The Georgia Environmental Protection Division is rethinking
its interim groundwater
management plan for southeast Georgia.
But that doesn’t mean the farmers there — or elsewhere in
Georgia — can take water
permits lightly.
"The same permit system we’ve had since 1988 is still in
effect," said Tony Tyson, an
irrigation specialist with the University of Georgia Extension
Service.
Who needs a permit? Anyone who can withdraw 3 million gallons
in a month from a deep
well, pond, lake or stream, Tyson said.
"Most farmers who irrigate will use more water than
that," he said.
"That’s anyone who can pump 70 gallons a minute."
EPD’s interim plan for southeast Georgia was to have gone
into effect July 1. The plan
addressed a number of problems with the Floridan aquifer. The
most notable of those are
saltwater intrusion and decreased water pressure along the
coast.
The plan affected 24 counties in three groups. In the
northern and southern groups, it
would simply have kept a close check on water withdrawals
through Dec. 31, 1998.
In the central 10 counties, though, the plan used tougher
measures. It required
industries and public water systems to reduce water usage by 10
percent per day.
For agricultural uses, the plan would not have allowed any
new permits after July 1.
But a series of public hearings last spring drew a flood of
concerns from all sides.
Debate was often tense and sometimes heated. So EPD went back to
the drawing board.
"It’s just a matter of time, though," Tyson said.
"EPD will come back
with another strategy, or some modification of the old plan. The
needs are real and won’t
just go away. We don’t know what the new strategy will be or
when it will be ready.
There’s no set deadline at this point, but it will be
soon."
In the meantime, farmers who need to add an irrigation system
may still get a permit,
he said, even in southeast Georgia.
In general, they need a permit if they want to apply, in any
month, 1 inch of water
over 110 acres, 2 inches on 55 acres, 3 inches on 37 acres or 4
inches on 28 acres.
To get a permit, farmers must act before they drill a well or
install a pump.
"The first thing they need to do," Tyson said,
"is apply for a letter of
concurrence." That means filling out a one-page
application, giving information such
as the intended well size and pump capacity.
"That goes to EPD in Atlanta," Tyson said. If the
agency approves, it will
send a letter to the farmer saying the withdrawal system will be
approved. The farmer then
has two years to install the system and then get the permit.
"Some people forget that after they put the system in,
they still have to apply
for the permit," he said. "It will be approved. It’s a
formality. But it’s one
that has to be done."
People with old irrigation systems that need a permit but
don’t have one may still be
able to get one. They need to contact the county extension
agent.
County Extension Service offices have applications for
letters of concurrence and for
permits. And extension agents can help explain the requirements
of the permit law.
People who need permits in southeast Georgia should apply
without delay, Tyson said.
The prospects for getting applications approved won’t likely get
any better than they are
now.
"This is an indication of things to come in other parts
of the state, too,"
he said. "We may see similar strategies in southwest
Georgia as a result of the
strain on groundwater resources there."
