Georgia declares ‘Level 1′ drought, urges conservation. Here’s what to know.

Georgia officials issued a ″Level 1″ drought declaration Monday, a move that will require public water systems to encourage conservation as a historic and unusual spring drought grips the Peach State.

The declaration is the first lever Georgia can pull in response to a drought. The move doesn’t trigger any new water restrictions for now but brings Georgia one step closer to placing limits on certain water uses for the first time in a decade.

Georgia is enduring its most intense drought since 2007, according to the National Weather Service.

More than 98% of the state is facing “severe,” “extreme” or “exceptional” drought, according to the most recent U.S. Drought Monitor map released last week. Those are the third, fourth and fifth most-serious levels, respectively, on the federal government’s five-tier scale.

Parts of Georgia received badly needed rain over the weekend, but it was nowhere near enough to put a dent in the drought. Most areas have accumulated rainfall deficits of a foot or more over the last six months. Some locations have shortfalls of more than 15 inches.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week that the Georgia Environmental Protection Division’s director, Jeff Cown, was weighing a “Level 1″ declaration in response to the drought. EPD staff informed all public water systems in the state on April 17 that it was considering the move and then held a series of meetings with local water managers to discuss the plan.

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

A “Level 1″ declaration means all public water systems are required to launch messaging campaigns to encourage their customers to conserve water.

In a press release about the announcement, EPD said the communications should be “designed to help citizens better understand drought, its impact on water supplies, and the need for water conservation.”

EPD’s guidance says they should also offer concrete steps residential and commercial customers can take to cut down on water use, beyond just limiting outdoor watering. Outdoor watering in Georgia is already restricted to the hours between 4 p.m. and 10 a.m. year-round.

EPD requires the campaigns use at least one of the following to get the message out: newspaper ads, water bill inserts, website homepage notifications, social media posts or public library notices, according to state rules adopted in 2015.

The last time Georgia was under a “Level 1″ declaration was between October and December 2019.

If drought conditions don’t improve, EPD could move into “Level 2″ of its response plan, which would trigger new water use restrictions. Those would include whittling landscape watering down to two days a week and barring other outdoor water uses, like running ornamental fountains, noncommercial pressure washing and washing cars.

Georgia’s last “Level 2″ declaration came during a drought in 2016.

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Georgia periodically experiences droughts, but the timing of this spring drought is unusual.

For Atlanta and much of the rest of Georgia, December through March is typically one of the wettest parts of the year, according to the National Weather Service. That moisture helps recharge soils, reservoirs and aquifers ahead of the hotter spring and summer months.

But the winter rains didn’t come like they usually do. Georgia saw its fourth-driest November on record, and the below-average rainfall continued through March, federal data shows. That was followed by a bone-dry April.

The abnormally high temperatures that have baked much of the country in March and April have only exacerbated the problem. Extreme heat increases evaporation, pulling water more rapidly from soils, plants and waterways.

Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows this March was the seventh-hottest March on record in Georgia. Scientists have known for years that human-caused climate change loads the dice in favor of hotter temperatures, as well as wild swings between periods of extreme drought and heavy rain.

A note of disclosure

This coverage is supported by a partnership with Green South Foundation and Journalism Funding Partners. You can learn more and support our climate reporting by donating at AJC.com/donate/climate.