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13 <br />RESOLUTION OPPOSING THE DECLASSIFICATION <br />OF THE HAN CREEK WATERSHED <br />IN ALAMANCE COUNTY <br />WHEREAS, the Eno River is characterized by yearly low flow <br />conditions in which the river, for extended periods, is <br />incapable of sustaining the current water demand of the major <br />users of Eno River waters; and <br />WHEREAS, the NC Environmental Management Commission found the <br />upper Eno Basin to exhibit the water usage and shortfall <br />criteria necessary to be declared a Capacity Use Area; and <br />WHEREAS, the NC Environmental Management Commission has <br />elected to allow Orange'County, the Town of Hillsborough, the <br />Orange - Alamance Water System and Piedmont Minerals Company <br />Inc. to address the Water shortage and water use problems in <br />the upper Eno River basin, on a trial basis and under <br />supervision of the Division of Water Resources. by developing <br />an agreement and a plan which specifies varying levels of <br />maximum individual water withdrawal allocations and minimum <br />instream flow requirements based on base stream flow <br />conditions and water storage remaining in Lake Orange; and <br />WHEREAS, Orange County. the Town of Hillsborough. the Orange - <br />Alamance Water System and Piedmont Minerals Company inc. have <br />in fact agreed to be bound by a water use plan. hereafter <br />called the Eno River Capacity Use Agreement, which specifies <br />water withdrawal allocations. instream flow requirements and <br />management responsibilities; and <br />WHEREAS, all parties to that Capacity Use Agreement were <br />aware that Orange - Alamance uses approximately seventy -five <br />percent of its water withdrawals outside of the Eno Basin and <br />within Alamance County; and <br />WHEREAS, assurances made to Orange County by the Orange - <br />Alamance water system as early as 1968 that Orange - Alamance <br />would obtain water from the Town of Graham to supply the <br />Orange - Alamance customers located in Alamance County during <br />those times when the flow in the Eno River was so low that <br />natural stream flow had to be supplemented by releases of <br />water impounded in Lake Orange; and <br />WHEREAS, assurances made to Orange County by the Orange - <br />Alamance water system as early as 1968 that Orange - Alamance <br />would develop a water supply and treatment facility in the <br />Haw Creek watershed sufficient to serve its Alamance County <br />customers and would cease the interbasin transfer of waters <br />from the Eno River; and <br />