Junk Removal in West Ashley, SC

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — A West Ashley pond needing to be cleaned after a nearby restaurant dumped oil into a storm drain is improving significantly, according to City of Charleston leaders.

“It was in very bad condition, but it is getting much, much more where we want to see it,” said Matt Fountain, Director of the Stormwater Management Department for the City of Charleston.

On Tuesday, the department met with the contractor hired by Rio Chico Mexican Restaurant for a status update.

“They’ve installed oil absorbent booms to make sure that they are not getting any additional spill that hasn’t been identified or there’s some other issue occurring, [and] replace the absorbing materials necessary,” Fountain said. “So, we’ll continue our inspection, probably on a weekly basis, to make sure all of that is happening.”

While the bulk of the work has already been handled, Fountain said a timeline of when normal conditions will return is a bit murky.

“The idea is to get the concentrations down to a low enough level so they are not causing any harm, and they can be handled by normal biodegradation. You just want the normal processes that would break down oil and the environment to do that,” he said.

The Carolina Wildlife Rehabilitation Center is now a temporary home to turtles and birds covered in thick layers of oil.

On Tuesday, more arrived.

“Ten turtles,” said Keenan Freitas, a staff rehabilitator with the center.

"Apparently, every time we get a transport in, they appear to be more and more oiled.”

Freitas said the facility is now caring for five birds and 45 turtles.

“Ideally, they go back into the pond, but we can’t do that,” he said. “They’re just going to be re-infected or contaminated. So that will be up to the state’s herpetologist where they want to put those turtles.”

When it comes to businesses putting anything in the storm drain that shouldn’t be there, city officials are offering a reminder:

“It’s always cheaper to do maintenance and do things correctly in the first place,” Fountain said. “Then they come back and try to hire a contractor and basically do emergency repair work. That’s a huge financial burden.”

DORCHESTER COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - Dorchester County residents will be voting in November on whether to continue paying a “transportation penny,” a one-cent tax that funds road improvement projects.

There are dozens of projects waiting for funding including one, in particular, looking to help alleviate traffic congestion from Highway 61, especially the area from Paul Cantrell Boulevard in West Ashley.

“It’s been pretty rough,” says Adam Ruffin, who lives off of Hwy 61. “Basically single file line of cars and standstill traffic.

Ruffin and his wife live off the two-lane road and know it’s only going to get worse with all of the development going up. One person who’s working on some of the new neighborhoods is Paul Cook who has to drive 61 every day.

“I can’t believe people don’t find an alternate route to take because the traffic here is horrendous both going in and out,” Cook says.

“Certainly, I’m no expert in the field of traffic but something definitely needs to be done to alleviate some of that traffic out there,” Ruffin says.

A plan is in the works to extend Glenn McConnell Parkway. The parkway currently ends at Bees Ferry Road in West Ashley. But if the proposal goes through, it will keep going into Dorchester County where, according to maps, it would intersect with Old Beech Hill Road and connect to Wright Road, essentially running parallel to Highway 61.

“It will definitely help with people getting to and from work and alleviate a lot of the smaller back roads,” Gregory Maute, who lives along Wright Road, says. “But then if it’s tying in here, it’s going to impact my neighbors and myself and the people that live down the road.”

Maute says this was the first time he was hearing about the project and can see some positives and negatives.

“It would make us more accessible,” Maute says. “But then yes, if they’re widening this road and you know doing two or three lanes each way, that becomes from a country road to a well-traveled road -- a lot of traffic and all that so it’s can be a little bit of a double-edged sword.”

The big question: How would it be funded? Dorchester County says the 1% sales and use tax would generate approximately $735 million. The county’s Capital Improvement Plan calls for nearly $168 million to be allocated for the Glenn McConnell Extension.

Dorchester County leaders say the Public Works director would be happy to talk if the tax is passed by voters in November.

Meanwhile, Maute says he thinks the tax shouldn’t be funded by people who already live there.

“I believe that if it’s going to be funded, it needs to be impact funds on the hundreds of homes that are going in across the area,” Maute says. “Seventy-two people a day are moving here. So we need to not foot the bill.”

Dorchester County residents already pay one cent towards road improvements and have for nearly 20 years. This vote in November would be to continue that tax.

Charleston County officials say they are not currently a part of the extension project.

