The Crane Creek Watershed Association (CCWA) held its inaugural meeting at the Crane Creek Community Center on Fairfield Road November 13. The purpose was to bring as many interested parties together to establish a group to restore Crane Creek and the surrounding land to a pristine state and establish a model for handling future watershed issues.

Members of the Richland County Stormwater Management Division, along with professors from USC's Civil and Environmental department hosted the event. Kelly Collins and Julie Tasillo from the Center for Watershed Protection (CWP) in Maryland were also in attendance. CWP is a consulting group hired to oversee the project and develop a comprehensive plan for Crane Creek and any future watershed projects.

DHEC was represented, as was the Richland Planning Commission and the Conservation Society. Carroll Barker with Genesis Consulting Group was also in attendance. Genesis is overseeing the project to remove sediment from Lake Elizabeth, which is fed by Crane's Creek. Richland Council president Joe McEachern was also on hand and told the group he was excited about the association and knew the area was full of "fine folks" who would be willing to get involved in the project.

The Crane Creek Watershed, which includes land in Richland County, Columbia, and Blythewood, covers about 67 square miles and eventually flows into the Broad River. Three creeks: Crane Creek, Beasley Creek, and North Branch make up the majority of the watershed, which is one quarter urbanized.

The primary focus of the CCWA is to protect the Crane Creek watershed before it becomes so critical it requires restoration like Gills Creek, which is a model of how not to manage a watershed.

A watershed is a flowing body of water and all its tributaries, plus all the surrounding land where runoff feeds the system. In years past, the primary focus was on pollution from sewer pipes or industries depositing waste directly into a stream.

Recently, the focus has grown to include indirect pollution from chemicals, silt, and sediment, washed from surrounding lands into a stream. In areas where development or excavation has occurred, the vegetation along the banks of flowing streams, which is critical to filtering away the residue polluting streams, has been removed, which removes the filtering and allows streams to become polluted and clogged with sediment.

The primary focus of the CCWA is to coordinate the efforts of all involved to prevent pollution without being detrimental to development and industry. For instance, there is no current language in the development plan addressing buffers along streams.

The conservation experts consider100 feet to be the standard buffer for keeping streams pristine in developed areas. The Homebuilders Association thinks 25 feet is adequate. Richland County Planning Commission, and ultimately Richland County Council, will determine what the buffer becomes.

Future meetings are planned and will be made public. Anyone interested in more information, or anyone who wants to be involved in the CCWA may contact the Richland County Office of Public Information, 803 576-2065.