Consultants tell Louisburg council town water yield is ~900,000 gpd; off‑stream reservoir proposed

Mister Palmer, a water resources engineer with Hazen and Sawyer, told the Louisburg Town Council on Tuesday that the firm’s model shows the town’s reliable water supply yield from the Tar River is about 900,000 gallons per day and described a conceptual upstream off‑stream reservoir to help meet projected long‑range needs.

Why it matters: Louisburg’s local water supply plan projects growth and potential industrial demand that could raise average day needs to about 2,600,000 gallons per day by 2070. Council members pressed staff and the consultant on near‑term vulnerabilities, permitting timelines and costs; the council did not take formal action on a project at the meeting.

Palmer said the town’s current treatment plant is sized for about 2,000,000 gallons per day and the town’s withdrawal permit (a 1996 state record cited in the presentation) allows up to 3,000,000 gpd but requires reduced withdrawals to 2,000,000 gpd during very low river flows. “Our model says the town’s supply yield is 900,000 gallons per day,” Palmer said, adding that the town currently operates close to that level and could struggle under a repeat of historic drought conditions.

Hazen and Sawyer’s study focused on an off‑stream storage option—an upstream…