Conway leaders, environmentalists want 490-acre tract along Waccamaw marked for conservation

Stand on Conway’s Riverwalk and stare across the Waccamaw.

On the other side of the dark water lie nearly 500 acres of forests and wetlands, property that Conway leaders and environmentalists hope to soon earmark for conservation.

The Nature Conservancy, an international organization dedicated to protecting key lands and waters, is in negotiations to purchase the 490-acre tract, said Maria Whitehead, a project director with the conservancy.

“We feel really confident,” she said of the land sale. “We have pretty much 100 percent of the funding secured to move forward on the protection of that property. I’m hoping within a matter of months that we might have more good news.”

Whitehead gave Conway leaders an update on the conservancy’s plans during a city council meeting last month. She said the large tract has some areas that could be converted into public hiking trails.

Conway Mayor Alys Lawson said the location of the property makes it an asset to the city.

“It’s on either side of the bridge,” she said. “If you’re coming from Conway over the bridge on the right we’d go all the way from the river edge back to [Waccamaw Elementary School].”

When contacted by The Sun News, Whitehead declined to provide more details about the contract discussions, citing the ongoing negotiations. She did say the organization hopes to turn the property over to another entity to manage it. Whitehead said the conservancy often helps local governments, state agencies and wildlife refuges acquire land for recreational uses.

“We can be a little more nimble at times,” she said. “That is the case with some of these lands around the city of Conway. I think what is most incredible is that we do have this city with a real interest in seeing some of these lands right around the city go into conservation, particularly along the Waccamaw.”

A few years ago, Whitehead said the conservancy bought a 155-acre tract that the group plans to eventually hand off to the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge. The conservancy recently acquired another parcel on the Waccamaw River using a portion of a $1 million federal grant.

There are ecological benefits to the conservancy’s land acquisitions in the Conway area, including additional protections for wildlife habitats and the watershed, said Waccamaw Riverkeeper Paula Reidhaar.

“You’re in a relatively developed area in the city, and so [there are] all the issues with stormwater runoff and things like that,” she said. “By protecting this other land, you’re making sure it’s never going to add to that.”

For years, the conservancy has partnered with the city in efforts to promote conservation. Whitehead said both parties share the same goal: preserving land for the public to enjoy.

“That’s the vision,” she said. “It’s really to have these lands be recreational lands for the city. They just see that as fitting right in with their identity as a river town.”

This story was originally published January 1, 2015 at 11:51 AM with the headline "Conway leaders, environmentalists want 490-acre tract along Waccamaw marked for conservation."