Drought is over, but culture of conservation remains strong

The good news for Georgia is that the drought is over. But the better news is that in spite of perceptions otherwise, Georgians are emerging from drought better prepared than ever before.

The three-year drought kept water resource issues in the public spotlight and now it’s important that rainy days don’t make us complacent. 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 proving that Georgians have begun to develop the “culture of conservation” envisioned by Gov. Sonny Perdue. Our conservation ethic will be tested as outdoor watering 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 2006, drought conditions had reappeared in Georgia and drought-related outdoor water use schedules were implemented across the state. In fall 2007, with the drought getting worse every day, the Environmental Protection Division declared a Level 4 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 ensure 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 stabilize water supplies.

While the state’s response was focused on every county in Georgia, special measures had to be taken regarding Lake Lanier. 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 water that the Atlanta region consumes each day is literally a small fraction of what was being released from Lake Lanier. The governor successfully argued for changes in the way the U.S. Army 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 under way 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, 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, Perdue required state agencies to reduce water usage by setting specific goals and directing agencies to meet them.

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.

Rain has brought relief to Georgians. 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.

Carol Couch is director of Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division.