You may have already seen new videos from conservation organizations across the region, reminding us that we are living in a watershed moment and that our decisions matter. These videos are part of a new educational campaign called Our Watershed Moment, co-developed by the Port Royal Sound Foundation and Spring Island Trust and promoted by other environmental and conservation organizations in the region, including Open Land Trust, Coastal Conservation League, Outside Foundation, and The Nature Conservancy, who want us all to remember — as residents, homeowners, voters, and community leaders – our decisions have impacts.
What Makes the Lowcountry Special and Vulnerable?
The Lowcountry is more than a spot on the map. Water, wildlife, history, and culture have shaped it. It’s also one of the country’s fastest-growing and most vulnerable regions. Our decisions today will determine not only what growth looks like, but also how well we preserve the landscape that draws us all here in the first place.
Water defines the Lowcountry. Our marshes and creeks support the economy, shelter wildlife, and protect our communities by soaking up storm surge and filtering runoff. But our waters are changing.
- Heavier rain in shorter bursts sends more stormwater off roads, roofs and parking lots, carrying pollution into creeks and marshes.
- Shifting salinity works in both directions. Stormwater floods some creeks with freshwater, while rising seas push saltwater farther inland, killing freshwater forests.
- Warmer air and water mean more intense heat, stronger storms, and less predictable weather.
- Rising seas bring higher high tides and more frequent flooding, putting pressure on roads, homes, and public safety.
Changing land cover can make it worse. Every acre of forest or wetland we replace with pavement and rooftops can no longer absorb water.
In 2020, a national climate risk assessment ranked Beaufort County among the most vulnerable counties in the U.S., with Colleton and Jasper close behind. That sounds dire, but it’s also a call to act while we still have choices.
Growing a Resilient Lowcountry
A resilient community can take a hit, whether a hurricane, a king tide, or a flood, and recover without falling apart. Building resilience starts with being honest about what’s coming and planning for it. The science is clear: climate change is already affecting the Lowcountry, and those effects will grow.
- Plan where we build. Protecting marshes, wetlands, and buffers along creeks shields communities from rising water. Growing where roads, sewers, and drainage already exist keeps us safer and costs less. Keeping natural spaces open lets rain soak in and gives wildlife room to live. A plan only works if we stick to it: every rollback or exception chips away at what it’s meant to protect.
- Stay out of the floodplain. A “100-year flood” doesn’t mean once a century. It means a 1% chance in any given year, which adds up to about a 1-in-4 chance over a 30-year mortgage. With rising seas and intensifying storms, those “rare” floods are becoming more common. One of the smartest things a region can do is stop building where the water is going.
- Slow the water down. Less pavement and more places for rain to soak in where it falls mean less flooding and cleaner creeks.
This is OUR Watershed Moment
The decisions that will shape the Lowcountry’s future are being made right here – by county councils, town councils, and planning and zoning commissions. As residents of this community, whether we vote for local leaders or decide what to do with our homes and yards, we each have choices and responsibilities for this region’s future. With each decision, we need to ask how this choice will affect the Lowcountry tomorrow and a decade from now.
- Are we planning for the Lowcountry’s future conditions?
- What is the region’s long-term vision, and do these choices move us toward it or further away?
- How will we protect marshes, wetlands, and floodplains as we grow?
- Should we build new homes and buildings where we know water will go?
- How should new development pay for the roads and drainage it will demand?
We can protect the Lowcountry’s natural systems while building thriving communities. It takes planning, follow-through, and people who care. Whether you’ve been here 40 years or four weeks, you have a role to play as a neighbor, a voter, and a steward. This is OUR watershed moment. Let’s make sound decisions.
Check out the videos and start a conversation with your neighbors about OurWatershedMoment.org