Economic outlook.Despite some winter rain, North Carolina North Carolina, state in the SE United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), South Carolina and Georgia (S), Tennessee (W), and Virginia (N). Facts and Figures Area, 52,586 sq mi (136,198 sq km). Pop. is still mighty dry. In mid-January, more than half the population was subject to mandatory water restrictions. An additional 25% was under voluntary restrictions. How has the drought affected the state economy? We asked Stephanie McGarrah, assistant secretary for policy, research and strategic planning Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people. at the North Carolina Department of Commerce, and Gene Byrd, the department's director of business retention and development. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BNC (hardware) BNC - A connector for coaxial cable such as that used for some video connections and RG58 "cheapernet" connections. A BNC connector has a bayonet-type shell with two small knobs on the female connector which lock into spiral slots in the male connector when it is twisted : What sectors of the economy have been hurt so far? McGarrah: Farmers have already seen some of the impacts. The Green Industry Council, which represents landscapers, Christmas-tree growers, sod growers, those kinds of folks, put out an estimate of $1.5 billion. What about construction? McGarrah: We've heard the drought is not as bad for some parts of the construction sector because fewer workdays are rained out. Byrd: It may have a negative effect on residential construction because some cities and towns are not going to make the water and sewer SEWER. Properly a trench artificially made for the purpose of carrying water into the sea, river, or some other place of reception. Public sewers are, in general, made at the public expense. Crabb, R. P. Sec. 113. connections to these developments. There is a certain amount of backflushing and cleaning out of lines that has to occur, and there are cities and towns around the state that are saying, 'We're not going to do that until we get some more rain.' How has it affected manufacturing and other heavy water users? Byrd: We are hearing from large water users, such as poultry poultry, domesticated fowl kept primarily for meat and eggs; including birds of the order Galliformes, e.g., the chicken, turkey, guinea fowl, pheasant, quail, and peacock; and natatorial (swimming) birds, e.g., the duck and goose. processors, large pharmaceutical companies and electronics manufacturers that use lots of processed water. They are very interested in doing everything they can to curtail cur·tail tr.v. cur·tailed, cur·tail·ing, cur·tails To cut short or reduce. See Synonyms at shorten. [Middle English curtailen, to restrict their water use. They've got to have a certain amount of very high-quality processed water to stay open so they don't have to lay off people. They are very receptive receptive /re·cep·tive/ (re-cep´tiv) capable of receiving or of responding to a stimulus. to the idea of saving water. They are very open to the idea of recycling recycling, the process of recovering and reusing waste products—from household use, manufacturing, agriculture, and business—and thereby reducing their burden on the environment. water within their own operations. They are interested in using gray water--treated water that isn't drinkable--in their processes. In December and again in January, Gov. Easley called for conservation pricing--rates that penalize pe·nal·ize tr.v. pe·nal·ized, pe·nal·iz·ing, pe·nal·iz·es 1. To subject to a penalty, especially for infringement of a law or official regulation. See Synonyms at punish. 2. excessive water use. Byrd: There's been a lot of discussion about that, but I'm not aware of any water systems that have actually done it. Most of them are run by local municipalities, and it would involve their public staffs coming up with recommendations, taking it to council and going through the process. McGarrah: This is our worst drought on record. This is the first time some of these water systems have faced these kinds of conditions. Are businesses planning for the possibility of higher water costs? Byrd: I think they are. The governor has challenged everybody to take this opportunity to take a hard look at how we use a precious resource and to make sure we are using it as carefully as possible. In many cases, we are not because it has been readily available. We are coming into a time, it appears, when that resource is not so readily available. Companies are profit-driven. If they can invest in a machine that has a reasonable payback Payback The length of time it takes to recover the initial cost of a project, without regard to the time value of money. , they're going to be all for it. It's enlightened self-interest Enlightened self-interest is a philosophy in ethics which states that persons who act to further the interests of others (or the interests of the group or groups to which they belong), ultimately serve their own self-interest. . Has the drought affected recruiting? Byrd: No. Do you anticipate any adverse impact if the drought continues? Byrd: That's impossible to know. Some of our competitors may be attempting to use some of this stuff against us. But we are seeing no lessened less·en v. less·ened, less·en·ing, less·ens v.tr. 1. To make less; reduce. 2. Archaic To make little of; belittle. v.intr. To become less; decrease. activity nor any loss of projects due to lack of water. Will the state have to fight a perception that it is water-poor or that water supplies are unreliable? McGarrah: I think the entire southeastern United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. is in this situation. I don't think it's just a North Carolina thing. Aside from construction workers having more sunny days to work, what sectors have been helped by the drought? Byrd: Maybe manufacturers of water-recycling equipment. How do you expect the drought to affect the state economy in 2008? McGarrah: I can't model that. Our climatologists expect us to have less-than-average rainfall between now and the summer. But that model is 50% accurate. I can't do much with data that could go either way. And that's 50% accurate for the state as a whole, not for each of the counties or public water systems. Each of those water systems has to determine, if they get into an emergency situation, to whom are they going to cut water off first? Byrd: One of the things we want heavy water users to do is take a serious look at how they use water. Are there alternatives? Can they use a lower grade of water somewhere in their process? Do they have pipes that are leaking leak v. leaked, leak·ing, leaks v.intr. 1. To permit the escape, entry, or passage of something through a breach or flaw: ? Do they have low-flush toilets in their bathrooms? But more than 60% of water users around the state are residential. So even if businesses save significant amounts of water, we've still got to continue to push to make sure that the general public is aware of the severity of what we're facing. RELATED ARTICLE: DRY RUN Drought has gripped the entire state and put the biggest squeeze on much of its economic heartland. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Source: North Carolina Drought Management Advisory Council, February |
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