Water crisis in Georgia
Governor sues Army Corps over water
Even win won't solve state's crisis
By BILL SANDERS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/19/07
While the occasional drop of rain dotted Atlanta on Friday, the biggest development in Georgia's water crisis played out in a Florida courthouse.
As expected, lawyers for Gov. Sonny Perdue asked a federal judge to force the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reduce the release of Lake Lanier waters to Florida until March 1.
DEALING WITH THE DROUGHT:
Possible solution: Extend ban through summer '08
A guide to the new landscape: What you can and can't water
Map of counties under state restrictions
Watering garden during ban requires creativity
Q&A: New realities of watering ban
Attorney Todd Silliman, who filed the motion in the U.S. Middle District of Florida on behalf of Perdue, said he did not know when the court would consider Georgia's request.
Even if Georgia gets its way, state officials say slowing the flow downstream will not solve metro Atlanta's water woes.
But with a countdown of readily available drinking water remaining in Lanier - about 80 days, according to the state - Perdue said in a statement that he believed he had to act.
In the lawsuit, filed late Friday in Jacksonville, the state contends "that the risk that the system will be drained of all or nearly all conservation storage is not speculative and it is not remote.
"In fact, the projections upon which this motion is based come directly from the corps."
Perdue is scheduled to hold a news conference this morning at Lanier, where he'll talk further about the state's efforts on the water crisis.
Georgia claims "the benefit of granting the motion is that it will materially reduce the risk of a catastrophic loss of total system storage.
"On the other side of the equation, granting the motion will unfortunately result in flows in the Apalachicola below 5,000 cfs (cubic feet per second; 5,000 cfs is 3.2 billion gallons a day)."
Even win won't solve state's crisis
By BILL SANDERS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/19/07
While the occasional drop of rain dotted Atlanta on Friday, the biggest development in Georgia's water crisis played out in a Florida courthouse.
As expected, lawyers for Gov. Sonny Perdue asked a federal judge to force the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reduce the release of Lake Lanier waters to Florida until March 1.
DEALING WITH THE DROUGHT:
Possible solution: Extend ban through summer '08
A guide to the new landscape: What you can and can't water
Map of counties under state restrictions
Watering garden during ban requires creativity
Q&A: New realities of watering ban
Attorney Todd Silliman, who filed the motion in the U.S. Middle District of Florida on behalf of Perdue, said he did not know when the court would consider Georgia's request.
Even if Georgia gets its way, state officials say slowing the flow downstream will not solve metro Atlanta's water woes.
But with a countdown of readily available drinking water remaining in Lanier - about 80 days, according to the state - Perdue said in a statement that he believed he had to act.
In the lawsuit, filed late Friday in Jacksonville, the state contends "that the risk that the system will be drained of all or nearly all conservation storage is not speculative and it is not remote.
"In fact, the projections upon which this motion is based come directly from the corps."
Perdue is scheduled to hold a news conference this morning at Lanier, where he'll talk further about the state's efforts on the water crisis.
Georgia claims "the benefit of granting the motion is that it will materially reduce the risk of a catastrophic loss of total system storage.
"On the other side of the equation, granting the motion will unfortunately result in flows in the Apalachicola below 5,000 cfs (cubic feet per second; 5,000 cfs is 3.2 billion gallons a day)."
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Quit drinking water, start drinking beer instead. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Captplaid
So rather than admit the people of Atlanta of populated the area or they did some poor planning of resources, they say "Give me your water." They look to the federal government for a solution.
Yes, I suspect in the next 4 years there will be talk of a national water policy.
The national water policy is the problem. That is what Georgia is asking relief from. If Georgia were allowed to make their own water policy Atlanta wouldn't have a problem now. Not an immediate problem anyway. We have the opposite problem here. In times of flood, Halifax County and upstream have to take double flooding to save some of the sensitive areas downstream from any flooding.
We are getting some rain tonight. I don't think it's enough to break the drought, but it's a help. Maybe Atlanta will get some of this.0 -
The rivers that made Lake Lanier (Chattahoochee, and Etowah) have existed for thousands of years, and will continue to exist even if Lake Lanier completely disappears.
This river system has enough volume to provide every resident that currently depends on the Lake Lanier reservoir water system indefinitely.
Why can't people understand this?0 -
quote:Originally posted by If6Was9
Why can't people understand this?
Why?0 -
quote:Quit drinking water, start drinking beer instead.
Sounds like a good idea[:D][:D]0 -
OK, tomorrow morning I am going into the Belly of the Beast. I will be spending a three day weekend in Atlanta, in nice suburban neighborhoods on the north side.
I have been getting the scoop on the crisis on nighttime Atlanta talk radio.
*There is a total outdoor watering ban. The only waiver is that if a landscaping company or greenhouse has planted plants in your yard, then you may water those plants for a month.
So a rich homeowner has $25,000 worth of landscaping that he had put in last year and it is dying because he can't water it. He will have Pike's Nursery come out and plant a single rosebush in the middle of his flower bed, then the rascal has the green light to water the entire flower bed for 30 days.
