Green Diamond Development (SC)
Developer challenges FEMA's floodway designation
©Perry Pellechia
The bottomland hardwood swamp of Congaree National Park
On behalf of conservationists and local residents concerned about potential flooding of the Congaree River, the Southern Environmental Law Center has appealed a district court ruling that threw out accurate and valid flood maps on the basis of a technicality. These maps will inform future development of the region, including the proposed Green Diamond development planned by Myrtle Beach based Columbia Venture.
After years of study, the Federal Emergency Management Agency in 2001 appropriately mapped areas on the Richland County side of the Congaree River as "regulatory floodplain," properly recognizing that the current agricultural levees in Richland County should not be counted on to provide protection from a 100 year flood.
FEMA's designation, which carries with it certain development restrictions, was challenged by a politically aggressive developer, who plans to use the land for a $4 billion development. Columbia Venture's 4,600 acre "Green Diamond" development in the floodplain near Columbia would turn the currently unpopulated farmland and forest into a New Orleans-style city behind the levees along the Congaree River. Homes in the proposed development as well as existing homes in Lexington County would face unnecessary flood risks while the development would also degrade the natural floodplain corridor that extends down to the Congaree National Park.
The Southern Environmental Law Center, representing the SC Wildlife Federation and local citizens, intervened in the litigation on behalf of FEMA to assist the agency in defending the 2001 flood map and to ensure that the court understands the practical ramifications of Columbia Venture's campaign to have the current map replaced by one that would usher in new levees and new floodplain development.
However, in November, 2005, a federal district judge deemed the maps invalid because FEMA had failed to properly advertise certain portions of the decision making process. Because the judge felt the maps were created in error, she threw out the entire maps. However, her ruling did not address the accuracy of the maps themselves.
SELC has asked a federal appeals court to order the district court to determine the merits of the maps, so that FEMA can avoid the arduous process of recreating its own research, and instead, focus on ensuring the public has the opportunity to weigh in on the maps' changes.
