A recent vote by the state's Department of Natural Resources requires all of Georgia's 159 counties to establish minimum buffers along all of the states streams and tributaries, even those on private land. The new rules mean counties must establish a 150-foot buffer zone on both sides of all potential drinking water sources, no matter how small. If a county refuses to adopt the new guidelines, they'll be cut off from all future state funding. Steve Gooch heads Lumpkin County's Board of Commissioners. His family has owned land in the county for nearly a century. Gooch says the new regulations are unfair to property owners because they make 350 feet of land unavailable for development, but landowners still have to pay property taxes on the land. Under the new rules, counties must also establish an extensive list of monitoring and education programs. No final date has been set for implementation of the new rules. However, the City of Dahlonega is under pressure to adopt the new guidelines. The state won't let the City sell water to Lumpkin County until it does.
