COLUMBIA, S.C. - The South Carolina Office of Resilience (SCOR) is pleased to announce that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) intends to award the office, as part of a regional partnership, a Climate Pollution Reduction Grant.  The partnership, known as the Atlantic Conservation Coalition, includes the states of South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland, along with The Nature Conservancy. The coalition will be awarded $421,238,074 with $50,000,000 coming directly to SCOR to acquire natural working lands throughout the state that sequester carbon and reduce flooding risk. This award aligns with SCOR's mission to enhance the State’s resilience to environmental changes and natural disasters through the conservation and restoration of natural resources.

This funding builds on the Palmetto Air Quality Collaborative, a 4-year EPA funded planning initiative co-led by SCOR and the Department of Environmental Services to develop innovative strategies to reduce air pollution in South Carolina while engaging communities, supporting workforce and economic development opportunities. The Priority Climate Action Plan highlighted land conservation and restoration as a priority measure to store carbon.

“This award provides a great opportunity to implement landscape scale-resilience solutions to reduce flooding, in line with the principles of the Strategic Statewide Resilience and Risk Reduction Plan,” said Chief Resilience Officer Ben Duncan. “EPA’s significant investment underscores the numerous co-benefits that land conservation brings to communities, economies, and ecosystems.”

In addition to the $50,000,000 coming to SCOR, a portion of $200,000,000 allocated to The Nature Conservancy for projects across the 4 state region will be used in South Carolina to improve the health and management of 18,000 acres of bottomland hardwood forest across the coastal plain. These ecosystems serve as important habitats for wildlife and offer flood risk protection for downstream communities. “In TNC’s 55 years of conserving South Carolina, we’ve seen how our forests can shelter wildlife, protect against flooding, keep our drinking water clean and offer opportunities to get outside,” said Dale Threatt-Taylor, executive director for TNC in South Carolina. “With this investment, these incredible resources have the potential to do even more.”

The South Carolina Office of Resilience appreciates the collaboration and support from partners like The Nature Conservancy in advancing solutions that build a resilient future for South Carolina.

For more information, please contact Hope Warren at (803) 766-8043 or hope.warren@scor.sc.gov.  

About SCOR:

The South Carolina Office of Resilience (SCOR) is committed to enhancing the state's ability to anticipate, absorb, recover, and thrive when presented with environmental changes and natural disasters. Through strategic initiatives and partnerships, SCOR aims to build a resilient future for all South Carolinians.