Zoning in Charleston
It’s been 58 years since the City of Charleston’s zoning ordinance was first updated and 93 years since it was first established. Think about how much has changed in Charleston over the last 58 years. The City of Charleston’s population continues to grow, but so do rising sea levels, more intense and frequent storms, and […]
Intervening in electric utility rate cases
One of the ways the Coastal Conservation League engages in energy issues is by intervening in electric utility rate cases. Because they are natural monopolies, investor-owned electric utilities must receive approval from the S.C. Public Service Commission of any changes to their rates. As formal intervenors, we work to ensure that ratepayers are not required […]
The dynamics of South Carolina energy
My name is Taylor Allred, and it has been my honor to join the Coastal Conservation League this year as our Energy & Climate Program Director. We are in a dynamic time for energy and climate policy in South Carolina, and I am grateful for the support of our members and partner organizations as I […]
In Horry County: Fix it First, Don’t Make it Worse
UPDATE: Coastal Conservation League will continue raising concerns about destructive new highways in Horry County The passing of the Horry County Special Sales and Use Tax means that rural western Horry and Georgetown counties will be opened to sprawling development, families will lose their farmland, communities will be divided, flooding impacts will worsen, and our […]
House Bill 3309: Energy Legislation
In the last week of the 2025 legislative session, the omnibus energy legislation House Bill 3309 was approved by the General Assembly. The bill includes sweeping policy changes that will significantly impact electric utility investment decisions, the environment, and our electricity bills. In April, the Senate approved numerous amendments that improved upon the version of […]
Keeping Chelsea Rural
The almost 6,000-acre Chelsea property sold in 2019 for $30 million dollars to two brothers who pledged to manage the land as a hunting estate. Since then, the land transferred to a Missouri-based bank and has been shopped around to developers. Several large tracts have been targeted by developers, including 3,000 acres of Chelsea and the 1520-acre Tickton […]
Edge Road Mine
Mining should not be allowed next to a heritage preserve. UPDATE: Coastal Conservation League requests review of Edge Road Mine permitting decision On June 20, 2023, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control approved a permit application to operate a mine on the border of Lewis Ocean Bay Heritage Preserve. We are extremely concerned […]
Lewis Ocean Bay Heritage Preserve
Fire, smoke and hospitals do not mix! Lewis Ocean Bay Heritage Preserve is perhaps the most unique and biodiverse ecosystem in South Carolina, home to the state’s only stable population of Venus flytraps, which are native to the Carolinas and nowhere else in the world! Conway Medical Center is proposing to build a new hospital […]
Pine Island (St. Helena)
What’s The Latest? On August 3rd, 2023, four groups, including the Conservation League, filed independent motions to intervene to defend Beaufort County’s denial of plans for three 6-hole golf courses on St. Helena Island in the appeal initiated by Pine Island Property Holdings, LLC. On Friday, September 1st, we learned the Beaufort County Circuit Court […]
Redevelopment of Union Pier
Union Pier is a roughly 65-acre waterfront site downtown Charleston. It’s owned by the South Carolina Ports Authority, and has been used for shipping, port operations, and a cruise terminal. The Ports Authority ended its homeport contract with Carnival Cruise Lines and will only support short-term port-of-calls starting in 2025. As a result, a large […]