Parts of the Duck River shore that are normally submerged are visible in Hickman County on Sept. 5, 2024. The river is low due to drought, and environmental advocates fear plans to pump more water out for utilities will further damage the river. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
Middle Tennessee property owners and residents are joining environmental groups in calling for stronger state protections for the most biodiverse freshwater river in North America.
Drought and utility companies’ plans to withdraw millions more gallons of water from the Duck River each day to keep up with development and growth are putting the river and the dozens of species that call it home in peril, environmental advocates say.
This year, Washington D.C.-based organization American Rivers named the Duck River the third-most endangered river in the nation due to the threat of “excessive water withdrawals.”
The Southern Environmental Law Center is representing The Nature Conservancy and the Tennessee Wildlife Federation in an appeal against a state permit that would allow utility Columbia Power and Water Systems to develop a second water withdrawal site at the Maury-Hickman county line without rules in place to lower allowed usage when river flows drop.
The mussels that live in the river and filter its water — often called “harbingers” for river health — are showing signs that the river is in distress. Freshwater mussel expert Don Hubbs found 565 freshly dead mussels at seven locations from Shelbyville to Columbia in mid-July, including the remains of nine species that are under federal protection. Hubbs found another 212 freshly dead mussels at three locations near Centerville in September.
At least 250,000 Tennesseans depend on the Duck for their drinking water, and Middle Tennessee is quickly growing thanks to recent investments from industry and an influx of new residents.
“We are in the midst of a phenomenon where people are moving here from other landscapes in other parts of the country that are already built out … creating tremendous financial incentives for some members of the development community to build out our pristine landscapes as quickly as possible,” SELC Tennessee Office Director George Nolan told a crowd gathered at Columbia State Community College on Thursday, Oct. 10.
Nolan clarified that SELC is not “anti-development or anti-growth.”
“We do subscribe to the principle that as we grow, the growth needs to be managed wisely, and we have to respect the carrying capacity of our watersheds,” he said.
The state has “long recognized the high value of the Duck River” and works to balance its protection with the needs of growing Tennessee communities, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Communications Director Eric Ward wrote in a statement to Tennessee Lookout.
What’s the limit?
A few dozen people attended last week’s meeting hosted by the Duck River Conservancy, a preservation advocacy group that formed this spring. Some arrived with notebooks in hand. A child clutched a mallard stuffed animal. Many attendees have lived in the area for years. Some, like Duck River Conservancy Vice-Chairman Danny Rochelle, have lived near the Duck for multiple generations.
Local water utilities are seeking permits to withdraw up to 73 million gallons from the river each day, which would be an increase of 19 million gallons over today’s limit. The permitting process is a good thing, Nolan said. But as it stands, those permits don’t have additional restrictions on how much water can be pumped out during drought conditions or low water flows.
SELC is appealing three permits issued by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, including the permit for the new withdrawal site on the Maury-Hickman county line. The guardrails to protect the river aren’t sufficient, Nolan said.
Advocacy groups say the department has failed to conduct independent studies of how much water is needed to protect the river’s rich aquatic life.
Freshly dead mussel shells glisten in the sunlight in just a few inches of water in the Duck River on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
“The state, TDEC … has not done their homework, as far as we are concerned,” Nolan said. “In other words, they issue these permits authorizing big increases in the water withdrawals, but they haven’t done the science necessary in order to figure out if that’s too much.”
The permits granted thus far also allow up to 25% loss, meaning utilities are allowed to leak up to 25% of the water they withdraw from the river. This detail drew exasperation from the crowd. Other states are less forgiving — Kentucky’s loss limit, for instance, is 15%.
SELC is also pushing for a comprehensive water conservation and drought management plan for the region that has “teeth” to ensure utilities comply. The center says the department, as the state entity responsible for protecting the river, should create that regional plan. (That task is in the hands of the Duck River Development Agency, which receives funding from water utilities based on the number of gallons the utilities sell to customers).
Citing ongoing litigation, Ward declined to answer specific questions about how the department determines what amount of waste is reasonable, how it determines whether to include flow conditions in permits, whether it has conducted independent flow studies and why it is not the steward of a regional drought management plan for the Duck River.
“Since 2020, TDEC has initiated a comprehensive, data-driven permitting process for the Duck River watershed that has included hosting a series of stakeholder meetings and public hearings,” Ward wrote, adding that the department will continue to meet with stakeholders and consider public interest to “ensure this precious resource remains protected and utilized appropriately.”
The SELC has fought for stronger permit terms before and won, securing a settlement in 2022 that upheld water withdrawal limitations for the Marshall County Board of Public Utility for times of low flow and drought. The state’s initial permit for the utility contained those limitations, but the utility and the Duck River Development Agency had appealed to have those limits removed.
As the appeals process for the three recently issued permits continues, some residents are advocating for alternative water sources that may keep up with the region’s explosive growth.
Ed Penrod, an 88-year-old who lives on the river and has been involved in conservation efforts for several decades, said the state should look into a redundancy program for the Duck River. A pipeline bringing water from the much larger Tennessee River “should be started tomorrow,” he said, receiving applause from the crowd.
The Tennessee General Assembly would need to approve such an undertaking — something it has tried and failed to do in the past — and it would be costly.
Mike Penrod, Ed Penrod’s son, said it’s not as costly as overtaxing the Duck River. The current drought won’t be the last to hit the area, he said.
“Once we lose it, it’s over,” Mike Penrod said. “Can’t go back.”