November
28th Community Meeting A Success
The first in a series of Community Meetings for
the Northeast Georgia Source Water Assessment
Plan (SWAP) was held on November 28, 2001, from
7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Oconee County Civic
Center. The purpose of the meeting was to provide
the public with background information on what
a SWAP is, the steps involved, and the status
of the current  SWAP
being conducted in Northeast Georgia. Interested
citizens, environmental groups, and utility and
community representatives from cities participating
the study were in attendance. The meeting provided
an overview presentation and question and answer
session, which was followed by an opportunity
for the residents to learn about the data that
had been collected for the SWAP within their particular
community. Data presented on each of the 12 water
supply systems represented by the Northeast Georgia
SWAP focused on the list of potential pollution
sources within each drinking water supply watershed.
Community members  were
encouraged to give their input on any industries
or pollutant sources that should be either added
or removed from the current list of potential
sources.
Another community meeting is being planned for
late February 2002 to provide a final list of
potential pollution sources for each water supply
watershed and to review the susceptibility to
contamination rankings assigned to each pollutant
source and watershed.
First Round of Task Force and Stakeholder Meetings
Reach Communities Across Northeast Georgia
The first round of task force and stakeholder
meetings for the Northeast Georgia Source Water
Assessment Plan (SWAP) was held from November
12 - 14, 2001, throughout Northeast Georgia. The
purpose of the meetings was to provide communities
with background information on what a SWAP is,
the steps involved, and the status of the current
SWAP being conducted in Northeast Georgia. In
addition, the meetings introduced the communities
to the consulting firm, Brown and Caldwell, who
is conducting the assessment on behalf of the
Northeast Georgia Regional Development Center.
The
meetings provided communities with all of the
data that has been collected for the Northeast
Georgia SWAP including: existing water quality
data, results from Crytosporidium and Giardia
sampling, and a list of potential pollution
sources within drinking water supply watersheds.
Community members were encouraged to give their
input on any data that had not been included
in the water quality packets, as well as to
report any potential pollution sources that
should be either added or removed from the current
list of potential sources. The table below summarizes
the meetings held and the public entities that
were represented.
| November
12, 2001 |
Entities
Represented |
Attendance
|
Greensboro/Union
Point/Crawford |
Greene
County Commissioners, City of Greensboro,
City of Greensboro Water Department, City
of Union Point Water Department, City of
Union Point, Georgia Power, Oglethorpe County
Code Enforcement Department, City of Crawford
Water Department |
13
|
| Monticello |
Jasper
County Water and Sewer, Jasper County Development
Authority, Jasper County Cooperative Extension
Service, City of Monticello Water Department,
City of Monticello |
6
|
| November
13, 2001
|
|
|
| Upper
Oconee Basin |
Barrow
County Planning and Development, State of
Georgia Environmental Protection Division,
Oconee County Public Works, Athens-Clarke
County Public Utility Supply Department,
Jackson County Planning and Development,
City of Jefferson Water Department, and
Gwinnett County Department of Public Utilities |
8
|
| Elberton |
Elbert
County Chamber of Commerce, City of Elberton
Water Department, and Hart County Public
Works |
5
|
| November
14, 2001 |
|
|
| Monroe |
Walton
County Adopt-A-Stream, Keep Walton Beautiful,
Walton County Planning and Development,
City of Monroe Code Enforcement, Monroe
Utility Network, and National Resource Conservation
Society (NRCS) |
7
|
| Madison |
City
of Rutledge, Morgan County Planning Department,
Morgan County Building and Zoning Department,
Morgan County Cooperative Extension Service,
and City of Madison |
5
|
|
