Sharing Water for a Healthy Flint River

How do you save a river running dry? One creek at a time.

That’s the spirit of the Upper Flint River Working Group – a voluntary, collaborative forum in which conservation groups, water utilities, and other stakeholders come together for open dialogue on how to restore drought resilience to one of the region’s most important rivers.

Twice a year, in a meeting room at a Methodist church in a bucolic setting on the edge of the Georgia countryside, the Working Group gets together for the better part of an afternoon. We talk about the year’s weather (and its impact on the river), about key challenges in conservation on the Flint, about new opportunities for partnership, and we share updates about ongoing projects throughout the basin.

One of those projects is on Flat Creek in Fayette County, where the county water system director is leading an effort to better manage reservoirs to sustain both his water system and its downstream neighbors for the future. While the water system has already taken on the low-hanging fruit of improved management practices, American Rivers is working closely as a partner to provide science-based recommendations for long-term sustainable management. We don’t know when the next drought will strike the Flint, but we do know that this team effort is already resulting in a healthier Flat Creek and will result in a healthier Flint River, too.

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