Program aims to teach environmental basics, spot problems in construction areas

As residential and commercial construction continues throughout Fort Mill, Tega Cay and Lake Wylie, one group wants to make it easier than ever to spot and report environmental problems.

The Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation hosts a free, one-day Water Watcher program Jan. 23 at Cabela’s in Fort Mill. The event runs 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Riverkeeper Sam Perkins will lead it.

“It will empower individuals with instruction on the latest techniques, procedures, legalities and historical background to properly monitor the Catawba River Basin,” said Lauren Kim, volunteer and outreach coordinator with the foundation.

Training isn’t new. Lake Wylie Covekeepers receive it. A prior Muddy Water watch program shows residents how to spot runoff from construction sites, a major concern for the foundation. The newest effort, though, brings best practices for spotting problems to a workshop residents can finish in a single day.

“The training will instruct everyone on every step in the reporting process, not only on who to call, but what look for specifically and how to document and compose the report,” Kim said.

On Lake Wylie, reporting isn’t easy. Two states and three counties have varying rules on what is allowed. A useful regulatory contact on one site could be useless for a property just across the lake.

“We get multiple calls and emails every day from people who just aren’t sure whom to contact about an issue,” Perkins said. “There are a lot of different jurisdictions. Simply put, we will teach citizens how to identify, document and report a concern, whether it’s sediment runoff from a construction site or a sewer overflow.”

With local and state agencies often fielding a variety of tasks, residents need to be able to provided detailed information when problems arise, Perkins said.

“It’s often a sad realization for citizens that as clear as a problem might be, getting proper action to stop and remediate a problem is surprisingly difficult,” he said.

“Citizens might recognize a problem at the back of a cove, and they can probably accurately cite a specific construction activity upstream, but there is a careful documentation of the failure on the construction site necessary to get any action.”

Residents still can take more active rolls, like joining Covekeeper programs at lakes along the Catawba River. Covekeepers receive more extensive training, then patrol and report on designated zones. The foundation wants as many eyes as possible, and opening training basics to people at a one-day event is something leaders believe can help.

“The back of a cove full of sediment, while obviously a problem that needs to be addressed, unfortunately won’t be enough to elicit a full investigation from an understaffed, underfunded (state environmental) department,” Perkins said.

“Until we see more funding of and enforcement from agencies, we will need citizens to be persistent, well-trained eyes and ears, which this training will provide, and to hold polluters accountable.”

For more on the program or the foundation, visit catawbariverkeeper.org.

This story was originally published December 30, 2015 at 4:21 PM with the headline "Program aims to teach environmental basics, spot problems in construction areas."