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As lush and beautiful as Kiawah Island already is, its town government would
like it to be even moreso.
In an effort to "go green" and accomplish the highest possible standards of
environmental friendliness, the island's government and its Environmental
Committee are putting on a series of events to highlight the importance of
eco-friendly practices. Kiawah's inaugural Environmental Sustainability Week
will run from April 14-18 and will include a public information session,
document destruction in the name of spring cleaning and beautification
projects around the island.
"It's scheduled to be kind of a preemptive event," said Tumiko Rucker,
Kiawah's town administrator. She said the town didn't want to compete with
others' Earth Day events.
The beautification projects will target three areas. The newly paved parking
lot adjacent to the island's municipal center has an unpaved area where the
town wants to add benches, shrubbery and a butterfly garden. At the fishing
pier off Beachwalker Drive, Rucker said , biologists on the island are
designing a kiosk that will address the detrimental effects that fishing
gear left in the water will have on the environment. The third spot that was
picked for beautification was the large fishing bridge off the Kiawah Island
Parkway that will include signs and added accessibility to garbage
receptacles. Rucker said this bridge is used by lots of visitors.
Some of the events are tied into statewide sustainability initiatives.
The island's Great American Highway Cleanup event on Wednesday coincides
with the 2008 Great American Cleanup of South Carolina, which spans from
March to May.
Kiawah has kicked up its environmentally friendly quota in recent months. It
formed an Environmental Committee in January, designed to monitor and
improve the quality of animal and plant life on the island. The town is
looking to expand its recycling program to include electronics, fluorescent
light bulbs and other hazardous materials.
Kiawah has hired Wayman J. Pearson of WJP Management Consultants Inc. to
help them expand the recycling program. At the beginning of the year, the
municipal center replaced their standard office supplies, such as Styrofoam
cups and cleaning products, with biodegradable substitutes.
And the island government has been paid well to keep up the work.
PalmettoPride, a nonprofit dedicated to cleaning up South Carolina, has
received a variety of grants to increase beautification, eradicate litter
and fund educational environmental initiatives. Rucker said one of the
grants, $1,500 geared specifically toward anti-litter policies, likely will
be used to purchase and set up three cameras in areas that have been
identified as places where people litter most.
"The cameras will allow us to monitor those who litter on the island,"
Rucker said. "I think the people of Kiawah who by and large are not
(littering) will appreciate it. The offenders will not."
As part of the beautification process, PalmettoPride donated 18 new spring
saplings to Kiawah. They will be planted along Beachwalker Drive and the
parkway.
Environmental Committee Chairman Charles Lipuma said the public information
session on Monday "might be too esoteric for some," but the hands-on
activities will likely draw a larger crowd.
"Something where they can really get their hands on it and feel like they've
contributed will be the clean up," Lipuma said.
Environmental Sustainability Week
During the week of April 14-18, Kiawah Island will focus its efforts on
solid waste reduction, recycling and beautification to help sustain the
Island's pristine environment. All events are open to the public. If you are
interested in participating in any of these events, contact Town Hall at
768-9166 by Monday afternoon.
Monday April 14: Public information session
Kiawah is hosting a public information session for residents to educate them
on the benefits of recycling, increased waste reduction, and anti-littering
efforts. The session will be held at the Kiawah Island Municipal Center from
9:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. Various vendors and representatives from the solid
waste and recycling industry will be present.
Tuesday April 15: Document destruction
Bring those personal documents to the town's annual Document Destruction Day
from 9 to 11 a.m. A document destruction contractor will be on-site to shred
those documents and then dispose of them in an environmentally friendly
manner. This service is complimentary for the residents of Kiawah Island.
Wednesday, April 16: Highway cleanup
The fourth bi-annual Highway Cleanup of the Kiawah Island Parkway and
Beachwalker Drive will be at 9 a.m. and will conclude with a boxed lunch for
volunteers. Volunteers will meet at Town Hall at 9 a.m. to receive their
cleanup supplies. The Nature Center will be supplying naturalists and kayaks
to help clean the waterways adjacent to the road.
Thursday, April 17: Appreciation luncheon
The town will recognize all employees, commission and committee members for
their dedication and volunteerism to the town of Kiawah Island. The luncheon
will be held at the Sandcastle from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Friday, April 18: Beautification projects
Town staff and volunteers will work on beautification projects along the
newly landscaped Beachwalker Drive. They will be planting spring saplings,
creating butterfly gardens and landscaping designated areas along the
fishing pier at Beachwalker Drive.
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