Conestee Nature Preserve, a 640-acre nonprofit, acts as a natural spot for sediment to settle and contributes to water quality. The Preserve actively manages its rich and biodiverse wetland ecosystems for the benefit of wildlife, including waterfowl, river otters, and beavers. Since 2023, the Preserve has restored more than 12 acres of bottomland forest by removing invasive plants and planting thousands of native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers. Scroll down to Learn More to volunteer today and help out!
Conestee Dam
For many decades before the passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972, industrial and municipal waste deposited legacy contaminants behind the historic Conestee Dam, constructed in 1892, many of which remain there today, capped and managed by the deposition of sediment on top. While the Conestee Foundation manages the Brownfield site of the historic lakebed through non-disturbance, that strategy was long-threatened by the uncertainty of the structural integrity of an aging dam, over 130 years old. Its failure threatened all downstream.
The State of SC recognized the threat and took action, funding the project, along with key stakeholders, and design, then construction began.
As of October 2025, the new dam is operational. The threat of dam failure from the historic dam no longer exists.
There are too many key partners to thank here, but this collaboration, led by Trustee of the Lake Conestee Dam Restoration Project Kelly Lowry, was an incredible and successful undertaking.
