Some newspaper editorial pages recently have accused Georgians of not being prepared, of a slow response to drought and of feeble planning for future water management. Here’s the truth:
Georgians weathered the drought with no disruptions to drinking water supply. Georgia’s 2004 drought management rules and plans have a single objective: to protect the public’s drinking water and health. No one ran out of water and the credit should go to the millions of people who stepped up to conserve. Water conservation saved millions of gallons of water across the state. A significant amount of the water saved was the result of outdoor water use restrictions, but water use also fell during the winter months, which points to voluntary water conservation being practiced inside the home.
Monthly water use reductions exceeded expectations averaging 15 percent in hard-hit north Georgia and prove that Georgians have begun to develop the “culture of conservation” envisioned by Governor Perdue. Our water conservation ethic will continue to be tested as outdoor water use schedules for drought management have been eliminated. Under state laws and rules, drought-related restrictions can only be in effect when a drought exists. The non-drought outdoor water use schedule, which is currently in effect statewide, is not intended to address drought, but instead is used to reduce the overwatering of landscape that has historically occurred during periods of normal rainfall.
By June of 2006, drought conditions had reappeared in Georgia and drought-related outdoor water use schedules were implemented across the state. In the fall of 2007, with the drought getting worse every day, the Environmental Protection Division (EPD) declared a Level Four Drought Response in north Georgia to prohibit most types of outdoor water use to conserve water for drinking and sanitation.
EPD worked closely with water utilities and local governments to insure that water supplies were not interrupted. Plans were made to share water by interconnecting with neighboring communities, infrastructure and water waste problems were addressed and procedures were put in place to monitor water use. Communities will continue to reap the benefits of these actions, which permanently improved water efficiency and helped to stabilize water supplies.
While the state’s response was focused on every county in Georgia, special measures had to be taken regarding Lake Lanier. It is important to remember that the biggest threat to metropolitan Atlanta’s main water supply was not consumption, but the release of billions of gallons of water to meet a myriad of downstream needs that have nothing to do with metro Atlanta’s growth. The amount of water that the Atlanta region consumes each day is literally a small fraction of what was being released from Lake Lanier. Governor Perdue successfully argued for changes in the way the Corps of Engineers determines how much water to release during periods of drought. Without these changes, we may have had to resort to extraordinary measures.
There was quick response to the advancing drought, but the fact is, work to better manage Georgia’s water resources in the long term was already underway and continues.
The Comprehensive Statewide Water Management Plan was being completed and was adopted by the General Assembly in early 2008. Today 300 of our state’s leaders are hard at work in regions across the state to identify and implement actions to safeguard our water supplies.
A key component to the Plan is the Water Conservation Implementation Plan (WCIP), which provides guidance and goals for each water use sector in Georgia including industry, farmers and homeowners. Many of these sectors have already implemented water efficient practices that will continue to generate water and cost savings.
Through a call to lead by example, Governor Perdue required state agencies to reduce water usage by setting specific goals and directing agencies to meet those reductions.
EPD requires reuse of water in many counties in Georgia’s coastal plain to help address problems with salt water intruding on underground supplies of fresh water in the region.
The state is revising the plumbing code to encourage the use of gray water.
No doubt, rain has brought relief to Georgians and we should all take time to enjoy the benefits that accompany a plentiful supply of water. However in the face of a changing climate and growing population, drought preparation and water supply development will be a continuing and ongoing responsibility of state and local government. It will be a continuing responsibility of individual Georgians to make water conservation a way of life.
As our statewide water planning is demonstrating, there is no single fix or silver bullet to assure water supplies. There can be no excuse for wasting water, no excuse for not implementing state and regional water plans and no excuses for not considering alternative water supply sources, including new reservoirs. Georgia will continue to prepare and Georgians will continue to respond by developing a culture of conservation.
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