Category: Intern Program

Infrastructure Master Plan

On By SIPOAIn Engineering, Infrastructure, Intern Program

COMMUNITY EDUCATION – SIPOA INFRASTRUCTURE

SIPOA maintains a wide range of infrastructure on the island including stormwater, roads, beaches, and lakes. In an effort to help educate residents on how SIPOA manages this infrastructure, we have created an Infrastructure Master Plan. This page serves as a dashboard that outlines SIPOA’s infrastructure management practices. Each month we will highlight a different piece of the Infrastructure Master Plan.

STORMWATER OUTFALLS

A stormwater outfall is the point where stormwater leaves a stormwater pipe and enters the downstream marsh.

The marsh is always changing and the path the stormwater takes from the pipe to the tidal channel must be maintained as part of the stormwater infrastructure.

This summer, the engineering interns completed an in-depth survey and condition assessment of all 64 stormwater outfalls on Seabrook Island. The results of this study are presented in one of our newest pieces, Stormwater Outfall Management Program. This program outlines past, present, and future outfall maintenance practices.

We hope that this tool helps residents understand more about this piece of SIPOA’s infrastructure.

Engineering Intern Program 2026

On By SIPOAIn Engineering, Intern ProgramLeave a comment

This summer, SIPOA has two interns participating in the Engineering Intern Program. Maria Miller is a Biosystems Engineering student from Clemson University. She is excited to be here and is looking forward to seeing how classroom calculations and design are translated into real world stormwater solutions. Alex Arquette is a Johns Island native and recent graduate in Geography and Economics from the University of South Carolina. He is looking forward to applying his GIS skills to stormwater resiliency applications on Seabrook Island.

Maria and Alex will be working on updating SIPOA’s stormwater outfall maintenance program among other projects this summer. If you see them out on the island or in the marsh surveying, please welcome them to Seabrook Island!

Community Education: Living on the Marsh at Seabrook Island

On By SIPOAIn Engineering, Environmental, Intern Program

While Seabrook Island is often recognized for its beachfront charm, a significant number of residents actually live along the island’s vibrant marsh front. Marsh-front living offers unique opportunities as well as specific environmental challenges.

As part of this summer’s SIPOA Engineering Internship Program, we developed an educational resource tailored specifically for marsh-front homeowners. A Homeowners’ Guide to Living on the Marsh on Seabrook Island is a comprehensive StoryMap designed to inform and support residents in understanding and managing life along the marsh.

The guide covers key topics such as:

  • Salt marsh zonation
  • Salt marsh ecology
  • Tidal flooding and storm surge
  • Shoreline protection alternatives
  • Adapting to tidal channel migration
  • Backyard buffers and marsh vegetation management

The StoryMap features local photography, time-lapse aerial imagery, and interactive maps to illustrate these concepts in a clear, engaging format. Its user-friendly design provides accessible, practical guidance for living adjacent to a dynamic marsh ecosystem.

By embracing sustainable marsh-front management practices, residents can contribute to a more resilient community—particularly in response to coastal storms and changing environmental conditions.

Feel free to contact me at shirsch@sipoa.org with questions or comments.