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Although parks and nature preserves provide excellent habitat to support wildlife populations, we realize as a private landowner that we have an obligation to help preserve, protect and perpetuate wildlife. Therefore, we are engaged in a number of activities related to wildlife habitat management, conservation and development. Laws and regulations don't require us to do this, but we believe it to be the right thing to do. Here are just a few of the programs we are engaged in to help wildlife flourishing.
Purple Martins
Birds of Prey
Wood Duck Box Program
Turkey Restoration Project
Waterfowl Areas
Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers
Loggerhead Turtles
POWER for Wildlife Program
Saving the Mussels
Purple Martins
On Earth Day of 1995, SCE&G entered into an agreement with the South Carolina Audubon Society and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to establish a permanent sanctuary for Purple Martins on Lake Murray's Lunch Island. This sanctuary provides the ideal layover for Purple Martins as they make the long journey south to their winter home in South America.
The island is isolated in the heart of Lake Murray, with no predators, plenty of cover and ample feeding areas. Each June, the exceedingly social birds arrive in droves of 20,000 to 40,000, and sometimes many more! Scientists have estimated that as many as 750,000 birds roost on the island during the summer months.
To learn more about Purple Martins, please visit our educational Web site at EnergeticMinds.com.
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Birds of Prey
Soaring high above in the sky or nesting atop SCE&G power poles, birds of prey are symbols of South Carolina’s natural beauty.
SCE&G's Raptor Protection Program has established formal guidelines for protecting these majestic creatures, particularly large raptors such as the American Bald Eagle, as well as numerous other bird species. Designed to minimize the dangers posed to birds by power lines, the program provides a systematic method for identifying high-risk poles and nesting sites, tracking incidents and taking measures to make sure the birds are protected. In some cases, our efforts involve modifying our electrical equipment with perch guards, flight diverters or other protective hardware.
The Department of Natural Resources tracks over 200 eagle nests in the state, which we in turn incorporate into our Geographical Information System (GIS) to determine their proximity to SCE&G power lines. We evaluate each nest near our lines and modify those that present a high risk of electrocution and/or collision. Right-of-way crews also limit construction and maintenance of lines during eagle nesting season.
In recent years, the eagle population has been struck by a deadly neurological disease called Avarian Vacuolar Myelinopathy (AVM). AVM is considered the most significant cause of unknown eagle mortality in U.S. history. SCE&G is sponsoring research to help scientists and biologists investigate the hypothesis that toxic algae growing on the aquatic weed hydrilla that birds consume is the causative agent of AVM.
Another example of our commitment to protecting birds of prey is the extraordinary effort of our crews to accommodate ospreys, graceful birds to which SCE&G's transmission and distribution poles have proven irresistible. Though osprey nests can weigh up to a half a ton, SCE&G crews have erected numerous platforms to provide a safe place for the birds to nest.
SCE&G is a strong supporter of community efforts to protect birds and their habitat. We are a proud member of the International Center for Birds of Prey in Charleston, South Carolina, and have developed and maintained a mutually beneficial relationship with the non-profit, private organization over the years.
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Wood Duck Box Program
Wood duck boxes have been widely used for many years to establish and increase wood duck populations throughout the United States and Canada. These boxes are especially important in southeastern states, where suitable tree cavities are scarce. To help our web-footed friends strengthen their foothold in South Carolina, SCE&G employees initiated a program in conjunction with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to erect some 200 nesting boxes on company property.
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Turkey Restoration Project
For many years, the thunderous gobbles of the wild turkey were all but absent from South Carolina's Low Country, the result of unrestricted hunting and habitat reduction. Today, turkeys are making a remarkable comeback thanks to restoration programs such as the one SCE&G initiated along the South Fork of the Edisto River near the Cope Electric Generating Station and in Lexington County
SCE&G played a major role in getting these lands designated as turkey protection areas for restocking efforts and currently works with state wildlife officials to maintain them. Utility lands at Neal Shoals and Parr Hydro provided several of the first sites in the state where the Department of Natural Resources was able to periodically trap turkeys for restocking elsewhere.
