The Bryan County Board of Education has proposed the Richmond Hill Elementary Detention. The proposed buffer encroachment will create a wet detention pond, which will capture and treat storm water flow generated from the new Richmond Hill Elementary School site near Carver Elementary School.

"When you get a wetlands permit, which we did in May, you then must get a permit for the stream buffer, which is required by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, because of the wetlands," said Bryan County Schools Superintendent Dr. Sallie Brewer.

The legal notice for the permit has already been published, giving the community 30 days to make any comments on the issue, Brewer said.

"The project will result in 175 linear feet of buffer disturbance along an unnamed tributary to Sterling Creek," the notice said.

"A stream buffer is basically an area of land that cannot be disrupted in any shape or form," said Melanie Hendrix, outreach coordinator for the Ogeechee/Canoochee Riverkeeper.

"It allows for natural filtration of water into the stream, and helps improve water quality. It also helps keep the area from flooding into the stream," she said.

Public comments will be considered up until Friday, Sept. 14. Any written comments can be mailed to: Program Manager, Nonpoint Source Program Erosion and Sedimentation Control Unit, 4220 International Pkwy., Ste. 101, Atlanta, GA 30354.

Plans for the site can be seen at the Bryan County Board of Education, Attn: John Oliver, 66 South Industrial Blvd., Pembroke, 626-5000.