The clerk of the court of common pleas of any county of this State may establish a levee or drainage district or districts in his county, locate and establish levees, drains or canals, cause to be constructed, straightened, widened or deepened any ditch, drain or watercourse and build levees or embankments and erect tide gates and pumping plants for the purpose of draining and reclaiming wet, swamp or overflowed lands.
S.C. Code § 49-17-210