Newspaper Page Text
The Lee County Ledger, Wednesday, July 9, 2008, Page 11B
Georgia slips into deeper drought
Special to the Ledger
By David Stooksbury
University of Georgia
With temperatures routine
ly hitting the 90s and little
rain so far this summer,
drought conditions have
worsened across Georgia.
Conditions in the western
half of south and middle
Georgia have deteriorated
the most. A few weeks ago,
these regions were classified
as abnormally dry. They are
now in severe drought.
Severe drought now
exists west and north of
a line crossing Lowndes,
Cook, Tift, Turner, Crisp,
Dooly, Houston, Bibb,
Jones, Baldwin, Hancock,
Glascock, Warren, McDuffie
and Richmond counties. It
includes Albany, Atlanta,
Augusta, Columbus, Macon
and Rome. Severe drought
conditions occur about once
in 20 years.
Much of north Georgia is
in extreme drought. This in
cludes an area north and east
of a line crossing Lincoln,
Wilkes, Taliaferro, Greene,
Morgan, Walton, Gwinnett,
Forsyth, Dawson, Gilmer
and Fannin counties. The
cities are Athens, Blairs-
ville, Clayton, Cumming,
Gainesville and Madison.
Extreme drought condi
tions occur about once in 50
years.
Moderate drought con
ditions exists in Echols,
Lanier, Berrien, Irwin,
Ben Hill, Wilcox, Pulaski,
Dodge, Bleckley, Twiggs,
Wilkinson, Laurens, Wash
ington, Johnson, Jefferson,
Burke, Jenkins, Screven and
Effingham counties. Moder
ate drought conditions occur
about once in 10 years.
Clinch, Atkinson, Coffee,
Telfair, Wheeler, Treutlen,
Emanuel, Candler, Bullock,
Evans, Liberty, Bryan and
Chatham counties are in
mild drought, which occurs
about once in seven years.
Abnormally dry coun
ties are Camden, Charlton,
Ware, Bacon, Jeff Davis,
Montgomery, Toombs,
Tattnall, Long and McIn
tosh.
Currently, the only coun
ties not in drought are
Glynn, Brantley, Pierce, Ap
pling and Wayne. However,
a hot, dry July could cause
drought to develop rapidly.
The biggest concern over
the next several weeks will
be stream flows and soil
moisture.
Almost half of the U.S.
Geological Survey stream
gauges across Georgia are at
record low flows as of June
25. This analysis includes
only gauges with a mini
mum of 30 years of records.
It doesn’t include gauges on
the Chattahoochee River
below the Buford Dam or
gauges on the Savannah
River.
Streams at daily record
low flows include the Chat
tahoochee River near Corne
lia, the Etowah River at
Canton, the Notteley River
near Blairsville, the Chat-
toga River near Clayton,
the Broad River near Bell,
the Flint River near Carson-
ville, Oakfield, Albany and
Newton, the Oconee River
at Athens, Milledgeville and
Dublin, the Ocmulgee River
near Jackson and Lumber
City, the Ohoopee River
near Reidsville, the Withla-
coochee River near Quit-
man and Ichawaynochaway
Creek near Milford.
Several streams are at or
below their 7Q10 flow value,
which is the 7-day flow that
has only a 10 percent chance
of occurring in any given
year. When it does hap
pen, it typically occurs in
September or October, when
stream flows are normally at
their lowest for the year.
Seeing streams at or
below the 7Q10 in late June
indicates the severity of the
current conditions.
Streams currently below
their 7Q10 are the Broad
River near Bell, the Little
River near Washington,
the Ocmulgee River near
Jackson, the Oconee River
at Dublin, the Flint River at
Carsonville and Ichawayno
chaway Creek at Milford.
Streams slightly above
their 7Q10 are the Middle
Oconee at Athens and
the Chattooga River near
Special to the Ledger
No matter where you
are swimming --in your
backyard or community
pool — you should know the
difference between a healthy
pool and a risky one.
