global gateway issue...charleston, sc

[Guest guest]

hello everyone! i am new to the list, so i guess i should introduce myself

first...my name is kristy and i am a student at the college of charleston in

charleston, sc. i'm a biology major, and an environmental studies minor, so

i am very interested in the ecological preservation of the earth, especially

that of the southeast and the lowcountry of south carolina. charleston is a

very special place, my friends! i hope you've all had a chance to check it

out. if not, you must come visit! here's an issue that is *very* important

to me...i hope it becomes important to ya'll as well:

(most of this information comes from the april 2000 lunz letter for the

sierra club of the lowcountry.)

*the south carolina state port authority wants to build a 1,300 acre shipping

facility in the middle of the charleston harbor over daniel island. this

project would have severe environmental, economic, and social repercussions

for the entire region.

*the construction of this port will cause charleston to become one of the

largest and most highly trafficked ports in the country. the global gateway

would add 27,000 vehicle trips per day, 80% of which would be truck traffic.

charleston only has one interstate leaving the city, I-26, with six lanes

leaving the city narrowing to four at the farthest suburb (20 minutes out of

town). this heavy traffic will cause all highways in the area to operate at

a level of service F, meaning gridlock. the only proposed solution would be

to widen I-26 to 12 lanes, which would be a massive undertaking that would

destroy natural ecosystems on both sides of the interstate.

*the construction of the global gateway will pave 842 acres, or one-fifth, of

daniel island, increasing polluted runoff carrying oil, grease, and other

pollutants into our harbor, waterways, and fishing grounds. this would cause

the favorite pasttimes of many in the charleston area to suffer.

recreational boating will be limited by a tripling of ship traffic, with

enormous container ships coming or going every 40 minutes through a new

dual-channel system. in order to produce this system, charleston harbor

would be dredged to reach a depth of 55 feet to accomodate the larger ships.

as a result, about 700,000 dump truck loads or 11.5 million cubic yards of

dredged material would be dumped less than 10 miles offshore folly beach.

the environmental protection agency has already taken dredge material tests

and reported that all of the samples exhibited toxicity or bioaccumulation.

*a new railroad would be formed over daniel island to connect the new port to

the rest of the railways in the area. the selected path for construction of

this area would displace a historic african-american community, destroying 15

homes and placing 20 more within 50 feet of the railroad with no

compensation. the state port authority has begun to purchase this property,

leaving the elderly families under the threat of condemnation.

***for more detailed information on how to get involved, see this website:

http://www.containtheport.com/

 

thanks so much for reading! if anyone is interested in writing letters to

those in charge or finding out more about the issue, please e-mail me and i

will be sure to respond! i hope everyone has a lovely day!

spreading the good vibes....

kristy.