This news item expired on Saturday, May 10, 2014 so the information below could be outdated or incorrect.
Western North Carolina is one of the world’s richest areas in natural water resources. Ten rivers begin their flow in our mountains – five on the east side of the Eastern Continental Divide, five on the west side. Major headwaters include the westward flowing French Broad and Little Tennessee, and the eastward flowing Yadkin, Catawba, and Broad.
Water is central to our lives. Water accounts for two-thirds of the human body. Except in a few extraordinary cases, humans cannot live longer than one week without water. Water also sustains the life of all plants and animals. We have words for places with little or no water: badlands, desert, wasteland.
What will happen to our water in Western North Carolina over the next fifty years?
A century ago, Western North Carolina was home to over 10 billion board feet of timber standing as the last best virgin hardwood forest on the planet. But a combination of the chestnut blight and devastating logging practices put an end to this treasure. Will a combination of drought and our own thoughtless behaviors put an end to our water treasure?
According to the North Carolina Division of Water Resources, “the 2007-2008 drought in North Carolina was the worst in the 112-year recorded rainfall history… at one point, as many as 30 cities and towns were confronted with running out of water or having to ration it.” In 2008, The Center for Integrative Environmental Research at the University of Maryland assessed the economic impacts of climate change on North Carolina and concluded that “Increased severity of droughts in the future from unmitigated climate change could put an even greater strain on the already stressed water supply systems of North Carolina.”
How can western North Carolina assure an abundant and affordable supply of usable water FOREVER?
It is a complicated challenge. To help us think about these questions, we have invited experts from other areas in North Carolina, the South, and North America to share with us their water issues. Perhaps we can learn some do's and don'ts as we hear about water management in North America, Atlanta, Colorado, the Tennessee River Valley, and the Catawba River watershed.
Please join us on five Saturday afternoons from late March to early May. All presentations are free of charge and will take place from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. in Pack Memorial Library at 67 Haywood Street, Asheville – next to the U.S. Cellular Center. Following each presentation, a responder from the Asheville area will take the podium and share his or her thoughts about the presentation and how it relates to Western North Carolina.
For more information, contact the Wilma Dykeman Legacy at 458-5813 or Pack Library at 250-4700.
Presentation details are as follows:
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MARCH 22 at 3pm: North America
Presenter: Carla Friedrich
Programme Officer for Ecosystems Management
Regional Office for North America
United Nations Environment Programme
Responder: Alan Basist
President, Eyes on Earth, Inc.
(provides satellite-derived temperature and soil wetness products to worldwide clients)
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APRIL 5 at 3pm: Atlanta
Presenter: Gil Rogers
Senior Attorney
Southern Environmental Law Center
Responder: Kathy Newfont
Associate Professor of History
Mars Hill University
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APRIL 26 at 3pm: Colorado’s Western Slope
Presenter: Hannah Holm
Coordinator, Water Center
Colorado Mesa University
Responder: Leah Mathews
Professor of Economics
University of North Carolina at Asheville
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MAY 3 at 3pm: Catawba River
Presenters: Regina Guyer, Energy & Environmental Assistance Office, University of North Carolina at Charlotte; Barry Gullet, Director, Charlotte Mecklenburg Utilities; Rusty Rozzelle, Program Manager, Mecklenburg County Water Quality
Responder: Amy Knisley
Environmental Studies Faculty
Warren Wilson College
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MAY 10 at 3pm: Tennessee River Valley
Presenter: Gary Springston
Water Supply Program Manager
Tennessee Valley Authority
Responder: Doug Miller
Department Chair, Atmospheric Sciences
University of North Carolina at Asheville
Sponsored by:
The Wilma Dykeman Legacy and Buncombe County Public Libraries.