Deputy Commissioner
Dept. of Industry and Trade (1971 - 1972)
When Buford Dam was being considered, it was agreed that a specified amount of water would be released every day to meet the requirements of Atlanta and all downstream users, including those in Alabama and Florida.
As Atlanta's population increased and other users demanded more water it became obvious that considerable amounts of water would have to be released from the Lanier Reservoir to meet the minimum requirements for the entire Chattahoochee River basin. To meet this contingency, the Corps of Engineers issued a "water use plan" for the river basins of the Southeastern states.
In 1970 the Corps of Engineers for several days in a row released forty million gallons of water from the Lanier reservoir to maintain the minimum flow requirements for the Chattahoochee.
Suddenly the Corps became the worst of villains.
But, the facts were:
- Atlanta was withdrawing some 60 million gallons of water per day from the Chattahoochee below the Buford Dam.
- After usage, the water was treated and supposedly returned to the Chattahoochee basin. But, in fact, half the water had not been returned to the proper river basin. That portion used in the Eastern half of Atlanta was being treated and drained to the East and into the Altamaha River Basin and on to the Atlantic.
- The portion used, largely in the Western half of Atlanta, was used, treated and returned to the Chattahoochee basin near Bolton.
- The transfer of roughly half of the water pumped from the Chattahoochee Basin and returned to the Altamaha Basin (where it was not needed for any purpose) was in clear violation of the Corps Agreement.
- This violation was recognized at a meeting in Gov. Maddox's office in 1970.
- The solution to the problem and getting Atlanta to a non-violation status was of prime importance.
- The city of Atlanta agreed to dig a tunnel at least 30 feet below the surface from a collecting point near what is now Centennial Park, West to a treatment plant on the Chattahoochee a few miles South of I-20, where the treated water would be returned to the Chattahoochee River.
- The State of Georgia, the City of Atlanta, and the Corps of Engineers agreed to this proposal and all began a cooperative implementation.
- With implementation of this plan there would be no transfer of water from the Chattahoochee River Basin nor would the Corps of Engineers be required to draw large quantities of water from the Lanier Reservoir to replace the water that had been transferred to the Altamaha Basin.
- The first attempt to construct the tunnel was unfortunately met with almost fanatical opposition, including the charge of blatant racism for running a "sewage" tunnel under the Southwest section of Atlanta.
- Five times since 1975 the Corps of Engineers and the State of Georgia have attempted to get the tunnel built; the last time in 2006 when it met the same kind of blatant opposition.
- For over 40 years the City of Atlanta has transferred some 30 million gallons of water a day to a river basin that did not need the water for any purpose.
- That amount (40 years x 365 days x 30,000,000 gallons), at least four hundred billion gallons of water, has been illegally transferred from the Chattahoochee Basin and, in fact, WASTED.
There appears to be no end in sight for the present water shortage unless we immediately DIG THAT TUNNEL AND CUT OUT THE CRIMINAL WASTE OF PRECIOUS WATER.
We need to start digging that tunnel tomorrow!
Now, at the same time we are constructing the "Save Atlanta Tunnel," let us correct oru second great mistake. Let us build the Sprewell Bluff Pump Storage Dam so we will have available to us the hundreds of millions of gallons of water that rain down on the greater Atlanta airport and on the counties sough of Atlanta.
Harold A. Dye
