The following is the Corps of Engineers' reply to the State of Georgia's letter on reducing the amount of water released from Lake Lanier. This letter was sent on October 17, 2007.

Dear Dr. Couch:

Thank you for your letter dated October 12, 2007 relating your concerns regarding the status of the Federal reservoirs in the Apalachicola, Chattahoochee, and Flint Rivers (ACF) Basin as we continue to experience severe and record drought conditions within the basin. We also have been tracking the progress and impacts of the drought conditions and have been relaying the current and projected pool elevations and current and projected rates of release of water from the reservoirs and forecasted impacts to stakeholders within the basin during recent ACF Basin Drought Summit teleconferences to assist in planning for drought contingency actions by all parties. As noted in our last teleconferences, drought conditions are predicted to continue at least for the next several months, and our planning will need to address the contingencies of a multiple year drought.

We are currently operating in accordance with the terms of the Interim Operations Plan (IOP), as developed in formal consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and consistent with the requirements of our current water control plan. Section 7 consultation was required to determine whether our operations at Jim Woodruff Dam would cause adverse effects to federally listed species, including the threatened Gulf sturgeon, the endangered Fat threeridge mussel, and the threatened Purple bankclimber. The Biological Opinion issued by USFWS on September 5, 2006, concluded that the IOP would not result in jeopardy of the listed species, nor adversely modify or destroy critical habitat for these species; and included an Incidental Take Statement (ITS), Reasonable and Prudent Measures (RPMs), and mandatory terms and conditions to minimize harm. Operations must be conducted in accordance with the approved IOP, the RPMs and mandatory terms and conditions in order to maintain compliance with the ESA. Additional consultation would be required to modify the IOP or any of the terms and conditions of the Biological Opinion.

The current IOP terms were approved in follow-on consultation with the USFWS on February 28, 2007. Provisions of the IOP include:

Required minimum flow of 5,000 cfs, consistent with current water control plan requirement, and a desired minimum flow of 6,500 cfs when hydrological and/or climatological conditions allow;

Flow/release schedules based on a proportion of basin inflow specific for the sturgeon spring spawning period (March through May); and other portions of the year (June through February); with thresholds based on flow needs of sturgeon, listed mussels, or host fish for mussels;

Ramping down restrictions to minimize isolation or exposure of sturgeon, mussels, and host fish for mussels.

Due to the severe nature and predicted duration of the continuing drought conditions, we have initiated discussions with the USFWS to address concerns that remaining storage within the ACF system may be depleted before drought conditions abate. This potential depletion could result in the inability to operate the projects in a way that fulfills all the authorized purposes, to comply with the provisions of the ESA, and to assure that operational decision making minimizes the adverse effect on other water uses and needs within the basin during this time of drought Our discussions are exploring possible interim drought contingency options that may provide some temporary modifications to the IOP and could allow some additional water to be stored to place the reservoirs in a better position to meet minimum needs if the drought conditions continue into 2008 as predicted. We are reviewing the additional information you have provided, as well as information we are developing on the potential impacts to listed species, to assist in our evaluation of possible options.

We appreciate the efforts that Georgia and the water users within the State of Georgia have taken and are planning to take in meeting the challenges of reduced water resources in the basin as a consequence of these severe drought conditions. I hope you and the other States and stakeholders will continue to share information that can assist us in planning and managing for this drought. We will keep all parties informed of our plans and anticipated water management actions on the regularly scheduled drought teleconference calls.

If you have any additional information, or questions regarding our operations, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Byron G. Jorns
Colonel, Corps of Engineers
District Commander