This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Fourth Estate Fund.
In August 2024, the Cape Fear River at Lock and Dam 1 dropped to 711 million gallons per day—its lowest flow of the year. Just 39 miles downstream, Wilmington watched and waited. Now, a town 200 miles upriver wants to permanently remove another 6 million gallons daily from that same river, and Wilmington officials are asking what happens during the next drought.
Fuquay-Varina (pronounced FEW-kway vuh-REE-nuh, if you're wondering), is a cute little town near Raleigh that is growing too quickly for its water supply. The town is landlocked. Even though they sit on two river basins, they don’t have access to their own water source. They must purchase water on temporary contracts from nearby towns that have access to water.
Now, Fuquay Varina wants its own permanent water supply to match the town's growth, but downstream municipalities and environmental advocates are asking: at what cost?
Numerous downriver governments, businesses, and environmental organizations, including the City of Wilmington, New Hanover County, and CFPUA, have voiced opposition to the plan.
Fuquay-Varina’s favored plan is to take 6.17 million gallons of water per day from the Cape Fear River. Instead of returning the water to the Cape Fear after use, they want to discharge it into the Neuse River. According to their Draft Environmental Impact Statement, diverting the water to the Neuse would cost the town about $200 million less than the alternative of returning it to the Cape Fear.
Fuquay-Varina’s plan will have significant impacts on the Cape Fear River’s environment.
Permanently removing over 6 million gallons per day — enough to fill 333 Olympic-sized swimming pools — would lower the Cape Fear’s volume by about 1% during dry months. That may sound small, but it adds up. The NC DEQ shows that Brunswick County already has agreements to transfer 17 million gallons per day, and Pender County is approved for another 14.5 million gallons daily — together removing about 4% of the river’s volume during droughts.
In 2024, the driest month saw just 711 million gallons per day flowing past Lock and Dam 1, only 39 miles upriver from Wilmington. Fuquay-Varina’s transfer would further reduce that flow during future droughts, when Wilmington needs water most.
Less water also means higher concentrations of pollutants. With less flow to dilute contaminants like PFAS, levels in the Cape Fear would rise. Meanwhile, Fuquay-Varina’s discharge would carry those same pollutants into the Neuse River, potentially contaminating a second ecosystem. Roger Shew, a retired UNCW geologist, said, “Taking water from the [Cape Fear River] and putting it in the Neuse, they are introducing more PFAS and 1,4-dioxane into the Neuse with the wastewater.”
In addition, Shew explained, “low flow in warm conditions in a nutrient-rich river may lead to harmful algal blooms.”
These blooms kill fish by lowering available oxygen in the water, a threat to wildlife. Shew said, “Low water levels have significant consequences for wildlife within the river. If the water levels become too low, the ecologic flow necessary to support the health of the river may be compromised. Several anadromous fish species such as the American Shad, Hickory Shad, Striped Bass, Blueback Herring, and the endangered Atlantic and short-nosed Sturgeon are all found in the Cape Fear and rely on sustained water levels for reproductive success."
A reduced water level makes it difficult for fish to spawn successfully and doesn’t leave enough water in nurseries for juvenile fish to grow. This low flow also increases the potential for saltwater intrusion, which kills freshwater animals and plants.
Fuquay-Varina’s plan will impact downriver water infrastructure
This plan would reduce Cape Fear Public Utility Authority’s ability to provide water to Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach, and the rest of New Hanover County, according to Executive Director Kenneth Waldroup.
He confirmed that with less water to dilute pollutants, downstream utilities could face higher treatment costs and greater challenges in producing safe drinking water. CFPUA’s relatively new filtration system is effective at removing PFAS, but higher concentrations of contaminants could require the expensive filters to be replaced more frequently. He also agreed that during drought conditions, this plan could place a disproportionate burden on Lower Cape Fear customers, who may face stricter water-use restrictions due to reduced potable water availability in our area.
Previous lawsuits may help Wilmington’s battle
In 2018, the City of Fayetteville prevailed in a lawsuit against a similar interbasin transfer — when water is moved from one river to another — with the Towns of Apex and Cary.
This decision guaranteed downstream residents’ water for economic growth and residential use. The main argument in this case was that the towns planned to take water from rivers without returning it, unfairly burdening those who rely on the water downstream. The agreement reached by the parties and the court stated that the cities must return the water to the river.
The water involved in Fuquay-Varina’s interbasin transfer is over twice the amount from the Fayetteville lawsuit. CFPUA, Wilmington, and other interested parties could look to the lawsuit to make a similar argument about their own water supplies.
Slowing development was not among the options in the Environmental Impact Statement
According to the US Census, Fuquay-Varina has grown from a town of 34,200 people in 2020 to more than 46,900 in 2024. That’s 37% growth in just four years. The NC DEQ Division of Water Planning expects the city to grow to 89,000 by 2050.
While growth often pushes municipalities and counties up against the limits of their infrastructure capacities, some places choose to slow development when the tap threatens to run dry.
In June of 2023, Zephyrhills, FL, with the slogan “The city of pure water,” voted to stop permitting any new developments for one year to prevent going over the limit for withdrawing water from the Florida Aquifer. The state of Florida permitted Zephyrhills to withdraw three million gallons per day from 2020 to 2040, but rapid growth threatened to outstrip that supply. It wasn’t so much about running out of water in Florida, where water abounds, but running out of affordable fresh water since desalination is costly. The city wanted time to plan its infrastructure and avoid overdeveloping. According to the city, almost no one complained. A year later, permits resumed with new infrastructure planning in place.
As a desert hot spot, Las Vegas, Nevada, is a city constantly concerned with running out of water. They receive 90% of their water from the quickly drying up Colorado River. To protect this precious resource, the city implemented several measures: banning swamp coolers in new construction, capping pool dimensions, penalizing sidewalk water leaks, permitting car washing only once weekly, and prohibiting residential decorative water features exceeding ten square feet. Rather than relying solely on restrictions, Las Vegas incentivized widespread turf removal — an effort that resulted in the conversion of about 200 million square feet of grass citywide. The water savings allowed Las Vegas’s growth to resume.
Water conservation experts point to several strategies that could reduce demand without new supply sources. These include requiring low-flow fixtures in new construction, stricter lawn watering limits, reduced turf usage, and higher housing density. Fuquay-Varina currently allows lawn watering three alternating days per week, with exceptions for landscapers, new sod, plant nurseries, and drip irrigation.
Harnett County, which borders Fuquay-Varina, adopted a 2015 Comprehensive Growth Plan that, while not recommending growth limits, does call for concentrating development near existing towns rather than allowing sprawl. This policy may help limit growth inadvertently and could protect sensitive ecosystems and farmland. The plan also states as a subgoal: “Encourage growth inside utility service areas—areas where adequate water and sewer service exists.” Together, these steps could both slow water demand and temper the pace of development.
How to weigh in on the issue:
The NC DEQ has held three hearings about Fuquay-Varina’s proposed plan, but none were held in the Lower Cape Fear Region. Even after requests from several entities, no public hearings are planned for our region. They are, however, accepting comments until April 1, 2026, via email to Maya Holcomb at maya.holcomb@deq.nc.gov or through snail mail (postmarked by April 1, 2026) to: Maya Holcomb, Division of Water Resources, NC Department of Environmental Quality, 512 N. Salisbury Street, Raleigh, NC 27604.
