When Colin Cavill began planning the 325-unit Enso Atlanta apartments near Grant Park three years ago, water was at the top of his mind.
Simply put: The metro's area's supply is limited, and he didn't want to make matters worse.
So Cavill -- who says his company, Capital 33, wanted to "help reduce our footprint" -- developed the complex as a green project. Toilets and faucets are low-flow, shower heads are water-efficient, and a cistern collects water for the landscaping.
Cavill's efforts may need to be become the norm as the state struggles with its limited water supply, experts say.
Metro Atlanta grew by 1 million people over the past decade, according to the U.S. census, and water -- or lack thereof -- could decide its continued strength as a region, the experts said.
"Growth goes where the water is and not vice versa," said Gil Rogers, senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center.
Larry Neal, a senior principal for Mactec Engineering and Consulting, which has worked with the state on drinking water assessments, said a solution is critical for job growth. If water supply is stretched thin, it could be more expensive for business to tap. That could dissuade prospects from considering locating in metro Atlanta.
"If there is uncertainty," he said, "it can cause a business to steer away. ... You don't want water to become the limiting factor in any given area."
The state recognizes the risks. It has authorized the construction of reservoirs, created a Water Supply Task Force and adopted some conservation measures. Many cities and counties in the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, which includes metro Atlanta, are offering rebates to homeowners who replace older toilets with low-flow models.
One of the biggest challenges remains the state's dispute with Alabama and Florida over access to Lake Lanier. U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson ruled in 2009 that it was illegal for the Army Corps of Engineers to draw water from the lake to meet the needs of 3 million metro residents. Magnuson set a July 2012 deadline for the states to resolve the dispute. Otherwise, metro Atlanta would be limited to the same amount of water it received in the mid-1970s, when the population was less than one-third its current size. Georgia is appealing the ruling.
"Some of our issues are the litigation and uncertainty about the future," said Pat Stevens, chief of environmental planning at the Atlanta Regional Commission.
Stevens said that despite the population growth, water use in metro Atlanta is down. She said the population in the North Georgia water district grew 28 percent between 2000 and 2009. Usage, however, was down to 512 million gallons of water a day in 2009, compared with a high in 2006 of 602 million gallons.
A number of factors led to the reduction, including conservation, severe water restrictions during several years of drought and the economic downturn, which may have forced residents to curtail tapping water they could not afford.
Also, 2009 was a rainy year, lessening the need to water yards and gardens.
"It really rained a lot that year. Actually the last year that was more close to our norm was in 2006," Stevens said. The metro area's rainfall was 69.4 inches in 2009 and 48.5 inches in 2006.
Alan Wexler, president of Databank Atlanta, a r, said if water were to become less abundant, it could lead to restrictions that would put commercial and residential real estate projects on hold. That happened in the years of drought in 2007 and 2008.
Solving the issue is critical because the economy has stymied real estate growth the past few years. When the recovery comes, no one wants to be sidelined because of water, he said.
"You have so many factors that are fluid right now," he said.
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