Your Water Source: The Chattahoochee
River
The source for DeKalb County's drinking
water is the Chattahoochee River. DeKalb County
has a Raw Water Pumping Station, in north Fulton
County above the City of Atlanta.
The Chattahoochee River
begins as a small stream just north of the northeast
Georgia community of Helen. As the
Chattahoochee
flows across the
State of Georgia, the river forms the major drainage
basin for the North Georgia region. Lake Sidney Lanier,
upstream of DeKalb County's intake, releases water
for the daily water supply for downstream municipalities
and to support the aquatic environment of the river.
The
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) contracts with the
Atlanta Regional Commission guaranteeing a maximum daily
flow of 377 million gallons. The USACE must
also supply a minimum flow of 750 cubic feet per minute
in
the river at Peachtree Creek. The Georgia Department
of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Department
permits DeKalb County to withdraw a maximum of 140
million gallons per day from the Chattahoochee River.
