JUNO BEACH, Fla., March 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- NextEra Energy
Marketing, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy
Resources, LLC, today announced that it has formed the Great Pee
Dee Mitigation Bank (GPDMB) in northeastern South Carolina. The GPDMB was approved by
South Carolina's Interagency
Review Team (IRT) in February 2021,
along with the first release of stream and wetland mitigation
credits.
The Pee Dee Mitigation Bank will benefit economic development
efforts in the Pee Dee region of South
Carolina, providing environmental credits to all or portions
of the following counties: Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Kershaw, Lancaster, Lee, Marion
and Marlboro.
"We are thrilled to begin working to restore the streams and
wetlands in the Pee Dee region," said John
Ketchum, president and chief executive officer of NextEra
Energy Resources. "The Pee Dee Mitigation Bank is an excellent
example of our commitment to environmental sustainability and
stewardship. In addition to the environmental benefits that will be
derived from this project, we believe the mitigation credits will
enhance economic development efforts throughout the Pee Dee region
by facilitating permit approvals for developers."
The approximately 1,100-acre GPDMB site, which was formerly used
for timber harvesting, is protected in perpetuity through a
conservation easement that is being managed by a local nonprofit,
Pee Dee Land Trust. Construction on the mitigation bank,
which is expected to begin later this year, will focus on repairing
damaged streams and wetlands on the site. The work planned for the
site includes restoring/preserving over seven miles of streams,
including close to two miles of the Great Pee Dee River front.
Almost 300,000 native trees will be planted as part of the site
restoration activities that include flattening and widening stream
banks, removing obstructions that interfere with stream flow and
removing invasive species. In return for these restoration
activities, the United States Army Corps of Engineers along with
the IRT will award NextEra Energy Marketing mitigation credits that
can be sold to third parties.
This region of South Carolina
has not been served by a mitigation bank and the formation of GPDMB
is expected to aid the greater Florence area's economic development plan
along with supporting South Carolina Department of Transportation's
effort to build and maintain roads throughout the Pee Dee
region.
NextEra Energy Resources, LLC is a clean energy leader and is
one of the largest wholesale generators of electric power in the
U.S., with approximately 23,900 megawatts of total net generating
capacity, primarily in 38 states and Canada as of year-end 2020. NextEra Energy
Resources, together with its affiliated entities, is the world's
largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun based
on 2020 megawatt hours produced on a net generation basis, and a
world leader in battery storage. The business operates clean,
emissions-free nuclear power generation facilities in New Hampshire and Wisconsin as part of the NextEra Energy
nuclear fleet. NextEra Energy Resources, LLC is a subsidiary of
Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra
Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). For more information, visit
www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.
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SOURCE NextEra Energy Resources, LLC; NextEra Energy, Inc.