How Greenville Protects Your Drinking Water

Greenville’s Watersheds Protect “The Best-Tasting Water in North America”

Taking a cue from the old tune “Dem Bones,” the Saluda River connects to the Congaree River, the Congaree River connects to the Santee River, and the Santee River flows on to “form” the Atlantic Ocean. But where does it all begin?

It starts high in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where tiny mountain seeps and rivulets form the North and South Saluda Rivers—the pristine headwaters that feed Poinsett Reservoir and Table Rock Reservoir. These protected mountain waters are the source of what Greenville proudly calls “the best-tasting drinking water in North America.”

Safeguarding Nature to Secure Our Water

Decades ago, visionary leaders recognized the link between healthy forests and clean water. Their foresight ensured that Greenville’s two forested watersheds would remain natural and unspoiled. In 1993, Greenville Water strengthened that protection by placing both watersheds under a perpetual conservation easement with The Nature Conservancy—at the time, and until 2025, the largest such easement in South Carolina.

A Model of Conservation Partnership

This unique partnership between a public utility and a conservation nonprofit shows how protecting nature can produce wide social benefits. The conserved lands not only secure safe, abundant drinking water for residents and businesses—they also safeguard thousands of acres of vital wildlife habitat, rare plant communities, and intact forest ecosystems that keep Greenville’s natural heritage thriving.

The Greenville watersheds are the largest protected green spaces in Greenville County.

One of the “costs” of this arrangement is that these beautiful lands are NOT available for public recreational use … a small price for the big gains!