By Associated Press
Knoxville TN – TVA knows a continuing drought will only increase pressure from communities outside the valley to tap into the Tennessee River.
The nation's largest public utility controls the 652-mile Tennessee River and its tributaries through a series of dams. It's had to cut cheap hydroelectric power production because of the drought.
The agency also has extended water intake lines for communities as lake levels have fallen.
But TVA executives say they know others have had it worse, and some may come calling with requests for so-called "interbasin transfers" outside the valley.
The TVA staff is now working on a formal policy about the matter.
Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin recently suggested exploring ways to pipe water to her parched city from other areas, including the Tennessee River.