We love you, Greenville Water. Some ofhe best tap water in America aka Greenville Water recently unveiled progress on a streambank restoration project in the North Saluda reservoir — specifically along Callahan Branch in Northern Greenville County.

Although Hurricane Helene put a pause on the progress of this project (a little tongue twister for you), ultimately, the goal of the restoration is to protect against storms like Helene in the future.

What's been done so far?

A barrier has been added along the waterways to reduce runoff
Rocks and toe wood revetments (think: a fancy woven mat made of logs) were placed to help stabilize the banks + make it easier for plants to grow
Kudzu and other invasive plants have been removed
The stream was reconfigured using "heavy earth-moving equipment" (like an excavator) to reduce erosion + sediment making its way into the stream

How is Greenville Water paying for this project?

Costing ~$300,000, the Callahan Branch Project is mostly funded by a grant from the SC Department of Environmental Services via the Environmental Protection Agency under a section of the Clean Water Act.

Some fast facts for fun

Our friends at the Greenville Journal put together some fast facts about this project that we wanted to share.

The North Saluda Watershed is composed of ~20,000 acres in Greenville County
This reservoir was constructed in the 1950s
Greenville Water owns the entirety of the watershed, making it only one of a few utility companies in the county that does

Wondering why our drinking water is some of the best in the US? We have a story about that.