Water

Supply:

The Chattahoochee is the smallest river serving a metro area the size of Atlanta in the United States. Other sources such as the Etowah and the Yellow River also provide water to the region but much of the debate about metro Atlanta's water issue centers on the Chattahoochee. Downstream users in south Georgia, Florida and Alabama all depend on the river to meet their needs as well.

In fact, downstream users have sued to limit metro Atlanta's withdrawals from the Chattahoochee. And the General Assembly has passed laws forbidding the region from even planning on using rivers outside of the region to meet its water needs. While there have been positive developments in the "water wars" negotiations and the region isn't running out of water any time soon, it is clear that Atlanta's water supply has limits.

Recognizing this fact, a collaborative effort of the Regional Business Coalition and the Metro Atlanta Chamber called The Clean Water Initiative, developed the momentum to create the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District. The District is responsible for creating long term water supply, wastewater treatment and storm water runoff plans. Metro Atlanta is the only region in the state to have a region-wide 25 year water plan that addresses each of these areas.

Implementation of the region's water plans have already begun. They include measures such as adopting three tier water rates that encourage conservation and requiring rain sensor shut-offs on irrigation systems. More work needs to be done and reducing water use and replacing inefficient fixtures are among the next steps towards meeting the region's long term water supply needs.

Quality:

Similarly, metro Atlanta has a water quality issue that revolves around two focal points - pollution caused by sources such as wastewater treatment plants and pollution caused by rain events that wash oil, fertilizer and other chemicals into the streams as well as soil that's eroded into streams by rain.

The City of Atlanta was once the worst culprit in the water quality issue thanks to a poorly designed sewer system that overflowed when it rained. Environmental groups such as the Chattahoochee River Keeper sued the city in the 1990s to force it to take action on the issue. The leadership of Mayor Shirley Franklin along with other state and regional leaders moved the city forward and a $2 billion sewer upgrade that began in 2005 is already paying dividends by reducing the number and intensity of violations.

The work is not finished however.

Keeping the pollutants that come from roads and parking lots out of streams is a much more difficult task because there is no one source you can point to as the problem. Every storm drain on a road or parking lot and every landscape is a potential source of pollution. The Water Planning District has initiated campaigns such as the "Keep it Clean, Drains to Stream" stenciling program to build public awareness of the issue. Storm water utilities are also being considered to address the problem by the various local governments.

Related Documents:

Metro North Georgia Water Planning District --
Plan and Implementation Report

Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce
Fact Sheet on Water in Metro Atlanta