LISA HOBBS – News Editor
One of the main indicators of drought conditions in Warren County, at least visually, is the dam at Pepper Branch Park.
“It’s the lowest I’ve ever seen it,” stated McMinnville Water Department Director Ricky Morton. “I’d say it’s a good 18 to 24 inches below the backside of the dam. I’d have to put a tape measure to it to be exact. We are monitoring it. We aren’t asking any of our customers to conserve. They are calling for rain this weekend. It’s a topical event that could give us some much-needed rain.”
During Tuesday’s meeting of the county’s Safety Committee, recent rainfall was discussed.
“How much rain did you get over your way, Terry,” stated Commissioner Gary Prater.
County Executive Terry Bell replied, “We got about two inches.”
“We got right at 1.79,” stated Prater.
According to EMA Director Jason Hillis the southern end of the county didn’t receive that much, “The Iving College, Harrison Ferry, Shellsford area got about 16th of an inch. The line went right basically through the city. We got some, but not what everybody else got.”
Rain is expected on Sunday. However, Hillis wasn’t as hopeful as Director Morton that it would provide relief.
“The weather service today said that Sunday was 50 percent, and that was our next best chance for rain,” he stated. “A 50 percent chance is not great. It’s better than nothing, if we get it. The last few times it has been 50 percent and we didn’t get anything. This past weekend, we were at 70-80 percent, and we actually did get some.”
According to the state, about 60 percent of Tennessee is under active drought conditions, with severe drought covering nearly 29 percent of the state and extreme drought in nearly 5 percent. August was the driest on record and the 24th driest January-August period since 1895. Tennessee has received 3.65 inches of rain over the past year, 3.9 inches below normal.
Hillis stated that the county was in a D2, which will not improve without significant rainfall.
A D2 drought is the second level of drought severity in the U.S. Drought Monitor system, which ranges from D0 (abnormally dry) to D4 (exceptional drought). D2 drought indicates a severe drought, where crop or pasture losses are likely, water shortages are common, and water restrictions may be imposed.
Even voluntary restrictions aren’t on the table at this time, says Morton.
“We are monitoring and we stay in communication with the other two utilities here in McMinnville and Warren County. We are probably a deeper source, but our intake pulls from higher up on the Barren Fork River. So, we will continue to monitor it. There may come a time when we do ask customers to conserve voluntarily, just don’t water if you don’t have to. Hopefully, we will get some relief soon and we won’t have to make it mandatory to preserve water and limit how much water people are using.”
Warren County Way reached out to Warren County Utility District General Manager Anthany Pelham for his stance on the drought. He was not readily available.