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Waterfowl Areas
Suitable wintering habitat is a critical need for a variety of migratory waterfowl. The birds rely on these areas for nesting, feeding, brood rearing and wintering. When ideal waterfowl habitat areas were identified on the Broad and Enoree Rivers, SCE&G developed 120-acre and 90-acre diked impoundments that included both vegetation and cultivated habitat. A proud supporter of the South Carolina Waterfowl Association and Ducks Unlimited, SCE&G also built what has become one of the state's most successful waterfowl impoundments on the Parr Reservoir.
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Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers
Once abundant from the Atlantic Coast to Oklahoma, the red-cockaded woodpecker now only exists in isolated groups that face ever-shrinking habitat. Today, it is estimated that fewer than 15,000 of the birds survive. SCE&G has entered into two Safe Harbor Cooperative Agreements with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to maintain and enhance habitat for red-cockaded woodpeckers on all lands owned by the company in Georgetown and Jasper Counties.
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Loggerhead Turtles
On summer nights, an amazing ritual takes place on many South Carolina beaches, where huge loggerhead sea turtles lumber out of the sea to bury their eggs in the low dunes. Unfortunately, many of the baby sea turtles never make their way to the breaking surf after they hatch. One of the main reasons is that baby loggerhead turtles, which instinctively follow the light of the moon and stars to lead them to the sea, become disoriented and misdirected by artificial light.
To address the issue, SCE&G has installed special shields on beachfront streetlights to redirect the light downward and away from the beach. The company also worked with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to increase public awareness and encourage people to turn off their beachfront lights at night. In addition, SCE&G is working closely with the Department of Natural Resources and some 700 "sea turtle" volunteers to help ensure the survival of our state's official reptile for generations to come.
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POWER for Wildlife Program
SCE&G is a founding member of POWER (Protect Our Wildlife at Every Right-of-Way), a wildlife management program designed to create new forage and shelter for many game and non-game species in SCE&G rights-of-way beneath electrical transmission lines.
POWER is a joint venture with public and private utilities, South Carolina Conservation and Development Councils, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, United States Department of Agriculture and other partners. The project works by offering cash grants and professional wildlife management advice to groups and individuals committed to five years of right-of-way wildlife management.
Individual landowners and groups can plant seeds and fruit-bearing vegetation to attract wildlife and help maintain active, healthy biological communities in these areas. More than 500 acres of SCE&G transmission rights-of-way are maintained as part of this program.
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Saving the Mussels
At PSNC Energy, we like to think we’re flexible – for our customers and, as our experience with a pipeline expansion project proved – for endangered mussels!
The Appalachian Elktoe is a freshwater mussel whose natural habitat is the upper Tennessee River system in the mountains of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. Although their numbers have dramatically declined, short stretches of the Tuckaseegee River are still home for these small kidney-shaped mussels.
During our multiyear project to bring natural gas services to several western counties in North Carolina, we had the opportunity to encounter these small, rare creatures – and find a way to adapt to their needs to ensure their survival.
As the project expanded gas lines to Cherokee and Bryson City, North Carolina, river crossings were required. Suspecting that the proposed crossings could possibly compromise critical habitats for an endangered species of mussels, we contacted the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the state’s Wildlife Resources Commission so surveys could be conducted to identify the presence of the creatures.
In addition, we developed a contingency plan to make sure drilling work wouldn’t disturb any Elktoe Mussel population found inhabiting the area’s waterways.
Installing pipeline crossing in a river requires something called directional bore work beneath the riverbed, which carries a risk of frac-out or loss of drilling fluids.
The surveys showed that mussels were present in an unexpected section of the Tuckaseegee River. Although they typically like relatively shallow, fast-moving water, the Elktoe mussels were found in area as deep as six feet in places. The current along the river’s bottom and crevasses in the bedrock at that location seemed to provide a suitable habitat.
By employing foresight and working collaboratively with state and federal wildlife agencies, we brought natural gas to more North Carolina residents while enabling some mussels to continue making the Tuckaeegee River their home.
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SCE&G (“Affiliate”) is not the same company as PSNC Energy, and have separate management and separate employees. Affiliate is not regulated by the North Carolina Utilities Commission or in any way sanctioned by the Commission. There is no advantage to customers of PSNC Energy if they buy products or services from Affiliate. A customer does not have to buy products or services from Affiliate in order to continue to receive the same safe and reliable natural gas service from PSNC Energy.
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