Investigative Report: Savannah Riverkeeper and the City of Augusta

The Savannah Riverkeeper plays a unique role in the CSRA. The Augusta Press’s investigative team has been digging into the role of the Riverkeeper as well as the financial support that the group receives from the City of Augusta.

Financial records obtained by The Augusta Press show that the city of Augusta has paid the Riverkeeper over $175,000 since October of 2015. The funds were used for a variety of tasks including removal of tires, a $40,000 study done by the Corps of Engineers for which the Riverkeeper acted as a conduit, and water quality sampling.

Savannah Riverkeeper, which is based out of Augusta, also has a memorandum of understanding with the city engineering department to provide services for which Savannah Riverkeeper is paid $9,000 annually. The $9,000 per year is part of the $175,000.

The director of the Augusta Engineering Services Department, Dr. Hameed Malik, said that using Savannah Riverkeeper has helped his department meet legal requirements without being charged an arm and a leg for the service.

“Augusta Engineering uses Riverkeeper’s information towards city stormwater permit compliance requirements under public involvement/public education,” Malik explained in an email. “It is a cost-effective way to fulfill this requirement.”

Another aspect of the financial relationship between the Riverkeeper and the city is property located at 386 Prep Phillips Drive which is leased to the Riverkeeper for $1.00 per year. The 13.89 acre site fronts Savannah River close to I:520. The lease (a copy of which can be found here) is a 100 year lease that is renewed annually.  Under the lease agreement the Riverkeeper has several obligations to improve the site in two phases however the lease is vague as to the timeline to complete the improvements.

Bonitatibus stated that Phase I of the lease agreement is largely complete.

Pictures from our tour of the site are below.

“I wish we were further along, but we have replaced the roof and made the building livable,” Bonitatibus said.

In an effort to save the city money, Bonitatibus partnered with Fort Gordon to provide mold abatement for the building at no cost. Soldiers from the fort tackled the job as part of their training requirements on base.

Bonitatibus also said she knows public perception of her personally has been skewed by people posting things about her on social media referring to her as “the fish lady” and an “environmentalist wacko.”

People on Facebook and other social media sites claim she and the Riverkeeper organization are in the business of suing cities and counties to make a tidy profit off of taxpayers. Bonitatibus said those allegations are simply not true.

“Sometimes we do have to file suit. That’s part of our job,” she said. “But we don’t receive the settlement money. We can’t accept it by law, so those settlements go to programs and groups like the Community Foundation. We don’t keep a dime of it.”

According to Bonitatibus, the public sees the personal attacks directed against her online without having any knowledge of who she is or what her organization actually does.

The Savannah Riverkeeper organization has received a $25,000 grant from the Augusta Convention and Visitors Bureau to create a disc golf course on the riverfront property it leases from the city.

The disc golf course on the river is slated to open to the public in spring of 2022. In the meantime, Bonitatibus said volunteers can go to its website, Savannah Riverkeeper, and volunteer to help re-landscape the area and also help remove the piles of trash left by illegal dumpers.

“We are moving forward as fast as we can to bring the course to fruition,” said Bonitatibus. “But I can’t say it has been an easy process because, when we took over the property in 2014, it was just a massive dump.”

The group still faces challenges because it is difficult to stop people from using the area as a dumping ground, said Bonitatibus. She said her staff recently showed up for work and found piles and piles of used roofing shingles strewn throughout the area.

“We left the gate open the other night because we were out there working all day, and when we returned the next day, someone had dumped off a pool table,” Bonitatibus said. “We are now trying to figure out how to fit that thing into a dumpster.”

The disc golf course is actually part of Phase 2 of the lease agreement Savannah Riverkeeper has with the city. Phase I of the agreement called for the Riverkeeper to clean up the two acres that immediately surround the building on site and to make repairs on the building they use as offices. The building also includes a water quality lab and incubator space for other Riverkeeper associated non-profits such as Veterans For Clean Water, as well as storage space for The Red Cross when the space is needed.

Savannah Riverkeeper also takes part in a program offered by the city to all non-profit organizations that pays them to pick up and dispose of old tires that are dumped around the city.

The Riverkeeper group, along with Veterans For Clean Water, coordinates with the Marshal’s Department and receives $2 for each tire delivered to the landfill.

The fee for each tire barely covers the gas expenses to tow all that material to the landfill, according to Bonitatibus.

“We do it, because, well, someone has got to do it,” said Bonitatibus. “You wouldn’t believe how many tires are dumped all over the area. We are the ones out there cleaning them up.”

According to city records, Savannah Riverkeeper has, over the past few years alone, amassed and disposed of a mountain of tires that once littered the city.

And there is more to report when it comes to the activities of Savannah Riverkeeper, according to Dale Reddick, who is a paid research assistant with the group.

“In 2005, I got real depressed and was prescribed medication that just made everything worse, and I just spiraled, man. I lost everything. I was homeless,” Reddick said. “I lost my truck, and I lost my mind.”

Reddick credits Bonitatibus with seeing his potential as an outdoorsman and having the spirit to want to help him get back on his feet. He credits her personally for helping him serve his probation and community service under the watch of Savannah Riverkeeper. Bonitatibus and the Riverkeeper organization helped him rise out of being homeless.

“I volunteered and ended up getting a job! I’ve got my own apartment. Life is good again. Really good,” Reddick said.

Reddick’s current job is following County Extension Agent Campbell Vaughn’s recommendations and removing non-native vegetation that is marked as not belonging on the Riverkeeper property. He also has the task of identifying rebar sticking out of the ground and marking the items for removal.

Meanwhile, Bonitatibus, who just welcomed a daughter into her family last year, said that any controversy that is blasted out on social media doesn’t slow her down. She said it is really just a minor distraction.

“We had to cancel a meeting once because people on some political watch Facebook page called the restaurant and threatened to protest outside. And yes, someone sent a death threat once. That was real fun,” Bonitatibus said.

“Despite what some people want to say, I have never sued the city of Augusta. I have a good working relationship with everyone, and I am confident in our mission to work with the city,” she continued.

Scott Hudson is the Editorial Page Editor of The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com.