Camden County and Municipalities
Coastal Incentive Grants:
The following projects were either submitted directly by one of the Camden County local governments or by one of the local government agencies that provides services to Camden County and its municipalities.
Water Well and Septic Tank Inventory; submitted by the Camden County Board of Commissioners and funded in October 2002. GA DNR CRD provided $38,251 a survey that will result in mapping and documentation in a GIS format of the locations of all septic and water wells within the Camden County and to test for water quality of selected wells. The information will be used by the Zoning and Planning Department in making local land use decisions.
Woodbine Waterfront Improvements; submitted by the City of Woodbine and funded in October 1998. GA DNR CRD provided $9,771 to design, construct and install six granite markers with bronze inscriptions interpreting the environmental and historical heritage of the area along a newly constructed pedestrian trail.
City of Woodbine Landscape Program for the Riverwalk Extension Project; submitted by the City of Woodbine and funded in October 2002. GADNR CRD has awarded $25,000 for the development of garden beds along Phase II of the Riverwalk Project. Each garden will be devoted to a specific theme, as follows: Xeriscape Garden, Butterfly Garden and Coastal Species Garden. The gardens will be used to enhance the Riverwalk and for educational purposes. **Note: The City of St. Marys and the City of Kingsland have never submitted proposals for consideration under the Coastal Incentive Grants program.
Conservation Education Program; submitted by the Satilla River Soil and Water Conservation District and funded for 2 years in October 1999 and in October 2000. GADNR CRD awarded $37,874 for a number of Best Management Practice workshops for landowners, local government staff and students in the Satilla River SWCD service area. Workshops included; Erosion & Sediment Control Workshops for construction sites (scholarships were provided for local government staff to attend), Conservation Tillage (No-Till Drill) Demonstrations and Litter Spreader Demonstrations for agricultural interests, and Forestry Best Management Practices Workshops. The award provided various conservation brochures and materials for distribution in the service area. Improvements were also made to the out-door classroom at the Mary Lee Clark Elementary School in St. Marys using funds provided by this grant.
The Coastal Georgia Game (Travel Activity Booklet); submitted by the Coastal Georgia Regional Development Center for funding in October 1999. GA DNR CRD provided a $14,748 grant for the development and publication of The Coastal Georgia Game booklet that was available for tourist along the I-95 corridor in the Georgia Welcome Centers. The game was developed to increase awareness of Coastal Georgia's natural and historic resources, and to promote ecological and heritage based tourism in the region.
Camden County High School Sea Oats Project; a non-competitive project funded using GADNR CRD Coastal Management Program administrative funds. GADNR CRD awarded $5,000 to the Camden County High School to develop a Sea Oats Nursery and Dune Stabilization Program. Through the program, a nursery was established to provide native plants to entities on the Georgia coast for habitat restoration projects. Georgia DNR staff provided technical assistance for the project.
Technical Assistance to Camden County and its Municipalities:
The technical assistant for Camden County is Jill Huntington, whose activities within the county have included:
• Presenting to the City Council about the types of technical assistance offered by the Coastal Management Program, and displaying the Coastal Ark to the public at City Hall.
• Meeting with the Camden County Administrator and the Planning Director to conduct a natural resources issues/needs assessment. Those meetings revealed the County's needs for grants and GIS technology.
• Meeting with the Woodbine City Administrator to conduct a similar needs assessment.
• Hosting two Coastal Greenspace Program Managers Workshops, both attended by county and municipal staff.
• Attending County Commission and Planning Commission meetings, as well as city council meetings where natural resource or Coastal Incentive Grant issues were scheduled for discussion.
• Participating in the St. Marys River Management Committee meetings, serving as liaisons between the Committee and Coastal Resources Division. Camden County is strongly represented on the Committee.
• Partnering with the City of St. Marys on a cooperative project with the NOAA Coastal Services Center, Department of Community Affairs, The Georgia Conservancy, and a private development company. This Smart Growth Georgia: Alternatives to Coastal Growth project will generate a web-based planning tool for local coastal governments.
• Assisting the Camden County High School Sea Oats Nursery and Dune Restoration Program that has been largely funded by the Coastal Management Program. CMP staff worked along side the students in the first split of the nursery's sea oats stock into 378 individual plants.
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