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H. 5108

STATUS INFORMATION

General Bill
Sponsors: Rep. Ceips
Document Path: l:\council\bills\ggs\22611htc04.doc

Introduced in the House on April 14, 2004
Currently residing in the House Committee on Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs

Summary: Beach Preservation and Maintenance Act

HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

     Date      Body   Action Description with journal page number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   4/14/2004  House   Introduced and read first time HJ-9
   4/14/2004  House   Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Natural Resources 
                        and Environmental Affairs HJ-9

View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site

VERSIONS OF THIS BILL

4/14/2004

TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 54-1-50, ENACTING THE COASTAL SOUTH CAROLINA BEACH PRESERVATION AND MAINTENANCE ACT, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR BEACH QUALITY SAND ORIGINATING FROM THE DREDGING OF NAVIGATION CHANNELS WITHIN TIDAL INLETS TO BE PLACED ON COASTAL BEACHES AND TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION    1.    Chapter 1, Title 54 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 54-1-50.    (A)    This section may be cited as the Coastal South Carolina Beach Preservation and Maintenance Act.

(B)    The General Assembly recognizes the need for maintaining navigation inlets, harbors, and rivers to promote commercial and recreational uses of our coastal waters and their resources. The General Assembly further recognizes that dredging activities to deepen or maintain navigation channels within tidal inlets, as well as the entrances to harbors and rivers, alter the natural drift of beach quality sand resources within the littoral zone, often resulting in these sand resources being deposited in designated upland or offshore disposal areas instead of providing natural nourishment to the adjacent coastal beaches.

(C)(1)    With regard to all beach quality sand originating from the dredging of navigation channels within tidal inlets, as well as the entrances to harbors and rivers:

(a)    the sand must be placed on the adjacent coastal beaches, if possible, or if placed elsewhere, an equivalent quality and quantity of sand from an alternate location must be placed on the adjacent coastal beaches, or the person or entity undertaking and responsible for periodic long-term dredge maintenance of navigation channels/projects must contribute to the cost, in a proportionate share to the loss of sand over a fixed period of time, and these funds must be used to maintain the adjacent impacted beach through a more cost-effective, larger-scale beach replenishment project;

(b)    the disposition of sand must be completed by the person undertaking the dredging and must be completed in cooperation with and with the approval of the local governing body and the Coastal Division of the Department of Health and Environmental Control according to the requirements of Chapter 39 of Title 48; and

(c)    all such activities must provide protection to tidelands and to nesting sea turtles and hatchlings and their habitats.

(2)    If the Coastal Division of the Department of Health and Environmental Control determines that sediment originating from the construction or maintenance of navigation related projects is unsuitable for direct beach placement, the division shall retain the option to require nearshore disposal in a manner which is considered to be beneficial to the adjacent coastal beaches."

SECTION    2.    This act takes effect January 1, 2005.

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