Shrinking Water Supplies From Lake Lanier

Heads are beginning to pop out of the sand now that the lives and jobs of millions of people from North Georgia through Alabama and on into Florida are being affected by the shrinking water level in Lake Lanier. This is a problem which has been lurking for decades, but, with the unbridled growth of all three states, not to mention the explosion of growth around Atlanta, government officials on all levels are finally being forced to confront the problems associated with a profound drought!

I once lived in Cumming, Ga. very near Lake Lanier and the Chattahoochie river and, before that, I lived in Marietta near the The Hooch so I have spent many hours on the lake along with trout fishing the river from Helen down to Atlanta (most people don't realize that good trout fishing can be enjoyed inside the city limits of Atlanta). Right now I live in Alabama withing walking distance of the Paint Rock River and just 3 or 4 miles from Lake Guntersville and the Tennessee River. I love the water and being round bodies of water and find that most people have little understanding of a river eco-system.

The Chattahoochie river essentially begins just above Helen as a small water flow from the ground and the river picks up water from the watershed as it meanders down through Helen where it is only several yards wide. The water flows into Lake Lanier which is dammed just outside of Cumming. The dam releases water from the bottom of the lake which is much colder year round that water which would be released from the top of the lake thus sustaining a vibrant trout population all the way down into Atlanta.

I know little of The Hooch as it leaves Atlanta and wanders down through Alabama and on into Florida, but water is pulled for many uses: municipalities draw water for drinking and for industry; Alabama draws water for cooling the Farley Nuclear Power Plant, and Florida depends on the fresh water to support the shellfish industries around the Apalachicola Bay.

The water needs of Atlanta will not be magically dissolving and I fear that without concerted conservation efforts the problems faced by Atlanta could become devastating! Here where I live we have no shortages in the water supply, but I see them coming. I see the same unbridled growth with little thought to providing infrastructure to support this growth including the development of a logical road system.

Infighting will not solve the problem and it's up the the governors of Georgia, Alabama, and Florida to reach some sort of compromise on their water usage!