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Here are the S.C. Prep Football Media Poll rankings after Week 2 of the SCHSL football season. The five classifications are ranked below and numbers in parentheses indicates the number of first-place votes that a team receives.

Daniel again is the unanimous No. 1 team in Class AAA, same with Dutch Fork in Class AAAAA. Several teams received first-place votes in Class AA and for the first time this year, St. Joseph's Catholic is the No. 1 team with seven first-place votes in Class A.

VOTE: Here are the nominees for the Spartanburg-area high school football athlete of the week

TOP DOGS: Byrnes' defense is making its case as one of the best in South CarolinaWESTSIDE-TL HANNA: Westside sophomore QB Cutter Woods has coming-out party in rivalry win over T.L. Hanna

Here are the rankings for each classification as the media voted this week:

Class AAAAA

1. Dutch Fork (17)

2. Byrnes

3. Hillcrest

4. Dorman

5. Fort Dorchester

6. Sumter

7. Gaffney

8. Summerville

9. Spartanburg

10. River Bluff

Others receiving votes: TL Hanna, White Knoll, JL Mann, West Ashley, Lexington, Clover, Socastee

Class AAAA

1. South Pointe (16)

2. Northwestern (1)

3. AC Flora

4. (tie) West Florence

4. (tie) South Florence

6. Hartsville

7. Catawba Ridge

8. James Island

9. Indian Land

10. Ridge View

Others receiving votes: York, Westside, Irmo, Greenville, Myrtle Beach

Class AAA

1. Daniel (16)

2. Dillon

3. Powdersville

4. Camden (1)

5. Clinton

6. Gilbert

7. Seneca

8. Beaufort

9. Hanahan

10. Belton-Honea Path

Others receiving votes: Manning, Chester, Loris, Marlboro County, Brookland-Cayce, Crestwood, Emerald, Woodruff, Aynor, Union County, Philip Simmons

Class AA

1. Saluda (11)

2. Abbeville (2)

3. Barnwell (3)

4. Oceanside Collegiate (1)

5. Fairfield Central

6. Wade Hampton

7. Buford

8. Woodland

9. Marion

10. Pelion

Others receiving votes: Gray Collegiate, Cheraw, Newberry, Strom Thurmond, Silver Bluff, Andrews, Academic Magnet, Lake Marion

Class A

1. St. Joseph’s (7)

2. Whale Branch (3)

3. Bamberg-Ehrhardt (1)

4. Johnsonville (2)

5. Lewisville (1)

6. Christ Church (2)

7. Lamar

8. Baptist Hill

9. Southside Christian

10. Lake View (1)

Others receiving votes: Calhoun County, Hannah-Pamplico, McBee, Latta, Still, C.A. Johnson, Denmark-Olar, Hunter-Kinard-Tyler

Joe Dandron, a Michigan native and graduate of Michigan State University, covers high school sports for The Greenville News. Have a question, story idea, or story tip involving prep sports in the Upstate? Email him at jdandron@greenvillenews.com or reach out via phone at 864-415-6213.

Amy Salim started caring for an oil-covered osprey the moment it was admitted to the Carolina Wildlife Rehabilitation Center on Aug. 11.

The bird, found in a West Ashley pond, was rehydrated with IV fluids and received activated charcoal treatments to treat the effects of ingested oil it may have swallowed while preening, or cleaning its feathers with its beak.

“He was just absolutely coated in it. His feathers were sticking together,” Salim said. “This is possibly the worst case that I’ve ever seen.”

Ospreys are huge eagle-like white birds with black markings on their wings. They are not an endangered species but are protected under the Migratory Species Act.

Ospreys are unique because they feed on live fish and can dive to catch them, which is how Salim said the one under the rehab center’s care likely ended up in the pond. Two green herons were also rescued from the pond and treated at the Carolina Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, a nonprofit with locations in the Charleston, Myrtle Beach and Charlotte areas.

When covered in oil, ospreys and other birds cannot regulate their temperature and eat, among other obvious problems like pain and discomfort.

The oil in the pond next to Ashley Crossing Drive came from West Ashley restaurant Rio Chico, located at 1975 Magwood Drive. Citizens of a nearby neighborhood notified the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, and the state agency visited the pond with an inspector from the city of Charleston’s Department of Stormwater Management.

On Aug. 12, the city issued Rio Chico with a notice of violation and gave the restaurant one week to remedy the situation.

