New $2.5 million project aims to attack metro Atlanta’s smelly water problem
The deal that ended the government shutdown included a surprising perk for metro Atlanta: It might eventually keep the drinking water here from tasting so much like dirt in autumn.
Embedded in a bill to reopen the federal government was a $2.5 million grant to find ways to reduce the flow of the nutrients that feed algae blooms in Lake Lanier, according to U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Cumming, whose district includes the lake area.
The vast majority of the region’s drinking water flows through the lake. Lanier and the stretch of the Chattahoochee River it feeds supply drinking water to 75% of the metro’s residents.
And this fall, those residents got a taste of the prevalence of algae in the lake. Since at least September, foul-tasting compounds produced by algae have been flowing through taps across the region, and people from Gainesville to Atlanta have been asking why their water suddenly tastes like mildew and dirt.
Those compounds, which have been especially pronounced this year, are safe to drink, water experts and local utilities say. But they underscore the region’s dependence on Lake Lanier and longstanding concerns about how nutrient pollution is fueling algae growth.
The new grant will not pay for a silver bullet to reduce the phosphorus and nitrogen flowing into Lake Lanier, said Mark Masters, executive director of Albany State University’s Georgia Water Planning and Policy Center, which will run the program.
Instead, it will investigate lots of smaller solutions. Staff will visit farms upstream and suggest lots of projects to keep fertilizers and other nutrients from flowing into the water, Masters said. Those projects could include fencing to keep livestock out of streams, buffer zones around waterways and plans to manage waste from poultry, he said.
In a region that claims the title of “poultry capital of the world,” there is plenty of feed, fertilizer and manure to manage. The area upstream of Lanier is home to 194 million chickens, as well as some 105,000 cattle, Masters said.
“Every farm is unique, and the one thing that we are not going to be is be prescriptive,” he said.
The grant will pay for some pilot projects, Masters said, but the project’s goal is primarily to compile a comprehensive list of projects to make it easier to apply for more funding later.
The amount of phosphorus and nitrogen flowing into the lake has been a concern since at least 2006, and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division took steps in 2017 to limit upstream pollution. Having too many nutrients in the water can feed algae blooms that sap oxygen and risk promoting toxic kinds of algae.
In a statement, McCormick, who secured the funding in a bill to fund the U.S. Department of Agriculture, called the grant “a responsible investment in both our environment and our economy.” And he suggested the new effort could eventually cut down on the earthy-smelling water that, in some ways, is a sign of fall in North Georgia.
Algae and the smelly compounds they produce are typically found close to the lake’s surface during summer. But as the weather cools, the surface water sinks to the bottom, and the mildewy taste begins to flow downstream.
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