The past year

has been a busy one with regard to Lake McIntosh.

In March, county

officials filed for a federal environmental permit to build a 650-acre

reservoir on Line Creek to meet Fayette's future water needs.

If approved,

Lake McIntosh is expected to boost water production by eight million gallons

a day. County officials see the project as the only viable option to provide

for the county's projected water needs in the future.

With an estimated

population of over 233,000 people in 2030, the county figures it will

need a daily water supply of 31.3 million gallons, officials said.

The U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers has the final say on whether the county gets its permit

for the reservoir. The public comment period was expected to end late

December as county officials gear up to respond to comments from federal

and state agencies on the potential effect the reservoir would have if

built.

There are no

federally protected species over six miles downstream from the proposed

dam site, officials have said. The dam will be located west of Dividend

Drive and north of Kelly Drive in Peachtree City.

The county

already owns the property to build the lake, and it has already purchased

566 acres of wetlands to serve as mitigation for the wetlands around Line

Creek that would be lost when the lake is built. The two other proposed

locations would involve disturbing larger area of wetlands.

A rendering

of the lake's proposed location shows the lake would border Peachtree

City's Planterra Ridge subdivision on three sides.

Construction

of the lake is expected to take between two and three years from the time

work begins until the lake is filled.

Currently,

the county has a contract to purchase up to four million gallons a day

from the city of Atlanta, but officials say that contract can't be counted

on.

Likewise, water

officials don't think they can count on other water sources in the future

such as groundwater wells and Whitewater Creek because of drought conditions.

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