Drinking water bill loses its momentum

COLUMBIA --- An effort to protect communities' drinking water from being guzzled when a new industry arrives upstream has hit opposition although officials last month had hailed historic progress.

"We've come real close this morning, but we couldn't quite get over the last hurdle on minimum flow," said Sen. Paul Campbell, who headed the subcommittee that convened Tuesday just long enough for him to make the announcement.

"We're going to ask the folks to continue to talk about it," said the Goose Creek Republican.

Unlike Georgia, South Carolina has no surface-water permitting system in place, although some users report their consumption annually to the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Lawmakers and state officials say it's time to impose controls by requiring new and existing users to purchase a permit. They say jobs are at stake -- industries will locate or expand in other states if they can't be certain of a dependable water supply in South Carolina.

But differences over the permitting system remain. The Department of Health and Environmental Quality and the Department of Natural Resources must run the program together.

"There's not a disagreement between DHEC and DNR," said David Wilson, the chief of DHEC's Bureau of Water. "The statute, as it's drafted now, is clear as to who will implement the program, and that's DHEC."

But he added, "DHEC had deferred to DNR as (the agency) who would be making the recommendations on behalf of the state on how much water needs to remain in a particular waterway."

DNR Director John Frampton said the proposed plan must spell out a stronger role for his department.

"There's no mistrust at all of DHEC," he said. "It's a matter of whose responsibility it should be in the state to determine the (environmental) impact."

Mr. Frampton said he was confident DHEC would defer to Natural Resources in evaluating whether a permittee's water demands would harm the environment.

"But from a legal standpoint, it's not mandated in the legislation," he said. "DHEC could do whatever they wanted to down the road."

That's the other issue: How much water should be left in stream?

"We are asking for more water to be drawn during wet seasons and less water to be drawn during dry seasons, to mimic Mother Nature," said Bud Badr, the state's top hydrologist, who works for DNR.

Industry groups have opposed the specific restrictions on the grounds that they would hamper business.

The bill, S. 452, had drawn reluctant support from industry groups last month, but now faces uncertainty.