To the casual observer Lake Thurmond is just about full, rains are plentiful, and drought problems are no more. But to the long term resident of the lakes the crisis has not passed. We've been here numerous times before. A new drought can happen and destroy the lakes beyond repair before you realize what is happening. Lake Thurmond drops 16ft and Lake Hartwell drops even further after 2 years of drought. We've come up with a new drought control plan which would correct this problem forever but for some unexplained reason the Corps is stubbornly refusing to adopt the recommended changes.
What is even more disturbing is that downstream interests don't have a clue to the impending doom they face. Downstream the picture is blurred because all they see is how much water is flowing down the river. And naturally they begin to demand higher water flows from the Corps during a drought. Instead of explaining the fact that such flows may cause the lakes to dry up the Corps does a political balancing act and increases water flows through the dam to quiet these demands. This further exascerbates the situation and puts the lake in still higher jeopardy of going dry. Such inept management of the lakes in the last drought put us within just a few months of levels that would have literally dried up the Savannah River. The river would have dropped to flows as small as 500cfs which would shut down industry along the Savannah, dry up drinking water supplies for downstream cities like Augusta, and destroy environmental interests.
The new drought plan was developed by upstream interests and prevents the lakes dropping more than 8ft from full regardless of how long the drought lasts. Furthermore the main benefit would be to downstream interests because it avoids the armageddon situation that would occur if the lakes actually go dry. The plan guarantees at least 3600cfs downstream throughout a drought which was demonstrated in the last drought as workable for all downstream interests.
The Corps either misunderstands the plan or is playing politics because they insist this plan would be good for upstream interests but not for downstream and try to pit upstream against downstream which is totally inappropriate. As already stated, downstream interests benefit more than anyone else using this approach. Continuing with the current plan puts downstream interests in jeopardy of losing the Savannah River because there is no water to supply it.
If you have input to downstream interests such as industry officials or city mayors, etc. please help us get the word out on this. We have asked the Corps repeatedly to convene a meeting of both upstream and downstream interests to discuss these options. But the Corps is refusing to do so.
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