In the last decade, the
number of illnesses result
ing from a swim in unclean
water has increased, accord
ing to the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Preven
tion (CDC), with children,
pregnant women and those
with compromised immune
systems at particular risk of
developing severe illnesses if
infected.
Proper pool treatment and
healthy behavior are keys
to a safe swim; protecting
water quality and swimmer
health. In fact, when it comes
to pool treatment, chlorine
remains the first line of
defense against germs.
But, how can you tell the
difference between a healthy
pool and a risky one? Using
your sense of sight, touch,
smell and sound can help,
according to a national part
nership formed by the CDC,
National Consumers League,
Water Quality and Health
Council, and the American
Chemistry Council.
The partnership offers
Clayton.
Soil moisture levels are
extremely low north of a
line from Seminole County
to Screven County.
North of a line from
Chattahoochee County to
Richmond County the levels
are at or below the 10th
percentile. At this percen
tile, we would expect more
moisture in the soils 90 out
of 100 years in late June.
North of a line from
Columbia County to Hall
County to Fannin County,
these “Sense”-able swim tips
to help recognize the differ
ence between a healthy pool
and a risky one;
* Sight; Look for water
that’s clean, clear and blue.
* Touch; Check for tiles
that feel smooth and clean.
* Smell; Make sure there
are no strong odors.
* Sound; Listen for pool
cleaning equipment.
“A well-maintained, prop
erly chlorinated swimming
pool is essential to prevent-
Tips for
Special to the Ledger
(StatePoint) Lured by that
special sizzle, Americans
are grilling more than ever
before in backyards and on
patios nationwide.
And by heeding some basic
tips, grillers can learn how to
stay safe as they belly up to
the barbecue this season.
New research from the
Propane Education Research
Council (PERC) shows that
grilling is not just for special
occasions and is no longer
restricted to summertime
parties or holidays. Indeed,
more than half of respon
dents surveyed (54 percent)
cook on their outdoor grill
year-round and 43 percent
now regularly use their out
door grill during the week.
When asked why they
cook on the grill during the
week, 90 percent replied that
grilled food tastes good.
“Cooking outdoors on the
grill has become as main
stream as cooking indoors on
your stovetop,’’ said Steven
Raichlen, host of “Primal
Grill’’ on PBS and author
of “The Barbecue Bible.’’
“If something tastes good
baked, fried, or sauteed, it
probably tastes even bet
ter grilled. You can cook a
meal the whole family loves
quickly and with little clean
up, which is great for busy
families during the week.’’
When it comes to cuisine,
beef (like steak or hamburg
ers) tops the list of the most
popular items to grill, both
overall (93 percent) and dur
ing the week (56 percent).
Certified Angus Beef recom
mends top blade, or flat iron
steak which is a relatively
new and inexpensive cut that
is well marbled, tender and
juicy.
And propane is the barbe
cuing fuel of choice, ac
cording to over 700 respon
dents who participated in a
recent online survey from
About.com.
“It’s great that so many
Americans have incorporat
ed grilling into their every
day lives, but we must not
take grill safety for granted,”
continued Raichlen.
In fact, many outdoor
grillers don’t know enough
about grilling safely. PERC’s
survey revealed that only 52
percent of respondents know
a lot about safe practices.
With this in mind, here are
some tips from the experts
at PERC to keep you grilling
safely;
* When lighting a grill,
keep the top open until you
are sure that it is lit.
* After connecting the cyl
inder to a propane gas grill
burner for the first time, use
a leak-detection solution (a
50/50 mixture of water and
levels are at or below the
5th percentile. At the 5th
percentile, we would expect
more moisture in the soils
95 out of 100 years in late
June.
Farm ponds, especially
ones not fed by springs, are
showing the lack of rain.
Many ponds didn’t receive
adequate recharge during
the winter and entered the
summer already low.
