Charleston Currents – 2016

HISTORY: S.C. Public Service Authority

S.C. Encyclopedia | The South Carolina Public Service Authority was established by the General Assembly in 1934 with the power to provide for navigation and flood control on the Santee, Congaree and Cooper Rivers; to generate electricity; to reclaim swampland; and to reforest the state’s watersheds. The prospect of using New Deal funds to build a hydroelectric generating station in the Lowcountry excited many of that area’s powerful legislators. These men envisioned a small industrial empire in the Lowcountry, supplied with Santee Cooper power. They created the Public Service Authority to negotiate with and receive funding from the federal government.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Features, S.C. Encyclopedia

FEEDBACK: Facebook responds on lint column

A friend from Atlanta writes: “There is ANOTHER issue here as well… ‘Lint’ is largely comprised of microfibers, most of which are pulled into our sewage treatment systems once they pass through the washer. Sadly, these large facilities are oftentimes unequipped to filter those fibers out before the treated water is returned to our rivers and oceans

by Charleston Currents · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Feedback

PHOTO: Old blue eyes

Look at the detail of this close-up of a bird spied recently by contributing photographer Michael Kaynard of Kaynard Photography. The photo was taken at Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, which now has a hive of other possibilities as outlined in Today’s Focus.

by Michael Kaynard · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Photos

FOCUS: Bees bring a hive of possibilities to Magnolia Gardens

By Herb Frazier | Bee hives soon will give Magnolia Plantation and Gardens a new buzz to highlight the insect’s role as pollinators and the human threat to them.

Tori Johnson, Magnolia’s student and youth group coordinator, recently earned her wings as a certified beekeeper after completing a two-day introductory beekeeping course sponsored by the Charleston Area Beekeepers Association.

by Charleston Currents · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

BRACK: Hollings was right on NAFTA

By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | South Carolina’s Fritz Hollings warned the nation 22 years ago. The canary in the coal mine, he cautioned Washington policymakers that the North American Free Trade Agreement was Not A Free Trade Agreement in the nation’s best interest.

He predicted job losses that would force hundreds of thousands out of work, particularly in manufacturing.

by Andy Brack · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views

GOOD NEWS: A big win for our coast

Staff reports | Coastal elected and environmental leaders are tickled pink that the Obama Administration last week reversed itself on the potential for offshore gas and oil development in the Atlantic Ocean.

The plan was opposed by more than two dozen coastal South Carolina communities, including Charleston and Beaufort. Both of the towns’ mayors met with White House officials on March 14, the day before the reversal was announced.

by Charleston Currents · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Good news, News briefs

MYSTERY: Lowcountry scene

This image steps us back in time thanks to this Lowcountry scene snapped by contributing photographer Michael Kaynard of Kaynard Photography. Be the second to guess correctly and you’ll win a prize. Send your best guess to: editor@charlestoncurrents.com — and make sure to include the name of the town in which you live.

by Michael Kaynard · 03/21/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Mystery Photo, Photos

CALENDAR, MARCH 14+: From Fashion Week to Gone with the Wind

On the calendar for the week of March 14: Charleston Fashion Week, Gone With the Wind, PSA silent auction and more in the coming weeks.

by Charleston Currents · 03/14/2016 · Comments are Disabled · calendar

REVIEW: Whiplash

Tama Howard: “Whiplash is an American independent film that stars Miles Teller as Andrew Neiman, a talented and ambitious first-year drumming student at the prestigious Shaffer Music Conservatory. He is instructed by a hardcore and relentless jazz musician played by J.K. Simmons who was awarded Oscar for the 2015 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role.”

by Charleston Currents · 03/14/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Features, Reviews