Durham North Carolina Area Facing Severe Water Shortage
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 12. 3.07
Add central North Carolina to the list of knowledge work "boom" areas facing the limits to growth imposed by an increasingly severe drought. The Raleigh, Durham, & Chapel Hill area looks to be facing a drought serious enough to have economic consequences. More on that down-post.
Durham, with just 59 days left in its main water supply, could be on the front lines of this worst-case scenario. Up to now, the prospect has been too far-fetched to entertain in detail, which is why there are few specifics in Durham ordinances about what would happen if the drought doesn't let up. Raleigh also lacks a set plan for an end-times-type drought.Durham would ban industrial water use -- a potentially devastating economic blow. It would hit water-driven businesses such as car washes and laundries directly but also could force businesses to cut shifts or even lay off workers.
Residential water would be rationed, but it's unknown how that would be implemented. Limiting water service to certain hours a day or dropping water pressure are possibilities.
On Monday, the city moves to Stage IV "severe mandatory" restrictions. Most outdoor irrigation is banned; hand-watering is allowed a few hours a week. Fines of $400 or more can be imposed on violators. Businesses must submit reports to the city that show all they're doing to cut their water consumption in half....Duke University, Durham County's largest water user, already has taken this step in its dining halls, trading china for throwaway plates.
We wonder if those throw-aways at Duke and in company cafeterias are compostable?
Major employers in the area include the following, via Community Link
Major Area Employers (Includes Raleigh, Wake County and Research Triangle Park)ABB, Inc.
Cisco Systems
City of Raleigh
First Citizens Bank & Trust Company
Food Lion Stores
Freight Handlers Inc.
GlaxoSmithKline Inc.
GlaxoSmithKline Inc. – Zebulon
Harris Teeter
International Business Machines (IBM)
Kroger Stores
Longistics
Lowe’s
Lowes Foods
Misys Healthcare Systems
Nationwide Insurance Company
The News & Observer Publishing Co.
North Carolina State University
Pharmaceutical Product Development Inc.
Powerware Corporation
Progress Energy
Rex Healthcare
RTI International
SAS Institute
State of North Carolina
Tri-Arc Food Systems / Bojangles
United Parcel Service
U.S. EPA Environmental Research Center
Verizon Wireless
Wachovia Bank N.A.
Wake County
Wake County Public School System
Wake Technical Community College
WakeMed
Waste Industries Inc.
The way economic consequences will unfold, in a worst-case scenario, is that large firms with operations in the Triangle area, looking at the need to consolidate for the usual reasons - the typical ones are shrinking market share, reduced sales, higher operating expenses, shifts in currency valuations, and organization of the labor force - will view local water restrictions or even the prospect of water limits as an added reason to mothball or slow down operations. They'll never come right out and say a closure is 'because of the drought' because, legitimately, it's always a multi-faceted decision.
State and local government will be left holding the bag on incentives and loans granted to induce those industries to locate there in the first place. And, the chance to re-fill vacant operations is zero until the drought fully passes and a foregoing, serious effort made to manage regional water resources in a sustainable manner. Hopefully, that doesn't mean business as usual after the rains return, with cheap water touted as a development incentive.
Via::The News Observer, "Durham may face water crisis first. Bull City, Raleigh have few pat rules if drought gets worse."
I bet Durham wishes they kept up" Pump Station" on the Eno River. 'This was one of the citys first water supplies.
As an undergrad at Duke, I find it somewhat unfortunate that a university such as ours that speaks so much of sustainability does little compared to its potential for becoming more environmentally friendly. Supposedly, our food waste is composted, but day to day observation reveals that everything is just thrown away. Our throw-away dishes are not something like paper (compost) or plastic (recycled/reused), but rather is nasty Styrofoam that is just tossed.
Adam you need to start some type of recycling movement on campus. Most of the students have no idea what recycling is. Seriously I see what is thrown away at the end of the school year. Great place to dumpster dive. Unfortunately Duke does not have to comply with the water restrictions. Durhams leaders need to get tough or else we all suffer
Yup. N.C. needs to recycle like those states on the west coast. Unbelievable that they don't. Maybe they think God will do this for them.
In the meantime, sure am glad to know I got the H___ out of that state. With all the taxes they charge, seems like they would use the money to help the citizens. But, nope, the state just taxes, taxes, and taxes & wonders why their citizens are so poor. And I'm not talking about the people who moved into the big cities in Durham or Raleigh....from some other state...I'm talking about all those back-woods people who barely have a pot to piss in.
N.C. needs to get rid of its taxes & start recycling & educating its people re: the environment. Quit worrying about the North-South "yankee" problem they think is messing up their state. Hogwash!!!