- Geography: The Savannah River drains a basin of 10,577 square miles, 4,581 square miles in South Carolina, 5,821 square miles in Georgia, and 175 square miles in North Carolina. Within the three states the basin includes portions of 44 counties and borders two major metropolitan centers, Augusta and Savannah.
- Drinking Water: The River supplies drinking water not only to Augusta and Savannah, but also to Hilton Head and Beaufort, SC, and many smaller municipalities in the basin. As salt water intrudes into the aquifers near the coast, the freshwater of the Savannah becomes ever more important as a source of drinking water.
- Management: Currently the River is largely managed by the Corps of Engineers with a growing influence from the EPA. The Corps has considerable influence because it is responsible for the maintenance of three large and one small reservoir on the main stem of the Savannah River and it has invested significant resources in eliminating much of the meander in the lower river to accommodate commercial traffic that never materialized. Because the EPA, and by extension the Georgia Environmental Protection Division and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, has been charged with the responsibility for the maintenance of water quality in the basin and because that water quality is in many places generally poor, it has assumed a larger and growing role in managing the River.
- Pollutants: The use of coal as a fuel releases several pollutants into the atmosphere that are potential pollutants in the water. In the Savannah River mercury is the most dangerous of these pollutants. The problem appears to arise primarily from coal-fueled power generation and the mercury-catalyzed synthesis of chlorine for bleach.
- Erosion: Home construction and unpaved roads and ORV use have induced erosion that has caused the EPA to propose a TMDL for sediment for a number of streams in the upper reaches of the basin. Development around the lakes in the upper portion of the Savannah River is threatening water quality in those lakes, especially in Lake Hartwell, particularly along the I-85 corridor. Development along the River and its feeder streams around the cities of Augusta and North Augusta has been allowed to take place too close to the water to maintain the appropriate buffers for effective protection of water quality.
- Sewage Treatment: Some progress is being made on sewage treatment in the basin. The city of Augusta has created a 400-acre wetland as a tertiary treatment for the effluent coming from its main sewage treatment facility. Also, the City of Rincon has completed a new sewage treatment plant (with some stimulation from the Riverkeeper) that should help maintain water quality in the southern reaches of the basin.
- Proposed Changes: The Ports Authority of Georgia wants to deepen the harbor in Savannah to accommodate the new very large container ship that will be visiting ports on the East coast. The Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, just up river from the harbor, fosters species that are sensitive to salinity, and previous harbor deepenings have forced the salinity gradient further upstream. This problem is the focus of considerable discussion.
- Industry: A significant portion of the Savannah River basin has, over the years, been involved in the textile industry, agriculture and forestry. The former is responsible for considerable legacy pollution in the basin while the latter two (considered by some to be one) have provided a fairly constant background of water quality problems for many years.
- Water Supply: Although the southeastern United States gets in excess of 30 inches of rain annually, there is a battle brewing over the water supply in the River. Similar to the West Georgia water wars, the battle will be between upstream users and downstream users, but unlike West Georgia, the states, Georgia and South Carolina, share the river for its entire length, creating a different political perspective. Recently the Corps initiated a re-evaluation of its policies governing the release of water from the impoundments in the upper basin in an effort to mediate in the developing battle.
- Interbasin Transfers: Water from the Savannah River Basin is removed, used by the city of Greenville, SC, treated and then released into their river basin. This has a significant impact on the already lowered water levels.
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