Conestee Nature Preserve, formerly Lake Conestee Nature Preserve/Park, opened in 2006, is a preserve along three miles of the

Reedy River The Reedy River is a tributary of the Saluda River, about long, in northwestern South Carolina in the United States. Via the Saluda and Congaree rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Santee River, which flows to the Atlantic Ocean. The ...

in Conestee,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, with of trails, more than of them paved and of

boardwalk A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway built with wooden planks that enables pedestrians to cross wet, fragile, or marshy land. They are also in effect a low type of bridge ...

. The Preserve contains both hardwood and evergreen forest, extensive wetlands, and a rich diversity of reptiles, mammals, and birds. At least 223 bird species have been reported, and the

National Audubon Society The National Audubon Society (Audubon; ) is an American non-profit environmental organization dedicated to conservation of birds and their habitats. Located in the United States and incorporated in 1905, Audubon is one of the oldest of such organ ...

has designated the park as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

of Global Significance. In 2016 the state of South Carolina made the privately owned facility a wildlife sanctuary. Lake Conestee was created when the Reedy River was dammed at the

Conestee Mill Conestee Mill is a historic mill in the unincorporated community of Conestee, in Greenville County, South Carolina. Archaeological investigations indicate that Cherokee routinely used the area as a camp site during the colonial period. In 1794 ...

in about 1892. At its largest extent, the lake covered about , but years of upstream industrial waste and discharge filled about 90 percent of the lake with sediment so toxic that the lake was classified as a

Superfund Superfund is a United States federal environmental remediation program established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). The program is administered by the United States Environmental Pro ...

site. In 2000 the Conestee Foundation, a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

conservation organization, was formed to lead the revitalization of the lake as a wetlands through the development of the nature preserve, and the foundation used settlement funds from a June 1996

Colonial Pipeline The Colonial Pipeline is the largest pipeline system for refined oil products in the U.S.brownfield In urban planning, brownfield land is any previously developed land that is not currently in use. It may be potentially contaminated, but this is not required for the area to be considered brownfield. The term is also used to describe land prev ...

were complete, it was determined that no harm would result if the toxic sediment were left in place. In December 2016, inspectors from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control rated Conestee Dam, which is not keyed into the bedrock, in poor condition due to deterioration of mortar and water seepage.Cary, 1A. Lake Conestee, Lake Conestee Nature Park June 2019 1.jpg, View of Lake Conestee File:reedy-river-conestee.jpg, The Reedy River in Conestee Nature Preserve File:boardwalk-conestee-park.jpg, A boardwalk through Conestee Nature Preserve File:conestee-dam.jpg, Lake Conestee is formed by the Conestee Dam on the Reedy River

References

External links

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Conestee Nature Preserve Official Site
Protected areas of Greenville County, South Carolina Upstate South Carolina Nature centers in South Carolina Parks in South Carolina Tourist attractions in Greenville, South_Carolina