Hard Labor Creek Management Board Moves Forward With Design Work For Apalachee River Intake

The Hard Labor Creek Regional Reservoir Management Board last week agreed to spend $93,536 for design work for the intake structure on the Apalachee River across from North High Shoals that can be used in the future to expand the size of the reservoir.

The Board also reviewed plans for a water treatment plant for the reservoir that would rely on membrane filtration technology. Actual construction of the plant is thought to be at least three years away as neither county has a need for the water filling in the reservoir.

The Board also agreed on a rough plan to open the lake to recreational use in August of 2017 and decided to move forward with work on improvements to the public access area southeast of the bridge carrying Social Circle Fairplay Road across the reservoir.

Those improvements are budgeted at $300,000, but Project Manager Jimmy Parker said he thought the costs might come in higher because contractors are getting busier as the market improves.

Board members said talks with Morgan County about purchasing water from the reservoir were only exploratory, but Oconee County Commission Jim Luke, a Board member, said after the meeting that the Board is interested in finding long-term purchasers of the reservoir’s water.

For more on the story, go to Oconee County Observations.

Pictured: Jimmy Parker.