In order to carry out the purposes for which it was created the authority shall have the following powers: (1) To have perpetual succession; (2) To sue and be sued; (3) To adopt, use and alter a corporate seal; (4) To define a quorum for its meetings; (5) To establish a principal office; (6) To make bylaws for the management and regulation of its affairs; (7) To accept gifts or grants of services, properties or moneys from the United States Government or any of its agencies or from the State or any of its political subdivisions or from private or other sources; (8) To sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of any of its property or interest therein to any political subdivision of the State of South Carolina or any Federal or State agency in furtherance of the purposes and provisions of this chapter; (9) Clean out, straighten, open up, widen, or deepen, any canal, ditch, drain, river, watercourse or natural stream without diminishing the quality or quantity of the flow of water therein; (10) Construct and maintain main and lateral ditches, canals, levees, dykes, dams, sluices, revetments, reservoirs, holding basins, floodways, pumping stations and syphons and connect them or any of them with any canals, drains, ditches, levees or other works; (11) Construct or enlarge or cause to be constructed or enlarged any and all bridges that may be needed across any drain, ditch, canal, floodway, holding basin, excavation, public highway, railroad right-of-way, track, grade, fill or cut; (12) Construct roadways over levees and embankments; (13) Construct any and all of such works and improvements across, through or over any public highway, railroad right-of-way, track, grade, fill or cut; (14) Remove any fence, building or other improvement; (15) Hold, control and acquire by donation or purchase and if need be condemn any land, easement, railroad right-of-way, sluice, reservoir, holding basin or franchise for rights-of-way, holding basins or for any of the purposes herein provided or for material to be used in constructing and maintaining the works and improvements for draining, protecting and reclaiming the lands; (16) To exercise the rights of eminent domain. The condemnation of an existing public use must be denied unless it is shown that the specific property to be condemned is absolutely essential to the authority and the use to be condemned does not materially impair the existing public use. All of the above powers shall be exercised within the geographical boundaries of the counties comprising the authority.
