GFB members testify on state water plan

GFB Water Advisory Committee member C. F. Harris explains Farm Bureau’s position on water use during the town hall meeting held in Macon, May 24.

Georgia Farm Bureau members represented the organization’s position on water use during the series of 11 town hall meetings held across the state, May 19-June 2, regarding the state water plan the Georgia Environmental Protection Division will present to the Georgia Water Council, June 28.

After EPD Director Carol Couch submits the draft plan to the Georgia Water Council, the group will go through the process of receiving input on specific aspects of the plan before presenting a final plan to the Georgia General Assembly in January.

“We believe water located on our property is our property and should only be shared to let people downstream have some,” Crawford County Farm Bureau member Charlie Frank Harris, member of the GFB Water Advisory Committee, said on behalf of the organization during the meeting held in Macon, May 24. “When the government infringes on our right to the water on our property in a way that’s detrimental to us we should be compensated by the government.”

Harris also testified that additional reservoirs need to be built to store water during times of rainfall and additional research should be done on desalinated water. He and several other farmers who spoke at the meeting stressed the importance of agriculture retaining its priority ranking behind human consumption. Farmers speaking at the meeting stressed the importance of being able to water their crops during critical growth times.

“Farmers are conservative in nature. We have to be to have a bottom line left. We have a built-in regulator when it comes to how much we irrigate, and that’s the price of diesel. With diesel running at least $2.75 a gallon, we will not waste water,” said Billy Sanders, Dooly County Farm Bureau member and Ocmulgee Soil & Water Conservation District chairman.

“Agriculture’s ranking as the second priority for water use is state law and that won’t be changed,” EPD Director Carol Couch told the group. “Ag permits, once issued, are irrevocable. That’s not the same with municipal and industrial permits.”

Couch said the state water plan should be based on facts. “For many regions of the state we have insufficient knowledge of our rivers and streams in regard to their capacity to handle discharge and storage.”

She said the state plan will address regional water planning. “Georgia is a big state. There isn’t a one size fits all plan for this state,” Couch said. “This plan is about diversifying to meet the needs of each region. It’s in the regional context we have to do the hard work that remains to be done and needs to be done quickly.”

Couch said water use in Georgia is 10% higher than the national average and much of this higher use can be attributed to homeowners. “In a typical home, most water use is outdoors. We have a lot of progress we can make to better educate the typical homeowner on how to better use water.”

Couch encouraged all stakeholders to review the draft plan and give their input. “Your legislators are ultimately the individuals who will decide if this plan is right for the state of Georgia,” Couch said.

On June 6, GFB President Zippy Duvall submitted comments to the Georgia Water Council regarding the state water plan on behalf of GFB, based on the organization’s policy. A complete copy of the submitted comments is posted on “The Source,” GFB’s web site for county leaders and office managers.