Through October, Geor
gia’s best chance for wide
spread drought relief will be
ing illnesses from water
borne bacteria and viruses,”
said Water Quality Council
member and noted Michigan
State University microbiolo
gist Dr. Joan Rose. “These
pathogens can cause swim
mers to experience diarrhea,
respiratory illness, ear or
nose and skin infections.”
Everyone has a role in pre
venting waterborne illnesses,
including swimmers. As
such, the CDC recommends
healthy swimming behaviors
liquid soap) to check con
nections for tightness.
* Do not use matches or
lighters to check for leaks.
* Never pour an acceler
ant such as lighter fluid or
gasoline on the grill.
* When finished grilling,
turn off the burner controls
and close the cylinder valve.
* Always use or store pro
pane cylinders outdoors in
an upright (vertical) position.
Never use or store propane
cylinders indoors.
* Do not use, store, or
transport cylinders near high
temperatures (this includes
Specicd to the Ledger
Effective July 1, the
Multiple Offender Program
of the Addictive Disease
Section of the Department of
Human Resources has been
renamed the DUI Interven
tion Program. This change
reflects HB 336 recently
signed into law by Governor
Sonny Perdue. Under the
new DUI law, all DUI of
fenders are required to have
a clinical evaluation and,
if recommended, complete
treatment. Previously, only
multiple offenders had to
have clinical evaluations.
“We see this as an
opportunity to do earlier
intervention with Georgia
drivers who have significant
alcohol problems,” states
Gwen Skinner, Director
for the Georgia Division of
Mental Health, Developmen
tal Disabilities and Addic
tive Diseases. “As with all
chronic diseases, the earlier
the diagnosis and treatment,
the better.”
There are over 200,000
DUI arrests in Georgia each
year. Research has estimated
that the average driver ar
rested for a DUI has driven
drunk between 400 and 700
tropical disturbances. The
tropics usually don’t become
active until late summer.
More drought infor
mation can be found at
www.georgiadrought.org.
Automated weather data
across Georgia is at
www.georgiaweather.net.
Daily rainfall from Co-
CoRaHS is available at
www.cocorahs.org. USGS
data is at ga.water.usgs.gov.
Water conservation informa
tion is available at www.con
servewatergeorgia.net.
In Pools
that include; don’t swim
when ill with diarrhea; don’t
swallow pool water; take
frequent bathroom breaks;
and practice good hygiene.
If you have questions
about the water in your
pool, you can use portable
pool and spa testing strips
to ensure adequate chlorine
levels and proper pH exist
before swimming. For more
information on cleaner,
healthier pools and spas,
visit www.healthypools.org.
storing spare cylinders near
the grill).
* When a grill is not in
use, cover disconnected
hose-end fittings with plastic
bags or protective caps to
keep clean.
“It’s always a good idea
for grillers to review basic
safety tips from time to
time,” stressed Raichlen,
who maintains a grill-
ing-oriented Web site at
www.barbecuebible.com.
For additional informa
tion about safe grilling
and propane grills, visit
www.usepropane.com.
times before. Additionally,
50% of first-time DUI of
fenders have alcohol abuse
or alcohol dependence.
Therefore, doing clinical
evaluations after a first DUI
will detect alcohol abuse and
dependence for thousands of
Georgians years earlier.
DHR is charged with
establishing the registry of
qualified clinical evaluators
and treatment providers.
Clinicians must be profes
sionally licensed or certi
fied by approved licensing
bodies that have educa
tion standards, nationally
standardized testing, oral
case presentations, years of
work experience, and annual
continuing education.
Solution to Sudoku Puzzle
from page 7B
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10 Lbs. Pork Neckbones $8.99
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Health Tips For Swimming
Grilling Safely
Grilling is more popular than ever to cook a wide
range of foods.
DHR Supports New Law
Requiring All DUI Offenders
To Be Assessed For Treatment