Partnership History

The Oconee River watershed was selected as a priority watershed by the Southeastern Partnership for Forests and Water in 2017 due to rapid urban development in the upper watershed. Conversion of forestlands to accommodate urban expansion degrades source water quality and quantity through increased erosion and sedimentation, elevated nutrient pollution, and altered soil structure throughout the landscape. This leads to increased drinking water treatment costs, degraded aquatic habitat and impediments to wildlife connectivity.

With 95% of drinking water coming from surface sources in the Oconee River watershed, forests are an integral link between land management practices and the production of adequate supplies of clean drinking water.  

The Oconee River Watershed Partnership was developed to create a shared vision of regional source water protection priorities to catalyze the pace and scale of forestland conservation in the Oconee River watershed.

With technical assistance from the Southeastern Partnership for Forests and Water and financial assistance from the Georgia Forestry Commission, the Upper Oconee Watershed Network worked with the Partnership Coordinator to strengthen community trust and built partnerships among the drinking water, forestry and conservation sectors.

The 2019 Oconee River Forests and Drinking Water Forum launched the formal convening of the Oconee River Watershed Partnership. General Partnership meetings are held quarterly on the 2nd Wednesday of the month. Visit the Contact Us page for information on receiving communications about meeting dates and times.