The water war is over.
The Hickory City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to end a three-year confrontation over drawing water from the Catawba River and piping it to Cabarrus County.
The vote accepts a settlement between a coalition of municipalities along the Catawba River Basin and the towns of Concord and Kannapolis.
Hickory's acceptance was contingent upon Concord and Kannapolis approving the plan, which they did.
The Concord City Council gave a unanimous OK, and the Kannapolis City Council approved the plan 5-1.
The water war began in 2006 when the N.C. Environmental Management Commission granted Concord and Kannapolis permission to pump as much as 26 million gallons a day from the Catawba River.
The Interbasin Transfer, as it was called, resulted in a firestorm of protest from municipalities along the river and environmental groups, including Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation.
The state later reduced the allowable transfer to 10 million gallons a day. The move did not quell opposition.
Protect the Catawba Coalition, with Hickory as the lead municipality, was formed to derail the IBT.
The IBT also gave Concord and Kannapolis permission to pull 10 million gallons of water per day from the Yadkin River Basin.
The means exist to move water cross-country from the Catawba, but not the Yadkin — another sticking point with the coalition.
The legal entanglement ended up in Administrative Court, where the state's action was reviewed and litigants could present evidence for or against the propriety of the state's action.
Prior to Tuesday's vote, Hickory City Manager Mick Berry said the Administrative Court judge probably was going to order mediation.
So, the warring factions decided to go the mediation route themselves to try to break the impasse.
The agreement specifies that Concord and Kannapolis will get 3 million gallons a day from the Catawba Basin through 2015. After that, the two cities must draw 5 million gallons per day from the Yadkin before the amount from the Catawba can be increased.
Under ideal conditions, the Cabarrus County municipalities can obtain up to 10 million gallons a day from the Catawba. Drought conditions would lessen the amount to as low as 6 million gallons.
The settlement imposes mandatory conservation regarding both river basins, limits waterline approvals and specifies maximizing the storage of water in existing reservoirs when possible.
Berry said compliance will be monitored.
"We'll do anything we feel necessary to make sure Concord and Kannapolis comply," said Hickory Mayor Rudy Wright.
"Concord and Kannapolis have adopted many best practices to promote water conservation," said Concord Mayor Scott Padgett.
"Through the settlement agreement, we have defined these efforts and demonstrated we will continue to be aggressive in protecting this vital resource," he said.
"We are pleased to be able to reach this agreement," said Kannapolis Mayor Bob Misenheimer.
Earlier in the day, coalition members Morganton and Valdese approved the settlement. Coalition partners in York County, S.C., supported the plan.
Catawba Riverkeeper endorsed the deal.
The coalition has spent approximately $1 million fighting the IBT, with Hickory spending about $150,000, Berry said.
"Hickory committed $50,000 a year to the coalition," he said, "and we've been involved for three years."
The settlement does not affect litigation by South Carolina against North Carolina opposing the transfer of water from the Catawba without South Carolina's involvement.
The Catawba River Basin becomes the Wateree River Basin in South Carolina.
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