Overview of the South Carolina State and River Basin Planning Framework

Economic development, environmental protection, and public health are critical quality-of-life issues that depend on a reliable supply of water. Increased water demand and climate variability (drought) are two major factors that have the potential to limit future water availability in the state of South Carolina. The development of a comprehensive water-resources management plan for the state is vital for ensuring that an adequate and reliable supply of water will be available to sustain all future uses. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) is tasked legislatively with developing water planning and policy initiatives in the state and has initiated a long-term process to update the state water plan, last published in 2004. One of the major recommendations in the 2004 plan was to form River Basin Councils (RBCs) in each of the major river basins in the state for the purpose of water planning. In 2014, SCDNR initiated a multiyear process to develop regional water plans that will serve as the foundation for a new state water plan. A central component of the process was the creation of a Planning Process Advisory Committee (PPAC) for the purpose of developing formal guidelines on the formation of RBCs and the development of river basin plans for the eight designated river basins in the state. The PPAC is composed of a diverse group of stakeholders and includes representation from water utilities, energy utilities, trade organizations, academia, conservation groups, agriculture, and the general public. The work of the PPAC culminated in a report, the South Carolina State Water Planning Framework, which was published in October of 2019. The river basin plans will identify current and future water availability issues and describe a management plan to address these issues to ensure that an adequate and reliable supply of water will be available for future generations. The purpose of this paper is to provide a general overview of the state’s river basin planning process

South Carolina water plan

This second edition of the state water plan contains the Department of Natural Resources' conclusions and recommendations on the policies that it believes the state of South Carolina should adopt for the efficient, equitable and environmentally responsible management of its water resources. It provides guidelines to wisely use the water that is available to meet the growing demands for water in this state

Development of Extended Unimpaired Streamflow Records in the Saluda Basin, South Carolina

This paper presents the steps involved and the methodologies employed in the first phase of the South Carolina Surface Water Assessment - development of extended and unimpaired streamflow estimates based on USGS gage data in the Saluda basin. Streamflow data are first adjusted to remove effects of anthropogenic impairments. Adjustments are made for reservoirs, withdrawals, and discharges based on available documentation. Where documentation is insufficient, hindcasting methods are used. The resulting datasets are called unimpaired flows (UIFs). The UIFs are then extended in time from 1925, the starting date of the first continuous stream discharge data available in the basin, through 2013. Candidate reference gages for each short-record gage are selected based on a qualitative assessment. Area ratio and Maintenance of Variance Extension (Hirsch, 1982) methods are applied. Statistical and graphical evaluation of the extension results is followed by composition of extended UIFs

South Carolina water plan—second edition

In 2004, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources published the second edition of the South Carolina Water Plan, a guide for managing the State’s surface and ground water in order to maximize the use of this resource while protecting it for future use. One of the more important recommendations in this Water Plan is the proposal to regulate surface and ground water withdrawals. In order to sustain the resource and protect the environment and the rights of all water users, this edition recommends that the State be authorized to allocate and regulate surface and ground water with-drawals. The Water Plan also introduces a water-sharing strategy that relates lake inflows and lake levels to downstream releases and other lake withdrawals in an effort to balance and mitigate the negative impacts that water shortages have on all surface-water users.Sponsored by: Georgia Environmental Protection Division U.S. Geological Survey, Georgia Water Science Center U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia Water Resources Institute The University of Georgia, Water Resources Facult