The Avian Conservation Center is designated in the USCG Area Contingency Plan as the official repository for oiled birds in South Carolina and maintains situational readiness in this crucial role.

Constructed with a grant from U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, the Center’s combined use Avian Medical Center / SC Oiled Bird Treatment Facility was completed in October 2007 and is the only permanent avian treatment center of its kind on the Eastern seaboard.

The facility is designed and equipped to provide the highest quality medical care available for injured birds of prey and shorebirds on a daily basis and affords the most efficient response possible in the event of a contaminant spill affecting native bird populations and their fragile breeding habitats along the South Carolina coast.