By Summer Huechtker and Riley Bean | October 21, 2020 at 6:49 AM EDT - Updated October 21 at 7:31 AM
MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) - Officials with the Town of Mount Pleasant say they could soon create a homeowners guide for environmentally friendly living.
Mount Pleasant Town Engineer Kevin Mitchell says it’s part of a push to catch the town up with some larger, coastal municipalities already focused on watershed management and environmental change.
The Planning Commission Agenda states, Mount Pleasant engineers plan to introduce a homeowner’s guide initiative at Wednesday’s 5 p.m. Planning Commission meeting.
Mitchell says this is just one step in a larger plan to improve water quality and natural resources.
While the homeowners guide is not finalized yet, Mitchell says it could include certain incentives for single family homeowners who implement suggested techniques.
For example, Mitchell says some of these could mean re-directing water spouts from roofs into flower beds instead of into streets, using rain barrels, or allowing space for water clearance under fences.
Mitchell says there are around 40,000 detached single family homes in Mount Pleasant .
He says just starting with resourceful ideas you can do at home, can make a big impact on helping the environment.
Mitchell says the town is working on improving its watershed management on a larger scale as well.
In a presentation to the Planning Commission in September, town engineers said they looked at a path from Shem Creek to Boone Hall Creek.
Staff Engineer Heidi Moeser explained that over time, development has filled in this area, removing the capacity to store water here. She said this has led to flooding.
Mitchell says town engineers have been working for the past few months to launch an Environmental Policy Program which would include incentives for developers who implement new policies. He says they are also discussing the idea of partnering with developers who could evaluate the impacts of new developments on the environment and natural resources.
Mitchell says Mount Pleasant has not previously had a specific environmental policy or a designated group that handles this and that’s why they are working to get this rolling.
The final homeowners guide will be a one-of-a-kind guide for Mount Pleasant, Mitchell says.
Copyright 2020 WCSC. All rights reserved.