.
These permit requests to fill Ulmer’s non-tidal wetlands undermine the spirit of not only the Cleanwater Act Section 404 but also Federal Executive Order 11990, “To take action to minimize the destruction, loss or degradation of wetlands and to enhance and preserve.” To agree to filling in the wetlands for development is based on short term profits. When the May River fills with blue-green algae due to eutrophication, the cleanup cost will likely exceed the proposed tax revenue.
Armada Acquisitions proposed bioretention basins seem inadequate, as whenever it storms the whole open wetland area floods. Furthermore, upon viewing the plans, one can see that there is a lack of water remediation in effect between established homesteads on Confederate Avenue and this proposed enormous development. During hurricane season, I’ve waded through those waters almost to my knees where usually there are forested deer paths. If they fill in the wetlands to build houses, where does the water go if they remove the permeable land? Our ditches are already 6 ft. deep, can swallow a car and current infrastructure is insufficient for the few houses already on Confederate Avenue. Will existing homes without a history of flooding become the new floodplain as the new development’s lowest point for runoff?
Currently there is no existing storm water system there. How can there be enough sewage capacity? Who is responsible for putting that in? Beaufort County taxpayers? There are lots of unanswered questions. If the wetlands must be developed, if there is no other option, they could implement Green Building procedures such as those we see in the Hilton Head municipality or Palmetto Bluff’s eco-friendly building requirements. If they limited the number of buildings so that the stormwater had somewhere to infiltrate, it would help. Encourage them to utilize Green Building procedures if they must build atop our wetlands.
So, you might be asking yourself, “What action can our community take?”
Empower your voice!
Write an email or letter to the County Community Development Office in defense of one of our last Bluffton freshwater wetlands by 5 p.m. on Jan 23rd or come to the meeting in Beaufort. Reference: 34 Ulmer Rd Bluffton or Special Use Permit Request #R600 039 00B 0038 0000. Email Ms. Hillary Austin at hillarya@bcgov.net or write to the Community Development Office, Room 115, Post office drawer 1228, Beaufort, SC 29901.
Jessica Palladino has an MBA and is a Town of Bluffton Beautification Committee member, Certified Wildlife Habitat Bluffton landowner and participant in the family owned & operated SliderBar on the Promenade in Old Town.
