Water restrictions address severe drought

With a few exceptions, all outdoor watering has been banned in the northern third of the state, which includes Lincoln County. Drought conditions continue to worsen - Clark's Hill Lake is currently about 11 feet below full pool and the area is experiencing a 12 to 13-inch rainfall deficit. Pictured is the view from Fishing Creek Bridge on Highway 79.

The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution imposing water restrictions on its customers in response to the declaration of Level 4 drought conditions by the State of Georgia.

The action was taken at the regular meeting of the board held Thursday, October 11.

According to Roby Seymour, water department director for the county, "The EPD director has declared 'Drought Response Level 4' conditions in the northern third of the state, from Lincoln County on up. Level 4 is the most severe drought classification, requiring the state to ban all outdoor water use, with a few exceptions."

These exemptions include:

.. Watering done by those with wells.

.. The irrigation of personal food gardens.

.. Power washing. .. Sod producers. .. Construction sites.

.. Retail garden centers.

.. New landscapes installed by certified or licensed professionals. Watering must be discontinued 30 days after installation.

.. The watering-in of pesticides and herbicides on turf.

.. Car washes. .. Ornamental growers.

.. Fruit and vegetable growers.

.. Other activities essential to daily business.

To obtain a list of all of the exemptions to the EPD mandate, contact Lincoln County Water Department at 706-359-5523.

In other comments, Director Seymour said, "The county seems to be doing OK at this point; however, we need to go ahead and start conserving water. If we keep going like we are now and the drought wors- ens, we won't have any resources tomorrow."

He went on to note that Clark's Hill Lake is dropping at a rate of approximately two feet a month. "If this continues and we don't get some rain or the corps (United States Army Corps of Engineers) doesn't release some water from Lake Russell, we're going to be in a mess in three to five months. As it now stands, all of the creeks in the county are either dry or almost dry."

Director Seymour added that he was contacted last week by officials with the City of Lincolnton and told that the city is now using its lowest raw water intake valve, which is set at 311.5 feet above mean sea level (msl).

Full pool for Clark's Hill Lake is 330 feet above msl. As of Monday, October 15, the lake level was at 319.29 feet above msl.

Moreover, the rainfall deficit for the year to date is from 12 to 13 inches

In other business, the commission voted to change its meeting time to 5:30 p.m. the second Thursday of every month, until further notice.

"Our department heads live 10 miles away, and our county attorney lives in Thomson - this will prevent them from having to wait two hours for a night meeting," stated Commission Chairman Walker Norman, adding, "We can change it if we need to."

In further business, the commission:

.. Heard the Department of Public Safety Report given by Director Ernie Doss, who indicated that the ambulance and fire/rescue services responded to 115 calls for emergency assistance during the month of September. The call volume was up 13 calls when compared to September of 2006.

Concerning the E-911 center, operators handled 969 emergency calls last month, monitored 6,949 radio transmissions, and dispatched a total of 624 public safety, law enforcement, and fire calls.

.. Voted to adopt a resolution increasing wireless E-911 fees from $1 to $1.50 for each subscriber whose billing address is in Lincoln County. The increase will make the land line and wireless fees equal.

It is scheduled to go into effect April 1, 2008.

"Even though we're charging the maximum, it still won't pay for 911 services," said Director Doss. "All of the surrounding counties that are Phase II compliant are doing this."

Lincoln County is in the process of becoming Phase II compliant, which means dispatchers will soon be able to pinpoint the exact location of all wireless 911 callers.

.. Voted to adopt a resolution establishing a voice over Internet protocol E-911 fee of $1.50 per subscriber whose address is in Lincoln County.

"This 911 fee is based on new technology, which features special computer based phones that are hooked up to the Internet," explained Director Doss. "The new software allows individuals to make calls using the Internet instead of telephone lines."

He went on to say that voice over Internet users have to purchase the service, and service-providers are required to collect the E-911 fees and pass them on to the county. "The technology is not here today because most of the people in Lincoln County don't have non-telephonic Internet service. But it's coming in the future."

The fee will go into effect April 1, 2008.

.. Voted to amend the county's E- 911 contract with the Wilkes Telephone & Electric Company to restructure the collection and transmission of E-911 fees.

