By Kate Schaefer
A hallmark of conservation in South Carolina is partnership: partnership between conservation organizations, cities and counties, and most importantly between the private landowner and the public good.
Arguably and proudly, this effort started in Beaufort with the first local land trust in the state – our Open Land Trust (OLT) in 1971 – and continued with the first property tax program – Rural and Critical Land Preservation (2002) – and first sales tax program – Beaufort Greenspace Program (2022). Three recent land protection projects continue that model.
In May, the South Carolina Conservation Bank, the Open Space Institute and Open Land Trust secured a property known as Cotton Hall – 716 acres in Garden’s Corner, annexed into the Town of Yemassee. Without conservation, two and a half miles of Highway 17 could have been vulnerable to inappropriate commercial and suburban development.
With conservation, Beaufort County approved the purchase of 527 acres to create the first-ever passive park in the ACE Basin and a conservation easement was placed on the remainder of the parcel. Understandably, the public investment here will be felt by future generations who can enjoy the park – fishing, birdwatching, walking along the trails.
The county park will be surrounded by privately protected property. The property serves as the physical link between the ACE Basin and Port Royal Sound Watersheds, such that land protection protects your water quality downstream, whether you’re on Harbor Island or Hilton Head.
In June, OLT was proud to accept a conservation easement on more than 2,000 acres known as “Buckfield.” This means that the pine forests, waterfowl impoundments and open fields along the Tullifinny River are protected forever. Funding for this easement was once again possible through private investment – the landowner was willing to donate value to see his property protected forever – and a highly competitive grant from State Conservation Bank, as well as Nature Conservancy and Ceres Foundation.
Here, the private landowner directly complemented public investment next door. Buckfield lies between I-95 and the future S.C. Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) Wildlife Management Area. If unprotected, it’s easy to imagine a development future for the I-95 corridor. Now with conservation, we are protecting the areas around public resources and adding to the landscape from the ACE Basin to the Savannah River.
Later this summer, 488 acres known as Bowers Farm was protected forever. The Open Land Trust is proud to hold this easement, and funding came with generous support from the Department of Defense, the South Carolina Conservation Bank and the Bowers Family.
Preferring to fly over farms and forest than houses and billboards, the Department of Defense sees public value in privately protected land. This property adds to more than 10,000 protected acres north of MCAS Beaufort and enhances natural resources and military operations here in Beaufort.
This type of collaboration is why two million acres in the Lowcountry was designated the “South Carolina Lowcountry Sentinel Landscape,” in other words essential to the mission of the Department of Defense. Working landscapes under this significant training landscape will benefit from priority support, training and grant dollars to increase conservation outcome.
It is easy to get caught up in the paperwork, deadlines, and legal review for each distinct conservation project. But the details matter to the bigger picture: the evolution of our permanently protected coastal greenbelt from the ACE Basin to the Savannah River.
This takes conservation-minded citizens, partners, policy makers and landowners to accomplish and the balance between private land protection and the public good. This November, we are thankful to continue that effort.
Kate Schaefer is the Director of Land Protection for the Open Land Trust.
