Growing Pains: How shifts from agricultural to commercial and residential land use is harming the Up

1
Growing Pains How shifts from agricultural to
commercial and residential land use is harming
the Upper Etowah River Basin

• Scott Laughlin
• Environmental EconomicsUniversity of Georgia
• Owen Clark
• Environmental EconomicsUniversity of Georgia

2
The Upper Etowah River Basin
3
Etowah Watershed
Lumpkin
Pickens
Dawson
Cherokee
Forsyth
4
Hypothesis 1

• The five counties that make up the Upper Etowah
  River Basin have been moving steadily from
  agricultural to commercial and residential land
  uses.
• This change in land use leads to more runoff due
  to larger areas of impervious surfaces.

5
Hypothesis 1

• Four of the five counties in the Upper Etowah
  River Basin are in the top 8 in Georgia in terms
  of percentage population growth (2002-2003).
• 2 million people are expected to move to the
  Etowah Region by 2030.
• 40,000 acres of forest in the basin were lost
  between 1982 and 1997.

6
Impervious Surfaces

• Difference between undeveloped and paved sites
• Effect of storms on these sites

7
Watershed land use--1974
8
Watershed land use--1998
9
Watershed Runoff
10
Hypothesis 2

• Higher runoff levels from impervious surfaces
  lead to the death of wildlife through inadvertent
  poisoning of water bodies.

11

• Biologically, the Etowah Watershed is one of the
  most diverse in the world.
• There are 76 native fish species to the Etowah
  basin.
• However
• 11 mussel and fish species are at risk and 3 of
  these species are endangered.
• 43 species of mussels and freshwater snails have
  been lost since the early 1900s.
• The Upper Etowah River Basin contains all of the
  most rare fish species in Georgia.

12
The Cherokee Darter

• Etheostoma scotti

13
Etowah Darter

• Etheostoma etowahae

14
Contamination Trends
15
Conclusion

• Scope of the problem
• Solutions?

16
Regulate water treated

• Gov. should set a standard of rainwater treated
• The first two inches of rainwater are most
  important
• Oil, trash, sewage, etc.
• Filter out 88 of the first two inches of
  rainwater.
• Gives a reasonable standard for power plants and
  is proven to save money

17
Redirect Roof top runoff

• Overpopulated areas have many roofs
• Direct roof top runoff
• Swale or ditch
• Direct rain gutters towards a pervious surface
• Multiple Benefits

18
Roll Top Curves

• Drains into pervious surfaces
• Enables vegetation to grow in the side of the
  road
• Multiple benefits for the community and city

19

• Thank you for your attention.
• Questions?