Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff today warned about possible threats to water quality for families across Georgia after a recently announced DOGE closure.
Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock are urging the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) to clarify impacts on water quality and supply following the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) decision to terminate the United States Geological Survey’s (USGS) Water Science Center’s lease in Norcross, Georgia.
“We write to express concern about potential disruption to the U.S. Geological Survey’s work to help ensure safe drinking water quality and appropriate water supply in Georgia, following the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) apparent decision to terminate the lease for the USGS Water Science Center in Norcross,” Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock wrote to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. “Relocation plans for USGS staff and critical office equipment are not clear, despite the lease in Norcross terminating in a matter of months.”
In 2023, the BacteriAlert program, a collaboration between Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and USGS, detected an ongoing sewage spill above Willeo Creek Park and found unsafe Chattahoochee River conditions.
“Staff at the Water Sciences Center perform water quality testing to ensure the safety of drinking water and maintain water gauges across Georgia, including Lake Sidney Lanier and on the Chattahoochee River, which supplies most of metro Atlanta’s drinking water,” Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock continued. “Local officials in metro Atlanta rely on gauges at Lake Lanier to ensure enough water is drawn from the lake to provide water to millions of Georgians every day. These gauges also inform water flows for Georgia’s agriculture industry, nuclear reactors across the state, and Department of Defense installations, among others.”
Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock continue working to deliver safe drinking water for Georgia families.
In January, Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock’s City of Atlanta Water Infrastructure Enhancement Act was signed into law as part of the Water Resources Development Act reauthorization to upgrade water infrastructure for families and businesses across Atlanta.
Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock also delivered $24.8 million in Federal resources for critical water infrastructure upgrades in the cities of East Point and Atlanta.
In September, Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock announced over $1.8 million to the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA) through the EPA’s Small Underserved, Disadvantaged Communities (SUDC) grant program to upgrade drinking water infrastructure across rural Georgia.
Click here to read Sens. Ossoff’s and Rev. Warnock’s letter to DOI.
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