DHEC Environmental eNews

May 2022 | {View as Webpage}

This monthly electronic newsletter from DHEC's Environmental Affairs will keep our customers and stakeholders informed of important events, legislation, meetings, permitting information, and compliance information.

Regulations Update

The 2021-2022 South Carolina Legislative Session has come to an end. It was a busy year and Environmental Affairs had three regulations that were amended during this year's session.

- Pasteurized and Raw Milk Regulations (R.61-34, 34.1) have been updated and took effect April 22, 2022. More information and the Final Regulations can be found here.

- Hazardous Waste Regulations, Ignitability Rule (R.61-79) have been updated and will be effective on May 27, 2022. More information and the Final Regulations can be found here.

- Onsite Wastewater Regulations (R.61-56) have been updated and will be effective July 1, 2022. More information and the Final Regulations can be found here on that date.

Dam Safety Awareness Day

On May 31, 1889, the failure of a dam near Johnstown, Pa., sent a torrent of water rolling down the Conemaugh River Valley. The consequence of this catastrophic event was the loss of more than 2200 lives. Each year, May 31 is commemorated as National Dam Safety Awareness Day, a day to recognize the critical role that dams play in infrastructure, highlight the work of state dam safety programs (including our own) and encourage dam owners to be responsible and engaged contributors to dam safety. DHEC regulates the safety of dams through authority of the South Carolina Dams & Reservoir Safety Act. Dams fall under the department’s authority when they meet any one of the following criteria:

- 25 feet in height

- impound 50 acre-feet or more at maximum capacity

- are smaller than either of the above but failure would likely result in loss of life

A wealth of resources for dam owners and the public is available on the Dam Safety program's website. If you are interested in learning the responsibilities that come along with dam ownership, we invite you to take Clemson Cooperative Extension’s new Dam Ownership in South Carolina course, which was developed in conjunction with DHEC and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

New Director for the Division of Water Pollution Compliance & Enforcement

Chuck Williams was recently named Director for the Division of Water Pollution Compliance and Enforcement for the Bureau of Water (BOW). He will oversee the Enforcement, Compliance, and Data Management for the Wastewater, Dams, Stormwater, Water Quantity, Agricultural Permitting, Groundwater Protection, and Private Wells sections.

Chuck has worked for 25 years for the State of South Carolina in water quality and water quantity issues, assessment and corrective action of groundwater contamination sites, the protection of new and existing drinking water supplies, and the permitting of animal agricultural farms and land application of domestic and industrial waste.

Chuck began at DHEC in 1996 as a hydrogeologist in Bureau of Land Waste Management’s Underground Storage Tanks Division. He went on to work in the BOW’s Capacity Use and Water Use section and Well Head and Source Water Protection sections. He also worked in the BLWM’s Division of Site Assessment, Remediation, and Revitalization with Federal Remediation section working on projects for SRS and Federal Superfund sites. In 2016 he was hired as the BOW’s manager for Groundwater Protection and Agricultural Permitting section.

Beach Monitoring Season Begins

Beach monitoring season began May 1 and will run through the first of October. Bureau of Water staff collect either weekly or bi-weekly water samples at more than 120 locations along South Carolina's beaches, from Cherry Grove Beach near the South Carolina-North Carolina border to the southern end of Hilton Head Island. They test these water samples for Enterococci bacteria and if elevated levels of the bacteria are detected, advisories are issued for those locations.

DHEC partnered with several municipalities, counties, and other stakeholders in S.C.'s beaches to develop Check My Beach, a website that provides education about beach safety. This includes information on rip currents, flag safety, and water quality. It also links to local area beaches for more specific beach information. Currently this collective effort is in the Grand Strand area, but DHEC plans to expand this partnership to make Check My Beach a statewide program and add more partners along the coast.

Take Action SC

Take Action SC (the K-12 Environmental Education Partnership housed within SC DHEC) is hosting TWO Environmental Educators Summer Workshops in July!

We are partnering with Joe Adair Outdoor Education Center in Laurens, SC for an in-person workshop on July 19, 2022.

PLUS we will also host a virtual workshop on July 28, 2022. Get ready to dig into the revised Take Action SC Environmental Education Curriculum with the newly aligned lessons to the 2021 College- and Career-Ready Standards for Science. We'd love to have you join us this summer for a workshop - or both!

Join Our Team!

As the state agency charged with promoting and protecting South Carolina's public health and environment, DHEC has a legacy of attracting and retaining talented individuals who want to build rewarding and successful careers. DHEC's Environmental Affairs employs a wide range of environmental professionals from engineers and geologists to inspectors and meteorologists.

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