“I think it’s a valuable thing for the restaurant industry to remember how important proper disposal is,” said Director of Stormwater Management Matthew Fountain, who estimates he receives 10 to 12 calls about “illicit discharge” from restaurants each year. “It’s great when someone does let us know because then we can stop it.”

Rio Chico Manager Victor Castro said a broken kitchen line caused a combination of grease and water to travel from the restaurant through the parking lot to a storm drain that feeds into the pond.

In the 30 or so feet between the restaurant and the storm drain sits a grease trap, where Castro said the restaurant’s excess grease is deposited and picked up once a month.

“Because it was raining a lot the past week, it went really, really fast all the way over there,” said Castro, who has worked at Rio Chico for 18 years, while pointing to the storm drain on Aug. 15. “We have the container right there, so there’s no reason for us to dump oil in the street.”

Rio Chico has hired Moran Environmental Recovery to lead the cleanup efforts, project manager James Outten confirmed. Outten, who first visited the site Aug. 15, was unable to elaborate on what those efforts would entail.

Rio Chico was not fined, and the city of Charleston will reassess the situation on Aug. 19. Whether the oil was intentionally dumped or the result of accidental runoff is not the city’s immediate concern, Fountain said.

“Either way, we’re just saying, ‘Hey, we need to get this stuff out of our waterway,’ ” Fountain said, discussing what he expects from Rio Chico in the next week. “Normally we want to see that there’s been a true, significant good-faith effort.”

Other animals have been found injured in the pond since the osprey and green herons were rescued.

Two anhingas — long-necked, long-tailed birds sometimes called snakebirds — were on their way to the rehab center on Aug. 15, Salim said, and multiple turtles will soon be transported to a local facility. An alligator was also exposed to the oil.

Some animals did not survive the spill, including a hawk and a couple of aquatic birds.

The osprey and green herons remain in stable condition, but they are not out of the woods yet. According to Salim, the birds have gone through multiple washes — a stressful process that can require anesthesia — and will be in the rehab center for weeks.

The recovery of injured and oiled animals is ongoing, Salim said. More than 20 volunteers have assisted in the rescues so far.

“Our concern moving forward is just obviously mitigating the environmental concerns,” Salim said. “It’s a really stressful process for the animals.”

Those wishing to contribute to the care of these animals can donate to the Carolina Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. For more information on how to donate, visit cwrcwildlife.org.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A plan to build a standalone $40 million bicycle and pedestrian bridge across the Ashley River is one step closer to reality, and city leaders say the bridge will be a safer alternative for people to get around.

The City of Charleston’s Traffic and Transportation Committee voted Monday afternoon to authorize Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg to sign an agreement between the city and the South Carolina Department of Transportation. That agreement will go before full city council at Tuesday’s meeting.

“We are going to build, in the City of Charleston, connectivity between West Ashley and downtown that we’ve never had before,” Seekings said, “and it’s going to change the face of this community for the better.”

Seekings said the signed agreement will finalize grant applications for the 20-foot-wide bridge and allows the city to begin designing the structure.

He also said the city will own the bridge under the agreement and will work with DOT on the structure’s long-term maintenance once it’s built.

“In a city where we have mobility challenges, to be able to build a project like this cooperatively with dollars coming in from local to federal and everything in between levels, this is a no-brainer for us. This is something we should have done a long time ago.”

Nicole Farina works in downtown Charleston and drives across the bridge every day.

“It kind of like freaks me out when I see people walking by there, so it would definitely be a lot safer to walk across there,” Farina said. “I’m always really nervous about that. Even people bike down there, too.”

Seekings also said the current versions of the bridges are very dangerous for pedestrians.

“If you had to cross either the north or the south version of the bridges that go there, those are built for cars and cars only,” Seekings said. “There are very narrow walkways that I would not recommend people to use. There is no way to get across that river currently that is safe for bikes and pedestrians, and that’s really too bad.”

The city said they’re looking to finish construction by the end of 2026. They also said the bridge will be able to open in the middle, so larger boats can pass through.

Farina said she is excited for the bridge to be completed and looks forward to using it once complete.

“I love to take walks on my lunch break, but there’s really not too much walking-friendly areas where my office is, so that would be the perfect spot for me to go take a little stroll for like 30 minutes or something.”

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.