Caldwell commissioners hear update on Charlottes proposed Catawba River water transfer

Anthony Starr of the Western Piedmont Council of Governments told the Caldwell County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 26 that Charlotte Waters request to increase interbasin transfers (IBTs) out of the Catawba River basin poses economic and environmental risks to downstream communities.

"So currently, Charlotte Water has a 33,000,000 gallons per day IBT certificate that was issued in 2002," Starr said, adding that Charlotte has published notices seeking to expand that amount and has discussed transfers of up to 63,000,000 gallons per day. Starr and the regional coalition argued that expanding IBTs would accelerate stress on reservoirs and harm source-basin communities during droughts.

Starr described IBTs as transfers in which water withdrawn from one river basin is used and not returned to that basin. He said academic literature and local analysis indicate both economic and environmental negative impacts on source basins, and that the Catawba River Basin is already under pressure from population growth and past droughts. He cited historical droughts, reservoir storage limits and long-term declines in river flow as reasons for concern.

The presentation noted Charlotte Waters system losses—characterized in the presentation as roughly 19%—and urged that the utility address leakage and conservation before relying on cross-basin transfers. Starr also identified alternatives for Charlotte, including taking water from the Yadkin River Basin, building new infrastructure, purchasing from existing utilities, or returning treated wastewater to the Catawba, and argued those options should be prioritized.

Starr outlined two policy proposals the regional coalition supports: time-limited IBT approvals (for example, a 15-year "shot clock" requiring infrastructure to eliminate the IBT by the end of the term) and a drought-mitigation fund paid by the requesting utility to help impacted communities invest in resilience measures such as intake modifications or interconnections.

Commissioners pressed Starr on the process for assessing downstream impacts. Starr said an environmental-impact statement and public hearing would be part of the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) process and that stakeholders will have opportunities to comment on adequacy of the analysis and on any conditions the EMC might impose. He also reminded the board that House Bill 850 established a moratorium on large IBT approvals while the UNC Collaboratory studies the statutory approval process and makes recommendations to the General Assembly.

Several commissioners emphasized Caldwell Countys longstanding participation in the regional coalition and said the county will continue to monitor the matter and engage state legislators and the Collaboratory. Starr said the moratorium runs through March 2027 and that the Collaboratorys recommendations are due to the legislature in early 2027.

The board did not take formal action related to the IBT at the meeting; Commissioners and staff indicated they will continue coalition coordination, pursue informational requests, and consider sending local comments to the Collaboratory when requested.