‘We’re pretty low.’ Georgia’s Ogeechee River is visibly shallow as drought grips Georgia

Underneath a Ga. Highway 204 bridge in Ellabell, Ga., the Ogeechee River is visibly shallow. 

The waning water line has yielded paling dirt banks and marks of past water levels lining a concrete boat ramp. Here at Morgan’s Bridge, the water level average has been about 6 feet, or double what it looks like now.

“We’re probably 4 feet, 3 feet lower than what I would consider base flow, so we’re pretty low,” Ogeechee Riverkeeper Executive Director Damon Mullis said.

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) announced a statewide Level 1 Drought Response in April, the first in about a decade. Not only has the drought paved a dry path for wildfires, but it has taken a toll on the state’s waterways.

According to the EPD’s latest Drought Indicators Report in April, 85% of the state’s river gages measure flows lower than 20% of their daily historical averages, including the Ogeechee River. 

“Low water levels do a couple of things that can be concerning,” Mullis said. “As we move into the summer and temperatures rise, we could really see dangerously low oxygen levels if the drought continues.”

Fish and other aquatic life need that oxygen, available to them when it’s dissolved in water. But when there’s less water interacting with air, less oxygen gets folded into the river. On top of that, the heat can limit oxygen levels, too. 

The second concern percolates deeper than what’s in the river. Below, the Floridan Aquifer is fed by surface water. 

“All of the water in the lower part of the Ogeechee … supplies groundwater,” Mullis said. “You cannot disconnect groundwater and surface water.”

Of 16 groundwater wells, the EPD found most were nearing their lowest recorded depths. The effects of recent Georgia rain will be reflected in the next drought report within the month.

This story comes to The Georgia Sun through a reporting partnership with GPB a non-profit newsroom focused on reporting in Georgia.