Ankle-deep, midstream in the Chattahoochee River,
looking north to the 13th St. Bridge. (Dave Bender)
The Columbus Water Works wants the city to be taken off the level-four drought list, saying the designation is unfair.
Water Works Executive Vice President Bob Tant, says the state should lower the city to the less-strict stage two designation. He says Columbus is carrying an unjust burden, compared to other parts of Georgia:
“The contribution to any savings that Columbus can make -- at best -- is really, very small, and is, in fact, dwarfed by the flows that would be taken out of the lower end [of the Chattahoochee River] into the Apalachicola [River].”Tant says city residents have largely followed the ban, and that overall daily usage dropped from 39 to 23 million gallons since the ban went into effect at the end of September.
He added that Columbus, dubbed the “Fountain City,” has turned off all the decorative downtown waterworks, and that educational institutions have followed suit.
While repeat ban-breakers might have their water turned off, the city is not levying fines against violators.
Click here for more GPB News coverage of the drought.
