April 23, 2014
www.gfb.org
Vol. 32 No. 16
DEAL SIGNS BILL UPDATING FLINT RIVER DROUGHT PROTECTION ACT Gov. Nathan Deal signed SB 213 in an April 16 ceremony in Cordele, amending the Flint River Drought Protection Act (FRDPA) to provide the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) flexibility in how the law is administered. “It has always been one of my top priorities to ensure that the future of Georgia’s water supply is never handicapped by shortage or uncertainty,” Deal said in a press release. “This legislation will enable the Environmental Protection Division to react in a common sense manner during a drought, which will protect southwest Georgia farmers from lawsuits, conserve our natural resources and keep our farms running efficiently.” SB 213 includes new efficiency requirements for farm irrigation systems and clarifies the EPD’s role in managing water in periods of prolonged drought, particularly concerning the suspension of water withdrawals around flows for certain threatened and endangered species. Georgia Farm Bureau supported the bill. “Access to water is crucial for the health of our farms, our communities and our state’s economy,” said GFB President Zippy Duvall. “It’s clear the Georgia General Assembly recognized the importance of updating the Flint River Drought Protection Act in a way that also maintains the ability of farmers in Southwest Georgia to irrigate.” The bill was initiated out of concerns that the FRDPA as originally structured did not provide significant environmental benefit and was not financially viable. Under the original FRDPA, which became law in 2000, the EPD director was required to determine whether drought conditions exist in the Flint River Basin by March 1 each year. In years when the EPD declared drought conditions, it required an irrigation reduction auction under which farmers would be compensated for pulling agricultural land out of irrigation. The new bill makes the irrigation reduction auctions optional at the discretion of the EPD director. It requires agricultural water withdrawal permits in the Flint River Basin to achieve irrigation application efficiencies of at least 80 percent by 2020, and limits the bills coverage to four Flint tributaries - Spring Creek, Ichawaynochaway Creek, Kinchafoonee Creek and Muckalee Creek. SB 213 provides for augmentation of those streams to provide water for vulnerable aquatic life in them. During times of augmentation, SB 213 allows for restrictions on surface water withdrawals downstream from the augmentation site. SB 213 passed both chambers of the Georgia General Assembly in March. It was sponsored in the Senate by Ross Tolleson (R-Perry) and carried in the House by Buddy Harden (R-Cordele).