Conway Corp CEO Bret Carroll took to social media to explain why Greers Ferry Lake is central to the city’s long-range water plans as Conway continues to grow and face increasing water demands.
Carroll said Conway Corp has spent years preparing for the possibility of bringing water from Greers Ferry Lake to Conway and emphasized that the utility already holds water rights that date back more than a decade.
“The plan that we have to bring more water to Conway is Greers Ferry Lake,” Carroll said in his Facebook video update.
According to Carroll, Conway Corp first secured water use rights from Greers Ferry Lake in 2010. Those rights were expanded in 2018, and an additional 1 million gallons per day allocation was obtained in 2020.
“So we’ve got a little over 7 million gallons per day that we can take from Greers Ferry,” Carroll said.
The Conway Corp CEO explained that the utility is working with Community Water Systems in Higden, which also holds significant water rights from the lake.
The proposed project would eventually include a new intake structure approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a 42-inch raw water transmission line and a new water treatment plant capable of delivering water to Conway.
Carroll said the project is necessary because Conway’s current primary water source, Lake Brewer, may not be sufficient as the city continues to grow.
“We believe by the year 2035 that Lake Brewer will not be big enough to serve this community as it continues to grow,” Carroll said.
A major point emphasized by Carroll and other regional water officials is the enormous size of Greers Ferry Lake and the relatively small impact future withdrawals would have on lake levels.
According to information shared by area water officials, Greers Ferry Lake naturally loses between 214 million and 550 million gallons of water every summer day through evaporation.
Officials note that the evaporation of just 1 inch of water from the lake’s surface equals approximately 850 million gallons.
Carroll said those numbers help put Conway’s future water needs into perspective.
“It is a miniscule amount of water from the lake,” Carroll said. “The Greers Ferry watershed is about 40 times the size of the Lake Brewer watershed where we currently get our water from. It’s much more drought resistant.”
Carroll also addressed rumors that Conway’s recent water curtailment measures were tied to a proposed data center.
“If they need potable treated water to serve the data center, this is not the right community,” Carroll said. “It will not be treated potable water. I can confirm that.”
Conway Corp officials say planning years in advance is necessary to ensure the city has a dependable and sustainable water supply for future generations.
