Water is life

For years I have heard about the abandoned TVA dam project on the Duck River in Maury County. It was scrapped in 1983, due in part to the presence of endangered species including the snail darter fish.
Today, a group called Columbia Dam Now hopes to revive the project over concerns about the Duck River’s ability to meet future water needs. The Duck is Columbia’s sole source of water, and it struggles during seasons of drought.
I’m sorry our neighbors have water concerns, but it makes me even more grateful that we don’t. Lawrence County has more than enough water, thanks to streams and creeks that crisscross every part of the county and plentiful groundwater that feeds springs and wells. Multiple sources and connections between our utility districts ensure all have enough to serve their customers.
Lawrenceburg Utilities System (LUS) draws water from Shoal Creek and Hope Springs, and sells when needed to Leoma, Fall River, Northeast, and Summertown Utility Districts. LUS can produce nine million gallons a day, though demand averages just three million. Its wastewater treatment plant can process 11.25 million gallons a day, nine million more than current needs.
The City of Loretto is served by a well and a spring and maintains connections with Leoma, West Point, and St. Joseph Utility Districts; Fall River has a well; St. Joseph is served by a spring and has connections to Iron City.
Summertown Utility District also has a well, but regularly buys additional water from LUS. That district is in the process of developing a new well and building a water filtration plant which are expected to be operational by spring 2027. This will make the district self-sufficient, while retaining its ability to buy water from LUS in emergencies.
I recently had the honor of speaking on behalf of Leoma Utility District to the Tennessee Board of Utility Regulation. The district was facing forced consolidation with LUS but was granted six months to correct problem areas before a final decision is made.
Leoma and our other rural utility districts deserve the right to self-governance, and I am committed to support and strengthen them all. In fact, the modernization of Tennessee’s rural utility districts was the subject of the capstone project for my Masters degree in Leadership and Public Service, which I completed through David Lipscomb University this year. Federal grant funds are currently paying for a study of all our water systems, and repairs that will make them more efficient.
Lawrence County is also blessed with natural waters worth protecting. The Buffalo River in Lawrence County is designated a “State Scenic River” under the Tennessee Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. It is also Middle Tennessee’s longest unimpounded river, which means it flows in its natural condition without any human-made structures.
The Buffalo and its tributaries are treasured for their biological diversity, ecological value, recreational use, and outstanding scenery. They are home to tiny federal- and state-protected species like the Slackwater Darter, Fluted Kidneyshell, Slabside Pearlymussell, Spotfin Chub, Saddled Madtom, and Hellbender.
Others streams in Lawrence County designated “Exceptional Tennessee Waters” include portions of Sugar Creek, Little Shoal Creek, Crowson Creek, and Crawfish Creek, which feeds David Crockett State Park’s Lake Lindsey. Shoal Creek has the designation from Whitehouse Branch to the state line, and is home to several species already mentioned, plus the Rabbitsfoot, Clubshell, Tennessee Bottlebrush Crayfish and Blotchside Logperch.
These tiny species keep the water clean, recycle nutrients, and form the base of the food web, which is an interconnected network of food chains that eventually reach us.
We can help keep all our natural waters clean. We can use fertilizers and pesticides sparingly, and avoid applying them before a rain that carries runoff into streams and storm drains. Household chemicals and unused medication should be properly disposed of. If you live near a stream, consider planting native vegetation that will filter runoff and prevent erosion. Livestock should be fenced out of streams to reduce erosion and manure pollution. Finally, don’t litter. As I said, our county is crisscrossed by streams and creeks. Most roadside trash has only a short journey to one of them.