INTERVIEW WITH ✨THE INTERNS✨
We 💛 Our Interns!
What is your favorite waterway in Charleston?
MM: My favorite waterway in Charleston has to be the Intracoastal Waterway behind Sullivan’s and IOP – it is close to home and where I first learned how to drive a boat!
JJ: My favorite waterway in Charleston is Folly Beach! Hailing from Spartanburg, South Carolina, I’ve been visiting Folly Beach all my life. Now that I live in Charleston as a college student, I enjoy Folly for its surf, beautiful beaches, and strong community.
EM: My favorite waterway in Charleston is the Charleston Harbor. It is my view of the city when you can see the battery from the water, as well as West Ashley and Mount Pleasant. I love to walk my dog along the water near White Point gardens with the beautiful oak trees and marsh birds.
Tell us about what you have been working on or a recent project
MM: This summer I have worked on a wide variety of projects but recently finished teaching elementary school kids Downtown and in North Charleston about nurdles and recycling.
JJ: I’ve been with Waterkeeper for 10 months now, so I’ve had my hands full with a variety of projects. But one of my most consistent projects is filtering and handling our microplastics samples and preparing them for microscope analysis.
EM: I have been working on building outreach resources to help Waterkeeper connect with local city and town councils in Berkeley and Charleston Counties, as well as attending volunteer events.
Favorite animal you might encounter on the job?
MM: My favorite animal would have to be Charleston’s dolphins. Cheryl and I came across a large pod during Swim Alert a few weeks ago!
JJ: I love being out on the boat for a nurdle hunt, or taking swim alert samples and getting to see a pod of dolphins jumping through the air! There’s really nothing else like it.
EM: I love seeing birds in the marsh! I think the herons and egrets are so beautiful, and it is especially exciting if I get to see a hawk.
What’s one major takeaway from this program?
MM: My most significant takeaway from this program is how devoted Charleston is to protecting our waterways. It is clear that every person involved in Waterkeeper’s mission is passionate and devoted.
JJ: One of my biggest takeaways this year has been the power of community. While working for Waterkeeper, I’ve gotten to meet a lot of new faces. But over time, I’ve learned how small and tight-knit the environmental and Charleston community here is, and how important relationships are to helping protect and restore our waterways.
EM: My biggest takeaway from my summer with Waterkeeper is that everyone has a part to play in protecting our waterways. Each of us interns bring a different skill set to Waterkeeper, and so does every volunteer. It is so cool to see all of the different skills, passions, and interests that drive people to be involved, and it is beautiful how that brings Charleston together.
What’s a fun fact you learned this summer during the program?
MM: That oysters filter seawater! They pump seawater through their gills and trap many unwanted particles. This process helps improve water quality significantly. One of the main reasons why we plant oysters reefs!
JJ: This summer, while collaborating with SC DNR SCORE, I got to engage in a Spartina Marsh grass planting. During that project, I learned just how important Spartina grass can be for filtering harmful pollutants and protecting Charleston against erosion and flooding.
EM: My favorite fun fact I learned was that baby oysters can swim, which was shocking to me! They swim before they attack to a hard surface to live the rest of their oyster life! That’s why we place oyster bags in the marsh, to give the baby oysters somewhere to land.
