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For Immediate Release
October 15, 2007


We have all experienced drought pains this summer --- mandatory water restrictions, alarmingly low lake levels, and parched landscapes. It would be comforting to know that this summer’s drought is an anomaly and we will not experience the hardships of drought again for years to come. Unfortunately, research is forecasting the opposite.

Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions recently released a report that reminds us of an obvious fact: While North Carolina’s population is increasing, its water supplies are not. According to the report, we must prepare ourselves for a future of increased competition for water and drier summers - making drought periods more frequent.

One of the Institute’s recommendations for coping with this impending situation is to protect more of North Carolina’s “green infrastructure” – our state’s stream buffers, forests, farms, wetlands, and other natural areas. Undeveloped land enables water to slowly percolate into the ground and recharge the water table. When land near creeks, rivers, and lakes is impervious because of parking lots and buildings, the rain flows off surfaces so fast that the ground cannot absorb it. Ground water supplies don’t recharge, municipal water supplies become dangerously low, and the landscape prematurely withers.

Catawba Lands Conservancy works diligently to preserve our region’s green infrastructure in the face of rapid development. The Environment NC Research & Policy Center projects that in the next 20 years, the Charlotte region’s developed land will increase by 48% - that’s 45 acres developed each day! Too often, lands near our streams and reservoirs are developed, increasing the amount and speed of water rushing into our water bodies. Development exacerbates drought conditions because the groundwater does not have an opportunity to seep into the water table. On the flipside, in periods of heavy rain, development also increases severe flooding because there are fewer natural areas available to absorb excess rainwater. It’s like pouring a bucket of water onto your kitchen counter and expecting it to soak in.

Catawba Lands Conservancy is our area’s land trust dedicated to preserving land throughout the Catawba Riverbasin, including Mountain Island Lake, to minimize the impacts of drought. By working directly with willing landowners to conserve their land in perpetuity, the Conservancy helps to permanently protect our region’s water quality and supply. This type of strategic land protection also provides the public with the added benefits of increased recreational opportunities, better water and air quality, protected farmland and forest resources, and preserved scenic views.

Being smart about development through voluntary land conservation can mean the difference between enjoying cheap and adequate supplies of clean drinking water and facing ever increasing costs for scarce and polluted water.

Not surprisingly, escalating land prices mean that it is becoming increasingly difficult to conserve land. It is critical that our local and state elected officials identify creative ways to provide more money to save our green infrastructure. Together we must encourage our elected officials to act soon to boost conservation funding to protect our water supplies, before we see the bottoms of even more riverbeds and wells.


Dave Cable is Executive Director of Catawba Lands Conservancy. He can be reached at 704.342.3330 or dave@catawbalands.org.