Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
boards not to pursue making decisions on water issues, then the staff would be free to do other <br />things. <br />Commissioner Carey said the OWASA Board is doing the same thing he would do <br />because informed decisions can not be made until a long-range plan is developed. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis asked if Jordan Lake was built to establish a water supply or for <br />flood control. <br />Ed Kerwin said that it provides flood control, water supply, and recreation. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis made reference to the drought conditions, the water supply, and <br />the bird pollution that caused the beaches to be closed down. He asked about the water level in <br />Cane Creek since the drought this summer. <br />Ed Kerwin said that Cane Creek is down 60 inches. OWASA has enough water for at <br />least 250 days without rainfall. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis said he thought OWASA stood for "Orange Water and Sewer <br />Authority," and it did not have anything to do with Chatham County. He feels that if there is a <br />need to provide water to those in need it is fine, but if it is to have more development he has <br />some serious concerns. <br />Commissioner Jacobs asked about the water quality protection efforts, studies, and <br />Jordan Lake. <br />Pat Davis from the OWASA Board said that regarding watershed protection measures for <br />Jordan Lake, there are seven communities coming together to indicate their commitment to <br />move forward and develop a Calibrated Nutrient Response model for Jordan Lake. This model <br />would provide the state and local governments with the scientific tools to evaluate alternative <br />development scenarios and long term management strategies within the watershed. The seven <br />governments come from Burlington, Greensboro, Reidsville, Graham, Mebane, Pittsboro, and <br />OWASA. The seven governments have come together because they were going to be subject <br />to more stringent wastewater discharge regulations that were enacted by the general assembly. <br />This watershed management tool would be developed within the next one to two years. <br />Commissioner Jacobs asked if the Calibrated Nutrient Response model would be one step <br />removed from the level of recommending policies for watershed protection. <br />Pat Davis said the tool has to be developed in a technically sound manner so that the <br />Environmental Management Commission can use that tool to evaluate alternative nutrient <br />control strategies for the Jordan Lake watershed. The statutory language is written so that once <br />the tool is developed, calibrated, and verified, then the EMC has the amount of time it <br />determines necessary to use the tools and evaluate alternative management strategies and <br />develop a proposed set of rules it would apply within the watershed. <br />Commissioner Jacobs said that it seems prudent to study watershed protection before <br />discussing expediting withdrawals from Jordan Lake. <br />Bill Strom made reference to the extent of the watershed saying that it comes right into the <br />Town of Chapel Hill. He said if Jordan Lake is going to be acceptable long term, there will have <br />to be a lot of coordinated efforts to protect that resource. He said OWASA has been taking <br />advantage of the fact that Orange County has far more protective watershed regulations <br />providing for pristine, clean water resources that OWASA has zoning jurisdiction over. <br />OWASA's track thus far has been to maximize the yield and harvest from those resources. He <br />fears, as an OWASA Board member, that going for a Jordan Lake allocation early can take <br />away from OWASA's ongoing efforts to protect their watersheds. <br />Commissioner Jacobs made reference to Ed Kerwin's August 13th letter and the fact that, <br />"OWASA has not, to date, received a specific request from Chatham County or any other entity <br />for the use of our property at Jordan Lake." He asked if the OWASA Board has discussed any <br />kind of stance for how to react to Chatham County's idea of trying to use that property as the <br />western exit point through a state mandated mechanism or some other arrangement. <br />Peter Gordon said the OWASA Board has not really had much discussion on those types <br />of things. He mentioned the options in granting Chatham County permission to use some of the <br />land. He made mention of a regional intake that may be set up. He would not be in favor of a <br />regional facility because the system has been built with money from OWASA customers.