Enforcement

The South Carolina Coastal Zone Management Act (Act) was passed by the 1977 General Assembly of South Carolina to provide for the protection and enhancement of South Carolina's coastal resources. The Act empowered the South Carolina Coastal Council (now known as South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (SCDHEC-OCRM)), to employ a professional staff that would be responsible for the implementing the tasks of promoting the economic and social welfare of the citizens of this state while protecting the sensitive and fragile areas of the coast.

The authority of OCRM can be divided into two broad areas and is limited to the eight coastal counties of Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Georgetown, Horry and Jasper. As mandated by the Act, OCRM, through it's permitting section, has direct statutory authority within these 8 counties to deny or issue permits for activities in the critical areas, as defined in the Act. These critical areas include coastal waters, tidelands, beaches and the beach/dune system. OCRM is also empowered within the 8 coastal counties to review all State and Federal permit applications and activities to determine their consistency with the South Carolina Coastal Zone Management Program and to issue State Stormwater and Sediment Reduction permits. Thus, OCRM has multiple permitting and enforcement authority in the eight coastal counties, consisting of direct permitting within the critical areas, review and certification of other State and Federal permits and activities and issuance of stormwater and sediment reduction permits.

General Enforcement Process

A project is considered to be out of compliance if the structure or activity exceeds the scope of the issued permit or is in violation of the specifications and conditions outlined in the permit. Enforcement staff is responsible for routinely patrolling the critical areas by land, air, and water. Compliance inspections, permit application site visits, and reports from individual citizens are all major sources of violations. Enforcement staff can respond in a number of ways:

To learn more about environmental fines please read the DHEC Environmental Protection Fees and Fines Regulations.

Creek and Beach Watch

The Creek and Beach Watch Program is a citizen participation program where individuals or groups watch the critical areas, usually areas they are familiar with or visit frequently, and report any possible violations of the S. C. Coastal Zone Management Act or OCRM's Rules and Regulations to OCRM enforcement staff. The Creek and Beach Watch Program was initiated in March of 1986 to help OCRM staff locate possible violations that may otherwise go undetected. Citizens are encouraged to report possible violations of the S. C. Coastal Zone Management Act by calling a 24-hour toll-free hotline: 1-800-768-1516.

Whenever possible during normal business hours, calls will be answered by an OCRM staff member. At other times an answering machine will take the report. OCRM enforcement personnel will investigate reports of possible violations, take appropriate action and, if requested, notify the person making the report of any action taken.