PROJECT ALERT NOTICE (GA) USGS Drought Activities in Georgia

Date: Fri, 07 Sep 2012 07:37:14 EDT

Summary: The USGS continues to closely monitor the drought conditions in the State of Georgia for the benefit of numerous stakeholders

HYDROLOGIC CONDITIONS: Georgia continues to be the epicenter of drought in the Southeast United States (see national drought map link). "Severe" hydrologic drought continues in the upper Ocmulgee River Basin, while the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) and Etowah River Basins remain in "moderate" drought conditions. The rest of the State is either in "below normal" or "normal" hydrologic drought.

SURFACE-WATER: The USGS operates more than 320 real-time streamgages across the State to aid water planners during this ongoing drought that has persisted for two years. Currently three streamgages are setting historic low records, while another twenty-three are classified as "severe drought". No special operations beyond the regularly scheduled field trips have been performed in the past week.

GROUNDWATER: USGS also monitors groundwater levels in 178 wells throughout the State. As of September 6, 2012, fifteen of the wells in the real-time network ranged from below normal to low and 11 wells were in the normal range. The below normal to low wells were throughout the state, with the exception of some wells in extreme northwest Georgia, one well in northeast Georgia, along the coastal areas, one well in southwest Georgia, and one well in south central Georgia along the Florida State line where recent local thunderstorms have been occurring.

SPECIAL PROJECTS: The low-flow synoptic effort has been rescheduled in the upper Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin for next week. This will provide a broader snapshot of surface and groundwater conditions to augment the long-term data networks in support of the ongoiing WaterSmart research in the ACF.

COMMUNICATIONS & OUTREACH: Numerous data inquiries have been answered regarding the ongoing drought conditions. The USGS is one of several presenters in an ongoing bi-weekly drought briefing for the ACF stakeholders hosted by NOAA's National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), and also participates in drought briefings hosted by the US Army Corps of Engineers for the Savannah River Basin.


National Map of Hydrologic Drought Conditions based upon Streamflow
Map of below normal 7-day average streamflow compared to historical streamflow for Georgia


Sub-Region: Central South; Region: Central United States