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No Backup Water Plan in Place for Drought-Stricken Atlanta
Friday, October 19, 2007
ATLANTA - With the South in the grip of an epic drought and its largest
city holding less than a 90-day supply of water, officials are scrambling to
deal with the worst-case scenario: What if Atlanta's faucets really do go
dry?
So far, no real backup plan exists. And there are no quick fixes among
suggested solutions, which include piping water in from rivers in
neighboring states, building more regional reservoirs, setting up a
statewide recycling system or even desalinating water from the Atlantic
Ocean.
"It's amazing that things have come to this," said Ray Wiedman, owner of an
Atlanta landscaper business. "Everybody knew the growth was coming. We
haven't had a plan for all the people coming here?"
Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue seems to be pinning his hopes on a two-pronged
approach: urging water conservation and reducing water flowing out of
federally controlled lakes. Perdue's office on Friday asked a Florida
federal judge to force the Army Corps of Engineers to curb the amount of
water draining from Georgia reservoirs into Alabama and Florida. And
Georgia's environmental protection director is drafting proposals for more
water restrictions.
But that may not be enough to stave off the water crisis. More than a
quarter of the Southeast is covered by an "exceptional" drought - the
National Weather Service's worst drought category. The Atlanta area, with a
population of 5 million, is smack in the middle of the affected region,
which extends like a dark cloud over most of Tennessee, Alabama and the
northern half of Georgia, as well as parts of North and South Carolina,
Kentucky and Virginia.
State officials warn that Lake Lanier, a 38,000-acre north Georgia reservoir
that supplies more than 3 million residents with water, is already less than
three months from depletion. Smaller reservoirs are dropping even lower,
forcing local governments to consider rationing.
State water managers say there is more water available in the lake's
reserves. But tapping into it would require the use of barges, emergency
pumps and longer water lines. And some lawmakers fear if the lake is drained
that low, it may be impossible to refill.
The Corps, which manages the water in the region, stresses there's no reason
to think Atlanta will soon run out of water. "We're so far away from that,
nobody's doing a contingency plan," said Major Daren Payne, the deputy
commander of the Corps' Mobile office. "Quite frankly, there's enough water
left to last for months. We've got a serious drought, there's no doubt about
it, anytime you deplete your entire storage pool and tap into the reserve."
But, he said, any calls to stockpile bottled water would be "very
premature."
Still, some academics and politicians are proposing contingency plans in
case the situation worsens.
Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said the region should explore piping in
additional sources of water - possibly from the Tennessee or Savannah
rivers. She even suggested desalinating sea water from Georgia's Atlantic
coast.
"We need to look beyond our borders," she said. Former Gov. Roy Barnes, a
Democrat who was defeated in 2002, told reporters this week that he had
planned to offer grants to fix leaks that waste millions of gallons of water
each year. He also said he planned to build three new state reservoirs in
north and west Georgia to help insulate the state from a future water
crisis. But those plans died when he left office.
"Los Angeles added 1 million people without increasing their water supply,"
he told reporters. "And if Los Angeles can do it, I'll tell you Georgia
can."
It seems the idea of building state reservoirs is gaining steam in the
Legislature as Georgia's battle with the Corps over federal reservoirs heats
up.
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle said he favors building more regional reservoirs shared
by multiple communities to harness the 50 trillion gallons of water that
fall over Georgia each year.
"You can see that if we can just manage the rainfall and utilize that and
make sure that we have abundant storage for it, we can take care of our
needs well into the future," said Cagle, a Republican from Gainesville, the
largest city on Lake Lanier.
Some academics say Georgia should start using more "purple water" - waste
water that is partially treated and can be used for irrigation, fire
fighting and uses other than drinking. That would conserve lake water and
help replenish the water-supply system.
Such measures could make Georgia "drought-proof," said Todd Rasmussen, a
professor of hydrology and water resources at the University of Georgia.
"People have got to start thinking in this direction," said Rasmussen. "You
can't wear out water. It's clearly an opportunity that needs to be
explored."
The drought has led to extreme conservation measures.
Virtually all outdoor watering across was banned across the northern half of
the state, restaurants were asked to serve water only at a customer's
request and the governor called on Georgians to take shorter showers. Carol
Couch, the state's environmental director, said it's "very likely" new
limits on water usage are needed.
Scorching summer temperatures and a drier-than-normal hurricane season
fueled the drought. State climatologist David Stooksbury said it will take
months of above average rainfall to replenish the system. He is now
predicting the drought could worsen if "La Nina" conditions develop and
bring little winter rainfall.
"I tell people we need 40 days and 40 nights," he said with a sigh.
