News Article - Lake Needed

Lake Needed

While the legal battle continues in the
courtroom, the work goes on at the site
of the Jordan Dam in Chatham County
in anticipation of the day when the or-
der is given to close the gates of the big
structure and begin impounding water.
The darn itself is completed, and the
gates are installed, but still open,
allowing the waters of Haw River, to
now on south to their junction with the
Cape Fear.
When those gates are closed, they
will back up a lake covering 14,300
acres.
In order to be ready when that day
comes, the Army Corps of Engineers is
at work to get the land cleared for the
lake itself. The corps has awarded
contract to clear 7,000 acres, and 800 to
900 acres already are cleared.
Plans for recreational facilities also
are in the works now, and by next spr-
ing, the corps expects to have com-
pleted some 90 camp sites, a number of
picnic areas, and at least six ramps for -
the launching of boats.
Yet the future of this lake and all the
work rests in the courts, as two North
Carolina cities and a national environ-
mental group fight to keep the lake
from becoming a reality.
The Conservation Council of North
America is fighting the lake for en-
vironmental reasons. One of the argu-
ments of environmental groups all
along has been that the lake will merely
be a giant cesspool.
Durham and Chapel Hill are fighting
the lake because they be required
to upgrade their sewage disposal
systems in order to clean up New Hope
Creek, a feeder of the Jordan Lake.
On the other side, however, are many
pressing for completion of the project.
The darn is needed to offer flood control
for many cities which lie down the Cape
Fear valley from Chatham County. It is
needed to protect the lives and property
of people in that area, an area which is
often hit by flooding in the wake of
heavy storms upstream.
And also to be considered are the
recreational advantages the body of
water would offer to a wide area of
North Carolina.
As for the cesspool argument. there
are many experts who say the lake
would not be foul but would be accep-
table for recreational use.
And while few have mentioned it, the
lake one day may be required as a
source of water for cities in its area.
Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh have
in recent years had severe water shor-
tages, and the Jordan Reservoir one
day could save those very cities which
are fighting its construction.
There is yet another factor to con-
sider in all this litigation. And that is
the tax money which has been spent in
the construction of the reservoir and
darn to this point. Do we just bury all
that money under the mound of en-
vironmental protection?
The Piedmont and Coastal Plains
areas of North Carolina need that body
of water, and to just walk off from the
project now would not only be a nee-
dless waste, but a crime.