On the 31st day, he tells Pikes he needs another rose bush.
Or, a home owner will have an expensive lawn that is dying. He can't water it.
So he hires a professional landscaping company to come out and spread one sack of grass seed, very thinly, over his yard. Now he is clear to water his lawn for a month.
*The governor signed a decree that as of Wednesday no more pressure washing is allowed. A lady called this talk show to say that on Tuesday, the day before the decree went into effect, the GBI had its giant headquarters building pressure washed by the inmates.
A guy called the talk show, he has been supporting his family for 15 years with his pressure washing company, on Wednesday he closed his company down. He said that even before the Governor's decree, business was off by 80 per cent.
*A few days ago the Georgia governor asked President Bush to declare Georgia a Federal disaster area, and to restrict the amount of water that can leave Lake Lanier, and head downstream for Alabama. So far Bush has not acted on this request.
Yesterday the Alabama governor asked President Bush to ignore the Georgia governor, and to allow full flow of the river.
The Georgia governor and the Alabama governor are not speaking to each other. [Maybe the Georgia governor will challenge the Alabama governor to a duel.]
Things are getting crazy in Atlanta, I am sure glad I live 220 miles away from there, in the North Carolina mountains. Even though I am in the same drought as Atlanta, so far so good on my water, my well has a 37 gallon per minute flow. At least, that is what it had when drilled 11 years ago, but that was a rainy year. It could get to be tough luck up here in the country, too.0 -
quote:Originally posted by redneckandy
quote:Quit drinking water, start drinking beer instead.
Sounds like a good idea[:D][:D]
Gets to be a bit expensive to flush your toilet or wash clothes that way though.0 -
Most people now-a-days have the regular water meter for their home/drinking water and a seperate "irrigation meter" for their automated sprinkler systems. When the utilities/water departments of the greater Atlanta metro area start turning off those irrigation meters and locking them down I might start to develop some sympathy.
I agree with all the above posters . . . the over-development of the greater Atlanta metro area was reckless and greedy. Now it's biting them in the a$$.
For those people (rich or not) that feel the need to put the green-ness of their grass or having a freshly washed car ahead of drinking water for everyone - - well they need to have ALL water to their house shut-off and locked down. Make them buy every drop of water they want at the grocery store.
South FL is also running out of water and the governments down there wants to start pumping water out of the St. Johns River down to their communities. They want North FL to pay for all their excess development - - and I am VERY much against it.
I've always thought lawyers were the scum of the earth, but the last decade's building boom has proven that greedy developers and corrupt politicians are a whole lot worse.0 -
We live in a coastal desert - welcome to the club. 0 -
Don't flush your toilet so much.
JM0 -
quote:Originally posted by If6Was9
The rivers that made Lake Lanier (Chattahoochee, and Etowah) have existed for thousands of years, and will continue to exist even if Lake Lanier completely disappears.
This river system has enough volume to provide every resident that currently depends on the Lake Lanier reservoir water system indefinitely.
Why can't people understand this?
Actually Lake Lanier is manmade, created in 1956 by the US Army Corps of Engineers with the completion of Buford Dam, and fed by the Chattahoochie and Chestatee Rivers. It was originally constructed to provide flood control protection for Atlanta Metro and to provide hydroelectricity. However, Atlanta started to take water from the lake for municipal use, which was only supposed to be an incidental use. Over the years it has become the primary reservoir for the area in spite of the fact that the Corps of Engineers, Florida, Alabama, and Georgia have been fighting over its use since the 90's.
I have a couple of friends who get into scuba diving. They say there is a town at the bottom of the lake - theaters, gas stations, etc.0 -
The Chestatee does not directly feed the Lake Lanier water system but does contribute to the cause check your map. The rivers that do are fed by artesian springs that by definition exist under the bedrock and wont go away for many thousands of years.
Lake Lanier would not exist without this river system it is what made the lake. Sorry you lose.0 -
quote:Originally posted by If6Was9
The Chestatee does not directly feed the Lake Lanier water system but does contribute to the cause check your map. The rivers that do are fed by artesian springs that by definition exist under the bedrock and wont go away for many thousands of years.
Lake Lanier would not exist without this river system it is what made the lake. Sorry you lose.
Perhaps a bit of factual data will clear up your obvious confusion:
quote:The City of Flowery Branch is drained by both the Chattahoochee and Oconee River Basins.
These two river systems are the major watersheds. The Chestatee and Little Rivers both feed
the Chattahoochee River which is then impounded by Buford Dam to create Lake Sydney
Lanier, probably the area's most important natural resource. Buford Dam, and thus the flow of
the Chattahoochee River and water levels at Lake Lanier, is controlled by the Army Corp of
Engineers. The headwaters of the Oconee River are the Middle and North Oconee Rivers that
form in Hall County and ultimately join together in Athens to form the Oconee River.
--Georgia Dept. of Community Affairs
Excellent sources of factual information vis-a-vis the history of the construction of Lake Lanier:
http://lanier.sam.usace.army.mil/history.htm
http://lanier.sam.usace.army.mil/0
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