No Backup Water Plan in Place for Drought-Stricken Atlanta
Friday, October 19, 2007
ATLANTA - With the South in the grip of an epic drought and its largest
city holding less than a 90-day supply of water, officials are scrambling to
deal with the worst-case scenario: What if Atlanta's faucets really do go
dry?
So far, no real backup plan exists. And there are no quick fixes among
suggested solutions, which include piping water in from rivers in
neighboring states, building more regional reservoirs, setting up a
statewide recycling system or even desalinating water from the Atlantic
Ocean.
"It's amazing that things have come to this," said Ray Wiedman, owner of an
Atlanta landscaper business. "Everybody knew the growth was coming. We
haven't had a plan for all the people coming here?"
Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue seems to be pinning his hopes on a two-pronged
approach: urging water conservation and reducing water flowing out of
federally controlled lakes. Perdue's office on Friday asked a Florida
federal judge to force the Army Corps of Engineers to curb the amount of
water draining from Georgia reservoirs into Alabama and Florida. And
Georgia's environmental protection director is drafting proposals for more
water restrictions.
But that may not be enough to stave off the water crisis. More than a
quarter of the Southeast is covered by an "exceptional" drought - the
National Weather Service's worst drought category. The Atlanta area, with a
population of 5 million, is smack in the middle of the affected region,
which extends like a dark cloud over most of Tennessee, Alabama and the
northern half of Georgia, as well as parts of North and South Carolina,
Kentucky and Virginia.
State officials warn that Lake Lanier, a 38,000-acre north Georgia reservoir
that supplies more than 3 million residents with water, is already less than
three months from depletion. Smaller reservoirs are dropping even lower,
forcing local governments to consider rationing.
State water managers say there is more water available in the lake's
reserves. But tapping into it would require the use of barges, emergency
pumps and longer water lines. And some lawmakers fear if the lake is drained
that low, it may be impossible to refill.
The Corps, which manages the water in the region, stresses there's no reason
to think Atlanta will soon run out of water. "We're so far away from that,
nobody's doing a contingency plan," said Major Daren Payne, the deputy
commander of the Corps' Mobile office. "Quite frankly, there's enough water
left to last for months. We've got a serious drought, there's no doubt about
it, anytime you deplete your entire storage pool and tap into the reserve."
But, he said, any calls to stockpile bottled water would be "very
premature."
Still, some academics and politicians are proposing contingency plans in
case the situation worsens.
Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said the region should explore piping in
additional sources of water - possibly from the Tennessee or Savannah
rivers. She even suggested desalinating sea water from Georgia's Atlantic
coast.
"We need to look beyond our borders," she said. Former Gov. Roy Barnes, a
Democrat who was defeated in 2002, told reporters this week that he had
planned to offer grants to fix leaks that waste millions of gallons of water
each year. He also said he planned to build three new state reservoirs in
north and west Georgia to help insulate the state from a future water
crisis. But those plans died when he left office.
"Los Angeles added 1 million people without increasing their water supply,"
he told reporters. "And if Los Angeles can do it, I'll tell you Georgia
can."
It seems the idea of building state reservoirs is gaining steam in the
Legislature as Georgia's battle with the Corps over federal reservoirs heats
up.
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle said he favors building more regional reservoirs shared
by multiple communities to harness the 50 trillion gallons of water that
fall over Georgia each year.
"You can see that if we can just manage the rainfall and utilize that and
make sure that we have abundant storage for it, we can take care of our
needs well into the future," said Cagle, a Republican from Gainesville, the
largest city on Lake Lanier.
Some academics say Georgia should start using more "purple water" - waste
water that is partially treated and can be used for irrigation, fire
fighting and uses other than drinking. That would conserve lake water and
help replenish the water-supply system.
Such measures could make Georgia "drought-proof," said Todd Rasmussen, a
professor of hydrology and water resources at the University of Georgia.
"People have got to start thinking in this direction," said Rasmussen. "You
can't wear out water. It's clearly an opportunity that needs to be
explored."
The drought has led to extreme conservation measures.
Virtually all outdoor watering across was banned across the northern half of
the state, restaurants were asked to serve water only at a customer's
request and the governor called on Georgians to take shorter showers. Carol
Couch, the state's environmental director, said it's "very likely" new
limits on water usage are needed.
Scorching summer temperatures and a drier-than-normal hurricane season
fueled the drought. State climatologist David Stooksbury said it will take
months of above average rainfall to replenish the system. He is now
predicting the drought could worsen if "La Nina" conditions develop and
bring little winter rainfall.
"I tell people we need 40 days and 40 nights," he said with a sigh.
