Riverkeeper Report

Savannah Riverkeeper hosted a busy and productive event on Nov. 19. The Levee Course and Lake Olmstead. Students from Augusta University and local residents came together to do a cleanup on the 12 acres of property, and put in tee boxes for the disc golf course. We are so appreciative of all the incredible help! Keep up with various ways to volunteer, especially during the holidays by visiting www.savannahriverkeeper.org.

Compiled by Meaghan Gerard Communications & Administrative Director Ogeechee Riverkeeper meaghan@ogeecheeriverkeeper.org

In 2022, the Satilla Riverkeeper continued working on the Noyes Cut Restoration Project which will restore over 4,500+ acres of salt marsh in the Satilla River estuary. Expected benefits of this project include improved habitats for local and migratory species including shrimp, blue crabs, striped bass, and many more. Improved small boat navigation in areas of Dover Creek and Umbrella Creek that have experienced increasing sedimentation and restricted access over the past century are also an expected benefit! www.satillariverkeeper.org

Thanks to the dedication of our fellow conservationists, the public comment period for the Cumberland Island Visitor Use Management Plan has been extended until the end of the year giving us all plenty of time to work through the 350-page plan. Some of the proposed changes include: Increasing daily visitors to 700+; adding pavilions & restrooms; adding campsites; increasing recreational boat access; opening administrative roads to bicycles and e-bikes; an on-island retail store; kayak or canoe rentals; and more. Submit comments at wildcumberland.org or contact www.stmarysriverkeeper.org/

Altamaha Riverkeeper mourns the loss of James Holland, the first riverkeeper for the waterway. He was 81. Holland served as the first executive director of Altamaha Riverkeeper, from 2000 to 2010. “In the end, what we do as humans will be the deciding factor about whether our marshes will or will not recover,” Holland wrote in a 2016 letter to the editor of The Brunswick News. “James leaves behind a legacy of standing up to those in power who place profits over our natural resources,” Fletcher Sams, current riverkeeper, said. “The torch he lit decades ago still burns bright.” www.facebook.com/AltamahaRiverkeeper

Ogeechee Riverkeeper welcomes its 2023 research fellow, Molly McKeon. McKeon is a graduate student at Georgia Southern University (Statesboro campus), pursuing a master’s degree in biology. She works in

the lab of Dr. Checo Colón-Gaud. She will be conducting significant sampling and testing, watching for potential issues from the closure of Milliken’s Longleaf facility and the rapid expansion surrounding the Hyundai plant in Bryan County. “Monitoring these sites particularly will help contrast and compare how the upstream site will compare with these two downstream sites and the health of the river,” McKeon says. www.ogeecheeriverkeeper.org