Georgia, South Carolina officials to meet over Savannah River

AUGUSTA - Leaders from Georgia and South Carolina will meet this week to discuss forming a panel that would oversee how water from the Savannah River is used by each of the states. <br> <br> A proposed Savannah River Basin Compact would create a panel to oversee withdrawals from the river and govern interbasin transfers. <br> <br> Water use is increasingly becoming a focal point as the states that share the river continue to grow, officials said. <br> <br> ``Water quality issues have been a focus for a long time, but right now the push is getting more into water quantity,&#39;&#39; said Scott MacGregor, vice president for community development for the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce. <br> <br> ``The question is, what are we going to do to supply plenty of water to all the areas of Georgia? And what about South Carolina?&#39;&#39; he said. <br> <br> On Monday, MacGregor will join a mix of politicians, planners and natural resource experts who will gather in Columbia County to discuss a plan to balance future water needs. <br> <br> ``The issue is, are areas with an abundance, like the Savannah River basin, going to subsidize water needs in other areas of the state?&#39;&#39; he said. ``Or will populations in those other areas have to come to Augusta?&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Attendees at the Savannah River Basin Compact Summit will include planners from the Army Corps of Engineers, which manages 156,000 acres of lakes at the Thurmond, Russell and Hartwell projects. <br> <br> The Georgia Chamber of Commerce, hydrologists from both Georgia and South Carolina, and legislators from both states will be there, too. <br> <br> South Carolina State Sen. Bob Waldrep of Anderson already has introduced a bill in the state&#39;s General Assembly that would create an oversight panel for river matters including recreation, hydropower and inter-basin transfers. <br> <br> Although water supplies currently are abundant, Waldrep believes it is inevitable that major metro areas Atlanta, in particular someday will want to tap the Savannah&#39;s upstate reservoirs. <br> <br> South Carolina State Sen. Tommy Moore of Clearwater said he also fears that metro Atlanta someday could attempt to tap the Savannah&#39;s reservoirs by installing a huge aqueduct that would leave less for South Carolina. <br> <br> Monday&#39;s meeting is a first step in warding off such conflicts, he said.