INC NEWS - Summary of First DWQ Public Hearing

[pat carstensen]

Thanks Randy -- it's nice to hear "let's add our shoulder to the effort of 
pushing the truck out of the ditch" instead of "if you ask me to risk 
getting my shirt dirty, I'll sue" (-:

For what it's worth, this is what our comprehensive plan says about where we 
are getting our drinking water

Objective 9.1.2.  Water Supply
Continue to identify and develop sufficient new raw water supply
sources to support Durham’s future demand, while efficiently using
present water supply sources.
Policy 9.1.2a.  Teer Quarry.  The City Water Management
Department shall acquire and develop the abandoned Teer Quarry
site in northern Durham as a storage facility for raw water and
ensure water quality within the quarry.
Policy 9.1.2b.  Jordan Lake Water Supply.  The City Water
Management Department shall continue to pursue water supply
allocations from Jordan Lake (in addition to the present 10 million
gallon per day allocation).
Policy 9.1.2c.  Future Water Supply Source.  The City Water
Management Department shall continue to assess long-range water
supply options to identify the most efficient alternatives to meet
Durham’s long-term water supply needs, evaluating, at a
minimum, the following:
i. Expand the capacity of Lake Michie by constructing a new,
and higher, dam downstream of the existing dam, raising the
lake’s water pool elevation;
ii. Develop a new water supply on either the Flat River or the
Little River; and
iii. Obtain a water supply allocation from Kerr Lake.

(we better hope the folks north of us are forced to protect OUR water 
supplies (-:)

I ran across this paragraph in the comprehensive plan about protecting water 
quality:

Policy 9.4.3c.  Street Sweeping.  The City Public Works
Department shall continue to conduct a regular program of street
sweeping to remove leaves, other organic debris, trash and other
pollutants from street gutters in order to enhance the quality of
stormwater runoff.


Looks like everything is connected.

Finally, I am interested in having Durham become a leader in doing Mangum 
terraces.  A Mangum terrace is a 19th century agriculture improvement where 
you put small ridges across a slope to cut sheet erosion.  I think the way 
it works, it makes small puddles behind the ridges, so somewhat less water 
runs off and what runs off is going a lot slower so carrying a lot less 
stuff.

Regards, pat


>From: "RW Pickle" <randy at 27beverly.com>
>To: "pat carstensen" <pats1717 at hotmail.com>
>CC: inc-list at durhaminc.org
>Subject: Re: INC NEWS - Summary of First DWQ Public Hearing
>Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 00:29:02 -0400 (EDT)
>
>What we're going to be seeing sometime down the road is a $200M bond issue
>for stormwater runoff protection (buffers). That's part of the 2030
>unfunded mandate from the State that allows Jordan to be classified as
>drinking water supply. All of the tributarys that feed the lake will be
>buffered when it's said and done.
>
>Don't know what this means? Just come down to Forest Hills Park (back out
>behind the clubhouse and playground) and see what this means. The creek
>here has 2 buffers; a reparian buffer and a herbacious buffer. In
>buffering this creek, more than 26,000 tress were planted on the banks and
>shoulders and the creek was stabalized. Some will die, but one day there
>will be a huge stand of trees along the creek to help clean up the water.
>It really messed up the vistas of our Park, but who can really say
>something is bad if it's about clean water? We have to have it and if this
>is how you get it, then so be it. The $1M it cost to buffer just this
>small amount of creek was funded through the State and across City owned
>property (so it all was cheaper to deal with). The buffers we as a
>community will be asked to pay for will be funded by bonds and our taxes.
>I guess it's not cheap to get a cleaner water supply...
>
>RWP
>27 Beverly
>

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