Water Crisis 2008: Stage 4 Exceptional Drought

On June 24, 2008, the Drought Management Advisory Council of North Carolina issued an Exceptional Drought (Stage 4) in portions of McDowell and Burke Counties of North Carolina, headwater regions of the Catawba River basin (see map below, or follow provided link http://www.ncdrought.org ).  This issuance now places the entire North Carolina portion of the basin and most of the South Carolina portion in Exceptional or Extreme Drought, the southernmost portion of Lake Wateree in Kershaw and Fairfield Counties are in Severe Drought conditions.  Most of the region remains at least 9 inches behind in annual rainfall with deficiencies around 18-19 inches since the onset of our dry conditions.

In fact, updated forecasts of the Catawba basin do not paint a delightful picture. Three-month predictions place the majority of the Catawba basin in a persistent state of Drought (see diagram below, or follow provided link http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/season_drought.gif ). 

While I am well aware that many individuals have already been proactive in decreasing water use, immediate proactive steps need to be taken by our Municipal water suppliers and elected officials throughout the Catawba Basin to curtail the use of water.  Water suppliers must mandate water restrictions and strengthen their commitment to the protection of our River’s water supply.  Also, as individual water users, we must do everything possible to dodge this water crisis!  This includes curbing water use at home and at work and asking your water provider to instate water restrictions to ensure everyone in our region is helping to save our water supply.  This not only helps extend the duration of our water and lake levels but benefits the organisms and functioning of our Catawba River. 

Weakened conservation measures of the past few weeks and months will no longer cut it. We cannot afford to wait around any longer and let our lakes and river run dry!  The time is now for continual water conservation measures to be enacted.   Please remember, all of us rely on a sustained supply of water this summer and so does our river!