Gwinnett eases watering restrictions
Due to the almost-normal rainfall we received in March, Gwinnett County has decided to relax hand watering restrictions to match the guidelines put out by the state of Georgia. Specifically (as posted on the LWB):
That means you can use a hose with a hand-activated nozzle to water your plants for up to 25 minutes three days per week, on an odd-even schedule. People with even numbered addresses can water on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, while people with odd numbered addressed can water on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. All watering must be done between midnight and 8 AM. Food gardens can be watered anytime, and the you are not allowed to use your 25 minute window to wash your car.
While all of north Georgia received below-normal rainfall in March, it was pretty close:
- Atlanta recorded 5.17 inches of rain, a quarter inch less than normal.
- Gainesville had 5.25 inches of rainfall, 87% of normal.
- Athens had 3.48 inches of rain, or an 1.5 inches less than normal.
The short-term forecast is looking pretty good, but we’ve still got a steep road in front of us.
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April 5th, 2008 at 10:55 am
Recorded over 3.5 inches of rain at my property near Stone Mountain, Georgia, for this storm. Drought is ending, but ACE is still releasing more water daily from Buford Dam/Lake Lanier than flows into it from watershed.
Lakefront property owners are being shafted, because it could take 3 years or more to refill the lake to acceptable level. They are the ones who must sue ACE.
April 6th, 2008 at 6:06 am
Little be a household name
Mickey tellin’ us it ain’t gonna rain
So now we sittin’ in a drop-top soakin’ wet
In a chicken suit tryin’ not to sweat
Hittin’ somersaults without the net
But this’ll be the year that we won’t forget
(nah nah nah….BGAAAAWWWKKKK - with apologies to Andre3000)
April 6th, 2008 at 9:34 am
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This is false. If it were true then the lake level would not be rising. The lake level is rising and has been rising throughout the first quarter of 2008.
Current outflows are about as low as they can go while still maintaining state mandated minimum Chattahoochee flows. These low outflows will continue through the end of April. In May, warmer waters will likely require larger outflows to maintain sufficient dissolved oxygen in the Chattahoochee River.
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Sorry, but regional weather records for the past 50 years show that normal or near normal first quarter precipitation does not predict the end of a drought. See years 2000-2004 for a case in point.
Regional precipitation for Q1 2008 was indeed somewhat better than Q1 2007 and slightly below 50 year norms. Nevertheless, when significant rains come in May through August then perhaps we can start talking about the end of the drought.
Even with the somewhat improved first quarter rains, Lanier inflows were only 80% of Q1 2007 inflows. This apparent contradiction is due to ground water recharge; less of the precipitation that falls in the watershed is making it to Lanier. Indeed, if Q1 2007’s inflows were applied to Q1 2008, while keeping Q1 2008 outflows, the lake level at the end of March would have been 1059.0 ft instead of 1056.6 ft, reflecting a net first quarter volume difference of 40,100 DSF.
– DSO –
April 7th, 2008 at 5:30 am
A correction to my previous post. In the last paragraph, “ground water” should be “groundwater”.
– DSO –
April 7th, 2008 at 8:47 am
DSO > discharges vary daily at Buford Dam. Excessive release of water is allowing the reservoir to refill slowly. Yes some rise has taken place, but reservoir could return to its lowest level again by end of next summer.
The issue is no longer the drought, but poor management of water releases. Drought is easing and shows signs of ending. Does not mean the weather pattern returns to normal instantly.
Number one issue is old power plant Scholz before Woodruff Dam, at Florida border, requiring flow of 3 billion+ gallons daily down Apalachicola River.
April 7th, 2008 at 11:56 am
Jay Randal wrote, “Excessive release of water is allowing the reservoir to refill slowly.”
I’ll say this one last time to you; there is nothing remotely “excessive” about current releases. They are at the state mandated minimums necessary to maintain environmentally safe oxygen levels in the Chattahoochee River and provide for Atlanta’s water needs. The current 30 day average outflow is close to the all time record low of 525 cfs set on 4/10/02, and, indeed, will become a new record low this Thursday when it drops below 521 cfs. That you choose to call such discharges excessive reveals either ignorance, denial, or some combination of both.
Jay Randal wrote, “The issue is no longer the drought, but poor management of water releases.”
Wrong. The issues remain both the drought and the kind of summer-fall releases that led to last year’s massive drawdown.
Jay Randal wrote, “Drought is easing and shows signs of ending.”
Your statement is typical of lay persons who see good first quarter rains and assume the “drought is easing”. Unfortunately, as I already noted, the weather records for the past 50 years refute such anecdotal conclusions. Perhaps, though, you are one of those people who choose to ignore science and instead believe whatever makes them feel best. Come back to the forum when significant rains fall in May through August and then perhaps we can talk about the drought “showing signs of ending”.
Jay Randal wrote, “Number one issue is old power plant Scholz before Woodruff Dam, at Florida border, requiring flow of 3 billion+ gallons daily down Apalachicola River.”
I agree that this is a significant issue. As I opined in another thread several days ago, the Herbert Scholz Generating Plant should be shut down. By the way, the Scholz plant is after the Woodruff Dam.
– DSO –
April 7th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Jay, as usual DSO is right. Take a look here for what is being discharged from Buford Dam.
http://water.sam.usace.army.mil/gage/acf/prob2.txt
Excessive discharge rates were happening last fall, and they may again when the downstream reservoirs deplete. At the moment though, the releases are minimal.
April 10th, 2008 at 2:12 am
Yes I said Scholz before Woodruff dam when I meant below it. Typo. I am not a lay person, but I think you defend ACE too much DSO. Drought is easing, but you can believe otherwise.
Rich > minimal by what standards? Yes, discharges are not in the 2 billion plus or minus range anymore, but still too high for present inflow.
April 17th, 2008 at 1:55 am
Jay Randal wrote, “Yes I said Scholz before Woodruff dam when I meant below it. Typo.”
A “typo” indeed, what a hoot! Apparently, you spin your mistakes through the same rose filter in which you view the rest of the world, the same filter through which you conclude, “The drought is easing and showing signs of ending”.
Run this through your filter, Bubba, year to date (through April 15) Lanier total inflow is down 17.6% from the same ytd period last year (you know, the year of the “big drought”) and is the fifth lowest in all Lanier history. Clearly, the only place “the drought is showing signs of ending” is in your dreams.
When a couple of tropical storms come marching out of the Gulf in summer-fall and drop 15+” inches of rain on North Georgia, then perhaps we can talk about the drought showing signs of ending.
Apologies to others if my harshness offends, but I don’t suffer fools gladly.
– DSO –