Sullivan’s Island for All made the decision to respond to a recent opinion piece in the Post and Courier that mischaracterized the maritime forest, the Town of Sullivan’s Island forest management plan and our organization. Thank you for taking the time to get the facts on these important issues. Here is our response, which ran on the commentary page of the Post and Courier on January 21, 2026.
After reading the Jan. 7 commentary regarding the status of the maritime forest management plan on Sullivan’s Island, a reader might conclude there is no plan. Let’s look at the facts together.
Left out was crucial information, including the core tenets of the current management plan, which is consistently enforced and updated on the town website (most recently in August as part of the “Resilience and Sea Level Rise Adaptation Plan”). Through public hearings, council meetings and town-sponsored forest walks, residents have numerous opportunities to provide input.
Town Council has taken proactive steps to manage this fragile ecosystem. In 2024, the town hired a director of resilience and natural resource management, a naturalist with a master’s degree in environmental studies and public administration, strengthening stewardship and ensuring science-based management.
Working with the naturalist, adjacent homeowners obtained permits to remove more than 1,300 invasive popcorn trees, replacing them with native wildflower seeds to prevent re-establishment. These efforts demonstrate successful collaboration between the town and residents to maintain forest health and resilience.
The management plan also includes:
• Seasonal permits allowing adjacent homeowners to trim wax myrtles and eastern baccharis to five feet between their property and the ocean from Nov. 1 through Feb. 28.
• Boardwalks providing access to the forest and beach while protecting dune integrity.
• Interpretive signs and low-impact trails, including an ADA-accessible section.
• Naturalist-led walks to educate the public and highlight the forest as a community asset.
• Camera surveillance that protects people and public land and monitors forest conditions.
• Certification of contractors approved to work in sensitive ecosystems.
The op-ed writer described the maritime forest as a “stagnant swamp,” mischaracterizing its true value, and suggesting it be drained. Like all healthy maritime forests, this one contains diverse wetlands, from bird-filled cattail marshes to areas reminiscent of blackwater swamps.
The forest’s miracle is its extraordinary ability to hold and manage water: Each tree absorbs 10 to 150 gallons daily, collectively handling millions of gallons of runoff that would otherwise flood streets and yards. Draining these wetlands would be temporary at best, and it would destroy vital water storage.
The writer suggests the maritime forest uniquely drives mosquitoes and requires special treatment. Anyone living in the Lowcountry knows mosquitoes are everywhere. Charleston County Mosquito Control confirms the forest requires no extra measures.
The county’s primary approach is larval control using extremely low-dose products that pose no material risk to people, pets or pollinators. Aerial spraying using the Trumpet chemical referenced by the writer is employed only in rare, extenuating circumstances with advance public notice. According to the county, no aerial use of Trumpet has occurred on Sullivan’s Island since 2017.
Balancing conservation with homeowners’ desire for ocean views is challenging, but beware radical forest management as some propose.
For more than 15 years, two plaintiffs have sued the town to try to manage the forest through extensive cutting, disregarding its value to the broader community. These efforts culminated in a controversial mediation settlement in 2020 that would have removed up to 96 percent of vegetation in some areas and increased flooding risks, according to the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (formerly DHEC).
Thankfully, a subsequent Town Council challenged the settlement, and in 2023 a circuit judge ruled it “invalid and unenforceable.” The homeowners have again appealed, with a ruling expected soon. Despite the writer’s claim that council has “kept the town mired in litigation,” it is the plaintiffs who continue to do so.
The writer also criticized an “off-island … corporation” for conservation efforts. The group is actually a grassroots 501(c)(4) nonprofit, Sullivan’s Island for All (SIforAll), formed in 2021 after the mediation settlement threatened destruction of the forest.
Its leadership consists of island neighbors — a surgeon, business owners, former council members and a volunteer missionary. Funds raised have supported Earth Day celebrations for families, guided forest walks, educational outreach and legal research. Education programs have included collaborations with the Sullivan’s Island Bird Banding Station, Charleston County Public Library, the Island Turtle Team and the South Carolina Aquarium.
Finally, consider this perspective: The city of Charleston is pursuing a $1.3 billion seawall to protect life and property from rising seas and storm surge. Sullivan’s Island already has a natural, sustainable seawall — the maritime forest. Supporting the town’s management efforts preserves this invaluable resource. We must do everything we can to protect what protects us.
Dr. Howard Holl is president of the Sullivan’s Island for All board. Board members Dr. Norman Khoury, Susan Middaugh, Rita Langley, Dan Krosse and Karen Byko also signed this commentary.
