FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHERN CONNECTOR UNVEILS WATERWAY REFURBISHMENT PLAN
Unique partnerships drive the clean up effort.

Greenville, SC - July 27, 1999 - Mr. Robert Aye, project manager for the Southern Connector, today unveiled plans for one of the largest cleanup efforts and stream enhancement projects in the Upstate - possibly the state. The mitigation effort will occur along almost two miles (approximately 9,300 linear feet) of long Creek, a tributary for the Reedy River, in downtown Greenville.

The plan was developed as part of the requirement for mitigation by the Southern Connector project for unavoidable impacts created primarily by the construction of bridge crossings at waterways along the 17-mile Connector corridor. Restoration and enhancement activities will include kudzu eradication, re-vegetation and stream bank stabilization.

The mitigation plan marks the culmination of more than a year of planning and site selection review with various state resource agencies including the Corps of Engineers, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Natural Resources Conservation Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Southern Connector team, along with these groups, developed the mitigation plan to refurbish the Long Creek tributary.

"This plan is an example of agencies and developers working together for the greater good of the community," said Aye, who thanked corporate business owners for donating land to the Friends of Reedy River. Aye also thanked DuPont and Dow Agrisciences for contributions to the extensive and ambitious kudzu eradication effort.

Mr. George Fletcher, chairman-elect of the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce, has been involved in this project from the beginning. Fletcher originally challenged Interwest Carolina Transportation Group (ICTG) - developers of the Southern Connector - to locate a site within Greenville County to execute the mitigation activities. Interwest accepted the challenge and the result is a model for other developers whose construction activities unavoidably have environmental impacts. "This venture will serve as an impetus for future partnerships that will hasten creation of a mitigation-banking site for the Upstate," said Mr. Fletcher.

The mitigation project has brought together property owners, industry, a non-profit environmental group and chemical companies in an effort to restore a degraded waterway. Dr. Dave Hargett, executive director of Friends of the Reedy River, recognized representatives from The Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club, ICTG, Southern Weaving, Crompton & Knowles and Greenville County Parks and Recreation District for their cooperation and participation in this endeavor. The respective companies donated land through the grant of a conservation easement to Friends of the Reedy River. Hargett said his group is proud to accept the easements and has entered an agreement with ICTG for monitoring and remediation of the riparian buffer into perpetuity. "I am grateful to the property owners for their environmental conscientiousness," said Hargett, "and for setting an example for other members of the business community to follow."

Scope of the mitigation will involve nearly two miles of stream bank from the junction of Long Creek and the Reedy River near downtown Greenville all the way to Westside Park on SC 253. Approximately 28 acres will be donated to Friends of the Reedy River for monitoring.

Projects included in the renewal of Long Creek include: Re-vegetation of the riparian area (much of the area along Long Branch has been overrun by grasses, weeds and kudzu), Kudzu eradication (using physical removal and herbicide donated by DowBrands), Debris removal (all trash will be removed and disposed of in a sanitary landfill), River bank stabilization (by means of slope reshaping, re-vegetation and heavy mulching), Elimination of beaver impoundments, and Planting various hardwood trees (including sycamore, river birch, yellow poplar and wild oak).

A greenway could be created after final aspects of the plan are implemented.

The Southern Connector, which will open before November 2001 and connect I-85 and I-385 in Southern Greenville County, will lessen traffic on local roads. It will also open new sites for development and serve as a link between industrial, commercial and residential areas.