Lanier water storage hearing Tuesday

BUFORD - Proposed interim water storage contracts at Lake Lanier will be up for discussion at a meeting this week in Gainesville.

Contracts for Gwinnett County, the City of Gainesville and the Atlanta Regional Commission will be considered.

The meeting will be at the Georgia Mountains Center Tuesday, 5:00-8:00.

The Lake Lanier Association objects to the parameters in the draft state Environmental Protection Division permit for Gainesville to discharge up to 12 million gallons a day of treated wastewater into Flat Creek, a tributary of Lake Lanier. The group wants them to reflect those imposed earlier on Gwinnett.

"Levels of phosphorous, fecal coliform and other contaminants in this draft permit are identical to the Gwinnett permit which was invalidated by the Georgia Supreme Court," the association's executive director, Vicki Barnhorst, said in an emailing to members of the group. "Please let the Governor know that you want any future discharges into Lanier to have the same strict specifications as those negotiated by the Lake Lanier Association with Gwinnett County."

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says each meeting will be conducted as an open house, will have the same format and will present the same information to the public. Information stations will be set up and corps personnel will be available at each station to answer questions. The stations will include topics such as the settlement agreement for the Lake Lanier interim water storage contracts, National Environmental Policy Act, water management for multipurpose projects, hydropower, water supply, modeling tools, environmental resources and socioeconomic effects. Areas also will be set up to record oral comments and written comments.

These comments will help define the range of alternatives to be considered and to help focus the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on significant areas of concern.

The EIS will be used as supporting documentation for decisions concerning the proposed interim storage contracts and any required operation changes at Lake Lanier, Buford Dam or the downstream reservoirs. Under the settlement agreement, the corps would allocate storage space in Lanier to three specific water supply providers named in the settlement agreement. They will pay for storage. These payments will be used to offset reduced hydropower generation revenues and will be reflected in reduced rates paid by the SeFPC members.

The interim water storage contracts will be issued for a 10-year period with potential 10-year extension and possible conversion to permanent reallocation contracts subject to congressional approval. Interim water storage contracts will apply to the following water supply users:

*Gwinnett County will contract for 175,000 acre-feet of storage in Lanier
*City of Gainesville will contract for 20,675 acre-feet of storage in the lake
*Atlanta Regional Commission will contract for 45,183 acre-feet of storage in Lanier

The corps will hold five public scoping meetings throughout the watershed during the next two weeks.

Date Time Location and information number

Nov. 28 5-8 p.m. Georgia Mountains Center 301 Main Street SW Gainesville, GA 30503(770) 534-8420
Nov. 29 5-8 p.m.Renaissance Waverly Hotel2450 Galleria ParkwayAtlanta, GA 30339(888) 391-8724
Nov. 30 5-8 p.m.Troup County Parks & Recreation Center 1220 Lafayette Parkway LaGrange, GA 30240 (706) 883-1670
Dec. 5 5-8 p.m.Dothan Conference Center3113 Oxmoor Industrial Boulevard Dothan, AL 36303(800) 453-5302
Dec. 6 5-8 p.m.Tallahassee Community CollegeThe Center for Economic and Workforce Development 444 Appleyard Drive Tallahassee, FL 32304(850) 201-6200