.. Voted to approve a resolution adopting a Local Emergency Operations Plan (LEOP). According to Director Doss, "This is basically a housekeeping measure and as such, does not burden the county with any new or additional functions."

.. Heard the Public Works Report given by Director Seymour, who said his office billed 1,320 water customers and 417 "availability" customers for a total of $50,133.78 last month.

In a related item of business, the county discussed a proposed agreement with the City of Lincolnton to address the overpayment of water fees to the city.

According to Director Seymour, "The overpayment stemmed from the joint USDA-RD (Rural Development) project, which helped the city expand its water treatment plant and served to extend water lines into different parts of the county. As part of the project, we added two purchasing point meters, but they were never set up right. Instead of reading thousands of gallons, the meters were reading hundreds, which resulted in an overpayment to the city of $119,293.15."

To resolve the problem, county officials met with Mayor Dwaine Biggerstaff, and it was proposed that the city pay the county a lump sum of $35,000 and pro-rate the balance over the next 12 months.

Regarding roads, the director reported that his staff has been busy bush-hogging, hauling crush-and-run and asphalt, motor grading, installing signage, and assisting Hobbs and Sons Construction in paving Global Drive, Maxim Road, and the intersection of Guillebeau Road and Wells Creek Road.

In a related item of business, Seymour reported on the striping of 49.12 miles of road by the DOT at a cost to the county of $9,824. "The DOT has put down the yellow lines on Bethany Church Road, Prater Road, and Metasville Road and will do the white lines within the next week or two. The state plans to stripe Chamberlain's Ferry Road, Leathersville Road, Double Branches Road, and Amity-Woodlawn Road in the next four or five weeks."

.. Reviewed the Recreation Department Report submitted by Director Kathie Davis, who indicated that soccer season is set to begin Monday, October 22.

She also pointed out that football registration is currently being held, with the season scheduled to start the first week in November. The cost is $35 per child.

In conclusion, Davis said the corps of engineers conducted its annual inspection of Eddie Fletcher Park on September 17.

.. Heard the Finance Department Report given by Director Traci Bussey.

.. Heard the Planning and Zoning Department Report given by Director Meg Burg, who said her office issued two business licenses for the month of September. The county also received a total of $1,200 in revenues for various zoning requests (rezoning and preliminary plat approval).

Regarding code enforcement, 36 building permits were issued last month for a total of $1,796. In addition, 116 building inspections were conducted and one manufactured housing decal citation was issued.

.. Voted to grant a plat approval variance on 4.02 acres of land on the Augusta Highway, belonging to Annette and Ronnie Johnson. The variance will allow the Johnsons to convert a non-conforming, mixed use parcel into two conforming lots, one residential and the other commercial.

The request was approved with the following condition: A rezoning request for a non-conforming business must be filed with the Planning Commission prior to recording the plat.

.. Voted to rezone 1.56 acres on Highway 79, belonging to Claud Caldwell, from R-1 to C-1 to accommodate a landscaping/nursery business.

.. Voted to grant a special use permit for 96.24 acres on Aycock- Norman Road, belonging to Mack B. Tallent, to accommodate a wood chipping operation. In essence, Tallent's Recycling will collect, recycle, and market waste from debris consisting of yard trimmings and land clearing debris such as stumps, limbs, and leaves for use as mulch.

The motion was approved with the following modifications:

(1) Tallent is required to chip all materials on the premises during normal business hours in no less than once every 60 days.

(2) The business must meet all EPD requirements.

.. Voted to allow Serenity Pointe LLC to replace a letter of credit in the amount of $2,727,023 for the subdivision's infrastructure with cash as surety. The money will be deposited in an escrow account.

.. Voted to revise the General Fund Budget. Basically, the board increased the General Fund Revenue and Recreation Budget by $30,283.53 to account for the receipt of funds from a Georgia Department of Human Resources Summer Learning Grant that was awarded to Lincoln County Family Connection.

.. Voted to send the agenda item dealing with the acceptance of a right-of-way deed on Global Drive to the Public Works Committee.

The next regular meeting of the commission will be held Thursday, November 8, at 5:30 p.m. in the courtroom on the second floor of the Lincoln County Courthouse.