Georgia Environmental Protection Division Issues Drought Response Declaration

The United States Drought Monitor listed 56 Georgia counties under exceptional drought conditions as of April 28, with 52 of those counties within the current state of emergency zone. The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC/Special Photo

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division issued a state-wide Level 1 Drought Response declaration on April 27 in an effort to combat exceptional drought conditions and wildfires.

“No matter what law you put in place, no matter what regulation, it all comes down to being aware,” said John Johnson, fire chief of Treutlen County and Soperton’s fire departments.

According to the EPD’s press release, a Level 1 Drought Response requires public water systems to “implement a public information campaign including, at a minimum, notice regarding drought conditions and drought-specific announcements.” These public information campaigns are designed to increase awareness of and encourage water conservation.

A Level 1 Drought Response also prohibits general landscape watering between the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. However, irrigation of personal food gardens, drip irrigation or irrigation using soaker hoses, and hand watering with a hose equipped with an automatic cutoff or a handheld container are permitted at any time of day.

Irrigation of new and replanted plants, seed and turf is also permitted at any time of day, but only for the first 30 days after planting.

As part of the required public information campaigns, the EPD provided local communities with guidelines for water conservation to provide to residents. In those guidelines, residents are encouraged to check for and repair any water leakages inside or outside the home, not to run tap water more than necessary, to only water landscapes when necessary and to adjust sprinklers to only spray water onto lawns, rather than onto homes, sidewalks or roads.

Local public water systems also cannot impose restrictions on outdoor watering which differ from state restrictions without a variance from the EPD.

Water in south Georgia is drawn primarily from underground wells part of the Florida aquifer system, considered by the United States Geological Survey to be one of the most productive aquifers in the world. The EPD’s water conservation effort aims to conserve the water in the aquifer system until substantial rainfall can end the drought.

“We’re trying to conserve the levels in the aquifer system,” said Chief Johnson.

According to the National Drought Migration Center’s United States Drought Monitor, 52 counties in south Georgia, including Montgomery County and Wheeler County, are experiencing exceptional drought as of April 28. Several more counties, such as Treutlen County, are experiencing extreme drought.

Some areas did see rainfall on April 28, such as Treutlen County, but only two-tenths of an inch of rain fell. Chief Johnson said that amount would be nowhere near enough rain to alleviate the current drought.

“Not even a drop in the bucket,” said Chief Johnson.

According to Johnson, it would take a five day storm delivering one inch of rain per day to put an end to the current drought conditions. Until then, he expects the emergency burn bans and water conservation rules to remain in effect, even past the listed deadlines.

“Unless we get a significant amount of rain, we don’t expect changing that,” said Chief Johnson.