States in developed water power in 1938, being ex- 

 ceeded by California, New York, Washington, Ala- 

 bama, and North Carolina {16). 



Though the best power sites are on the piedmont 

 and along the fall line that separates the piedmont 

 from the Coastal Plain, commercial distribution of 

 electricity has made possible the use of hydroelectric 

 power by factories throughout most of the State, in- 

 cluding many textile plants (table 3). 



In 1920 water furnished 92 percent of the power 

 produced at central generating plants (J, 16). The 

 Santee-Cooper River hydroelectric project further 

 increases the range of distribution and the value of 

 the water resources on the lower Coastal Plain. 



A large quantity of surface water is required by 

 both industrial and domestic users in all parts of the 

 State. Seventy percent of the water consumed in 

 the 84 South Carolina cities having waterworks 

 comes from surface supplies^. Private water sys- 

 tems, both domestic and industrial, further augment 

 the demand for pure water, emphasizing the problem 

 of adequate watershed protection, particularly in 

 the mountains and on the piedmont. 



In the western part of the State rapid runoff, soil 

 erosion, excessive silting, and variable flow of the 

 streams constitute a pressing need for watershed 

 protection and soil conservation measures. Water- 

 shed protection has been started through the Federal 

 acquisition of forest lands in 11 piedmont and moun- 

 tain counties to form the Sumter National Forest. 

 Further public ownership of watershed forests by 

 the State, counties, or Federal Government would 

 help to insure the stability of South Carolina's in- 

 dustries and encourage their expansion. 



Table 3. — Power-plant capacity and power generated in South 

 Carolina, 1940 i 



Source 



Installed ca 



pacity 



Power gen 



erated 



Hydroelectric plants 



Steam plants 



Kilowatts 



2515.528 



127.630 



3,320 



Percent 



79.8 



19.7 



.5 



UOOO kwh. 



997,038 



460,824 



6,503 



Percent 

 68.1 

 31 5 



Internal-combustionplants 



.4 



Total 



646,478 



100.0 



1,464,365 



100 







1 South Carolina Public Service Commission figures (7). 



2 Does not include installed capacity of Santee-Cooper pro- 

 ject, which will be approximately 150,000 kw., of which 86,000 

 kw. will be primary power. 



The Forest Survey reported damage from erosion 

 on 40 percent of its sample plots on agricultural land 



^ See footnote 4, p. 14. 



and on 68 percent on abandoned cropland. Even on 

 the forested plots, 17 percent showed indications of 

 active erosion, chiefly because of thin stocking, the 

 removal of forest cover without providing for ade- 

 quate restocking to protect the soil, or the too slow 

 recapture of abandoned fields by the forest (fig. 17). 

 Any comprehensive watershed improvement pro- 

 gram in the State must provide for planting to aid 

 reclamation of much of the abandoned cropland and 

 the prevention of clearing or too severe cutting on 

 eroding forest land. Maintaining well stocked 

 forest stands on uncultivated lands is often the most 

 practicable means of regulating runoff and con- 

 trolling erosion. 



Multiple Use of Forests 



Recreation, hunting, fishing, grazing, and wildlife 

 sanctuaries can often be combined with timber pro- 

 duction and watershed protection, or may even take 

 precedence over them as purposes of forest manage- 

 ment. The importance of providing forest recre- 

 ational facilities has grown in recent years; it now 

 governs the management of the State parks and is 

 considered in the administration of the national 

 forests. Numerous clubs and estates, particularly 

 on the lower Coastal Plain, are maintained chiefly or 

 solely for hunting. Grazing provides a source of 

 income from many forest lands; according to the 

 U. S. Census for 1935, the pastured area of farm 

 woodland in South Carolina totaled more than 

 1,350,000 acres. Because livestock may damage 

 tree reproduction and growth and thereby bring 

 about erosion and accelerated runoff, grazing should 

 be coordinated with such other uses as may be in- 

 cluded in the plan of management, which may re- 

 quire very light grazing or none in the mountains. 



There are various opportunities for multiple use 

 of the forests, and in most localities two or more 

 uses can be combined profitably. 



Agencies for the Solution of 

 Land-Use Problems 



Local land use programs are being fostered by 

 several governmental agencies in different parts of 

 South Carolina. They are studying such problems 

 as whether, in specific instances, forests or farm 

 crops will provide the greater ultimate return; or how 

 best to use idle land suitable for forests so as to real- 

 ize a continuous income from it. 



These programs are sponsored by such agencies as 

 the State Commission of Forestry, the State Agri- 

 cultural Extension Service, the Soil Conservation 



15 



