CHC News
February 2010
Conservancy Elects Four New Board Members
February 2010
Conservancy Assumes Responsibility for Master Plan for Greenway Trails.
February 2010
The Conservancy Sponsored the Arbor Day.
Regional Watershed Management Study
We are involved in implementation of a master land use plan involving sustainable development of a 40,000+ acre area, including designing high-density, mixed-use villages that may eventually accommodate up to 20,000+ additional residents each.
It is apparent the existing water and waste water systems will have to be modified significantly. However, this large geographic area already contains a variety of existing systems for handling potable water, waste water and storm water runoff, and crosses multiple jurisdictions.
Additionally, we have recently been asked by the neighboring counties of Coweta, Douglas and Carroll to partner with them in similar sustainable development plans for an adjoining 20,000 acres.
Although the Chattahoochee River, the source of much of the regions water supply, is clearly a regional resource, the approaches to water management are multiple. We feel that with large geographic area and multiple jurisdictions involved, the complexity and variety of existing water systems, and the potentially rapid population growth, an expert evaluation of the overall water system is needed. We believe a watershed management plan is needed for the Chattahoochee Hill Country area.
General Description of Projects Overall Goals, Activities & Outcomes
We plan to hire a professional water resource specialist to assess our water resources, current and projected water usage and provide solutions on a regional scale.
The scope of work for this study will include an evaluation of existing systems and a calculation of the probable needs for the planned high-density villages (in terms potable and waste water treatment capacity and quality), with proposed regional solutions to both current and future needs for potable water, waste water treatment and storm water management.
We feel a comprehensive apolitical professional evaluation and regional solution is the only reasonable way to address water issues in a large-scale multi-jurisdictional area where the watershed encompasses competing political entities. By providing a professional white paper identifying the problems and outlining potential solutions and the costs involved, this document will give our citizens the baseline tool to stimulate cooperation amongst local governments on a long-term solution to water needs for all residents
Wider Impact
Development of a model for assessing water resources and solutions for a large geographic area with recommendations for regional solutions that cross jurisdictional lines should provide a model approach that can be used in many areas in North America. Watersheds often cross jurisdictional lines. This approach for cooperative rather than competing solutions should enhance not only water resource handling but also result in a more economic approach to providing water services.
Partnering Organizations Involved in the Project
Friends of the Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance, Fulton County government, Coweta County government, Douglas County government, Carroll County government, the City of Palmetto, the Atlanta Regional Commission, the Conservation Fund, the Upper Chattahoochee River Keepers, the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Woodruff Foundation, the Rolling Hills Resource Conservation and Development Council, Georgia State government, the Nature Conservancy, the Trust for Public Land, the American Farmland Trust, and the U.S. National Park Service.
Geographic Location of the Project
The 40,000 acre plus Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District of South Fulton County, Georgia, and approximately 20,000 acres in the adjoining portions of Coweta, Carroll, and Douglas counties in Georgia.