South Must Sacrifice to Weather Drought

The Southeast is facing one of the most severe droughts in history. Areas extending from North Carolina to Alabama have been categorized as experiencing "exceptional" drought conditions - the most severe category of drought. Today, the New York Times outlines the problems accompanying the drought and the potential sacrifices the region will have to make if conditions do not change.

Leaders ranging from N.C. Governor Mike Easley to Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin have encouraged voluntary measures to limit water consumption. However, without cooperation from businesses and citizens, the region's leaders will be forced to institute mandatory restrictions.

The South is not accustomed to extreme drought and Southerners are not used to cutting water consumption. The rapid growth of the region has furthered the region's dependency on reservoirs and strained the now limited water supply.

In the Atlanta metropolitan area, which has more than four million people, worst-case analyses show that the city’s main source of water, Lake Lanier, could be drained dry in 90 to 121 days.

“I think there’s been an ostrich-head-in-the-sand syndrome that has been growing,” said Mark Crisp, an Atlanta-based consultant with the engineering firm C. H. Guernsey. “Because we seem to have been very, very slow in our actions to deal with an impending crisis. We’re in a stressful situation now,” Mr. Crisp said, “but come next spring, if we don’t have substantial rainfall this winter, these reservoirs are not going to refill.”

While the region has been slow to react to severe drought conditions, as informed citizens we can do our part to conserve and help prevent potential catastrophe.