He predicted the water wars more than 20 years ago. The explosive growth in the South, he believed then, would eventually outpace the capacity of the rivers here. A chart he made in 1978 tracks the projected flow of Georgia's Chattahoochee River and the projected water needs of Atlanta. Seated at his desk, he smiles. Odum believes the three states will never agree to a division of the water, because the way the population is growing right now, the three states will soon need more water than the rivers can provide, even in wet seasons.
Water is the most limited and the most important natural resource there is.
But, he adds, most people don't see it that way. It is serious already, he cautions. He warns that state and city leaders need to learn from western states that now mandate water conservation. We've got to live within the water resource. Nobody's going to agree.