Water Resource Plans

Catawba River Basin Water Resource Plan

The Catawba River Basin Water Resources Plan evaluates the present and future (2002 through 2050) conditions of this basin, in order to determine the water capacity of the Catawba River to serve future populations and at the same time to identify any potential trouble-spots or conflicts related to water supply and its demand. Chapter 2 begins with a look at the current and future conditions of each county located in the Catawba River basin in terms of population growth, land use, water use, and economic development. 

Download Catawba River Basin Water Resources Plan here.

Neuse River Basin Water Resource Plan

The Neuse River Basin Water Resources Plan is the first of a new series of documents being developed by the N. C. Division of Water Resources for each of the 17 river basins in the state. The Division's scope of work focuses on water quantity related issues statewide. Therefore, these plans will focus on water quantity related issues in each basin. The State Divisions of Water Resources and Water Quality coordinated these plans with the Basinwide Water Quality Plans that evaluate water quality conditions in each river basin.

The Neuse River Basin Water Resources Plan evaluates the water resources of the Neuse River basin. It describes where existing surface water supplies may not be sufficient to meet future water demands for public water systems, identifies where self-supplied industrial operations may face increased challenges meeting their water needs and provides information on the magnitude of impacts to future recreational opportunities on the basin's major reservoirs.

The analysis assesses the ability to satisfy estimated future water demands for the range of hydrologic conditions that occurred in the basin from 1930 to 2008. These evaluations were conducted using the Neuse River Basin Hydrologic Model - a computer based mathematical model that balances inflows and outflows of surface water at specific locations as water moves downstream. The model covers the basin from the headwaters of the Eno, Flat and Little rivers in Durham and Orange counties and then downstream to New Bern, where the Neuse River is influenced by the saltwater and tides of the Pamlico Sound.

The Neuse River Basin Water Resources Plan is intended to serve as a template for future plans. Therefore, your comments and suggestions will help us improve the presentation and content of the document. Please let us know if you find the document useful and informative and any other comments you may have.

Download Neuse River Basin Water Resources Plan here.