Keep it Natural Carolinas

Launched in 2000 with The Conservation Fund, Anheuser-Busch’s consumer-driven Keep it Natural Carolinas campaign includes print, outdoor, and radio advertising, as well as a regional sweepstakes, and aims to raise awareness about the importance of environmental stewardship, watershed protection, and wildlife habitat conservation. In addition to public outreach, a portion of proceeds from sales of Natural Light and Natural Ice beer are donated to The Conservation Fund to support its land and water protection efforts in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Thus far the Keep it Natural program has supported the protection of more than 110,000 acres of wildlife habitat, working landscapes, and recreation areas in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Keep it Natural Projects in South Carolina

2008 - In 2008, Keep it Natural will support the completion of a new boardwalk at Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge's Cox Ferry Lake Recreation Area. Once officially open, the Cox Ferry Lake Recreation Area will provide year-round opportunities for hiking, canoeing, and wildlife observation in the Grand Strand area.

Located near Myrtle Beach, S.C., the refuge spans portions of the Great Pee Dee and Waccamaw rivers, making up a large portion of the Winyah Bay drainage basin. The refuge is fast becoming one of South Carolina’s top destinations for bird watching, hunting and fishing, with more than 20,000 visitors each year.

2007 - This year’s program protected local coasts through on-the-ground conservation and restoration work with the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League. The program supported South Carolina Coastal Conservation League’s work to protect the coastal plain, including shorebird and sea turtle nesting areas, wetlands and coastal marsh islands. The League will focus on its South Carolina Conservation Bank, which provides funding for the protection of environmentally and historically sensitive lands statewide.

“It is gratifying to have the commitment of companies like Anheuser-Busch in support of conserving our irreplaceable landscape,” said Dana Beach, executive director of the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League. “These types of partnerships are strong testimony to the broad and strong feelings South Carolinians have for the state’s natural environment.”

2006 - Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge’s wildlife habitat, river corridors and recreation areas benefited from a donation provided by Natural Light and Natural Ice beers, as well as a statewide public outreach campaign to encourage citizen involvement in conserving South Carolina’s natural resources. As part of their Keep it Natural, Carolinas campaign, Anheuser-Busch Companies, Natural Light and The Conservation Fund supported the construction of a network of foot and bike trails and a canoe/kayak launch on upland portions of the refuge, near Conway.