Midlands river amenities make progress as environmentalists preach caution

If all goes to plan, the Saluda Riverwalk will become connected to the Columbia Canal riverwalk in Columbia’s Riverfront Park.

Mike Dawson is the CEO of the River Alliance, the nonprofit looking to pull together a combined greenway that would stretch from Lake Murray across the Congaree River into Columbia and back across to West Columbia and Cayce on behalf of local governments in Lexington and Richland County.

He talked to the Chronicle about recent projects targeted at expanding and enhancing the area’s riverwalks, including the 12,000 Year History Park in Cayce, the Sanctuary on Boyd Island, and the proposed bridge across the Congaree connecting the Saluda Riverwalk to Riverfront Park. 

Tbridge will be a major connector between the two counties and their attractions, he said. The bridge is expected to  be about 450 in length, wth the City of Columbia and the Darnall W. and Susan F. Boyd Foundation funding parts of the project.

“I think, that that bridge is gonna be an eye opener,” Dawson posited.“We’re gonna have a little bump out so you can sit out there, contemplate the river, you know, all of the sections and look at rocky shoals and stuff. It is gonna be a dramatic statement for the river region to have all this tied together.”

According to the CEO, the construction of the bridge will be completed in sections and the contractors will be decided when the project itself is sent out for bid.

The Sanctuary at Boyd Island, a privately funded project, is one of the attractions along the Saluda Riverwalk and features three statues of native wildlife, including a river otter, a heron and a bobcat.

The Boyd Foundation has been heavily involved in projects around the Midlands, most recently with the Darnall W. and Susan F. Boyd Aquarium and Reptile Conservation Center at the Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens, an attraction that brings over 1 million visitors and straddles the counties of Lexington and Richland.

While the new amenities create new opportunities for residents and visitors, there are those who preach caution. One of them being Congaree Riverkeeper Bill Stanger, who runs the organization tasked with advocating for the health of the area’s rivers. He told the Chronicle he  worries about construction along the river and if the steps are being taken to ensure construction is being done correctly.

The Riverkeeper explained that he hopes those completing projects on and around the river are obtaining the necessary permits, alluding to the idea that some do not acquire what they are supposed to. Stangler said his organization likes to review all permits that relate to river projects.

“We’re not a law enforcement entity. We’re not a regulatory agency. So we can review permits and submit comments, just like any citizen can, and we do that on a regular basis,” he explained. “We certainly talking to leaders and elected officials have grave concerns about projects and weigh in on those and depending on the type of projects. We can take legal action if we think that a project is going to harm the river in some way or is not a good idea and I’ve done that in the past on other issues as well.”

Stangler mentioned that the biggest concern regarding bridge projects is safety issues. pHe said that low bridges, which have been proposed in the past, can be incredibly dangerous due to high water levels and paddlers and can create strains and impediments in the river.

He added that his nonprofit is not alone in expressing concern about projects, sharing that organizations like American Whitewater and groups like park rangers, city parks officials and local paddle groups have as well.

There is one consistent form of action taken by the Riverkeeper to ensure that the river is both safe and healthy: weekly water tests. These are done by the Midlands Rivers Coalition, of which the Riverkeeper is part of, and they monitor 11 sampling locations in the area from May to September.

These tests have been ongoing for seven years and test the water quality. According to a release if the quality does not match the state standard for contact recreated then a swimming advisory is issued and a follow-up sample is collected.

Stangler said that the project came out of a couple of high-profile wastewater problems where plants were polluting the river and creating high bacterial levels with untreated/ undertreated sewage. He added that testing yearly and routinely also helps prevent waste.

“It also adds a layer of accountability to some of these sewer providers and other companies,” Stangler said. “They know that someone’s gonna go out and sample every week so they have to report if they have a problem because we’re going to find out.”