With the recent heavy rains and flooding, the issue of water scarcity in the lower Cape Fear area may not be on the minds of area officials and residents. Yet the southeast North Carolina/northeast South Carolina region is one of six areas in the country whose water supply adequacy worries the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), according to Mike Giles, coastal advocate with the N.C. Coastal Federation.
The Coastal Federation has joined with the Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors (WRAR) and the University of North Carolina Wilmington Master of Public Administration program to form the Three Star Alliance. The alliance's first project is to host a forum on water issues: the 2015 Water Supply Summit, scheduled for 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Oct. 28. The event will feature a variety of experts on water resources.
Given the rapid growth of New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties, clean drinking water will be an issue in the near future, Giles said Tuesday. He said some studies suggest that the area could run out of drinking water in 30 years unless we change the way we grow and develop.
“We get our water from two sources: aquifers and the Cape Fear River,” Giles said. “Indications from the USGS and the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority are that we are withdrawing water from the aquifer at a rate that can’t sustain itself. Then, because of growth in the Triangle and Triad areas, where the Cape Fear headwaters are, the river flow is being reduced. The Cape Fear River is the most heavily industrialized river in the state.”
One way to better manage water is to implement low-impact development strategies, Giles said. Those strategies can be used in new residential and commercial development but can also be applied to existing developments. Currently, according to Giles, the Coastal Federation is working with the town of Wrightsville Beach to develop a plan to direct stormwater back into the ground rather than letting it run off into creeks and estuaries.
The Coastal Federation’s plans for convening a water summit caught the attention of Shane Johnson, COO of WRAR, who is interested in getting his organization involved in discussion of emerging issues affecting the area's growth and quality of life. Johnson felt that water issues were a good place to start.
"If we run into water supply issues, that hampers our ability to grow," he said Tuesday, adding that educating WRAR members and the public about the the future of water resources is a long-term project.
"Our being in the top six areas really caught my attention," Johnson said. "Other areas [of the country] have done some good things, and ... we need to plan for where we are going. We need water so that homes can be built, factories can run and businesses can operate. It's a quality of life issue. Our population is growing, and pressure is growing on the water supply. We have to pay attention."
UNCW’s Master of Public Administration program became the third member of the Three Star Alliance because the Coastal Federation was already working with the program on development issues, Giles said. The new alliance would welcome the participation of other interested organizations, Giles said.
Registration is open for the event, which takes place at The Terraces on Sir Tyler and costs $20 per person, which includes lunch.
