I spent this past weekend in Charlotte, visiting family. While I was there, I couldn't help but notice the parched grass, thirsty plants, and dry soil in my parent's neighborhood. My mother mentioned the bad drought—and I thought, "but it's been raining some in Raleigh...I thought things were better..."

While things in the Triangle have been a bit more wet recently, the western part of the state (including the Charlotte region) has still been really struggling with lack of rainfall. From the News & Observer, regarding water levels near Asheville:

"Stream flows in the French Broad River have reached their lowest levels since record-keeping began in 1895 and likely will continue to drop as the region's drought drags on."

and...

"The state lists nearly the whole region as in an exceptional drought, the most severe classification. Asheville's rainfall this year is 10 inches below normal.

At this rate, it would take about one and a half times normal rainfall from now to January to end the drought, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration."

Sounds like what we need is some sort of comprehensive water plan...hopefully the water management bill passed this last legislative session will jump-start a new way of thinking about water use in North Carolina.