COLUMBIA, Tenn. (WSMV) - Activist groups in Maury County agree: the Duck River has a problem.

“We cannot continue to take water off this river,” said Jason Gilliam, a member of the Maury County Water System board. “In times of drought, our river is ankle deep in places, and with the population increase that we’ve had in the recent years, if we had another 2007 drought, that river would be dry. There would be no water.”

The Duck River serves as the sole water source for more than 250,000 people and counting in Middle Tennessee with seven utility companies drawing from it. But activists worry it can’t continue to support those people, especially as the population grows.

“You’ve got close to now 300,000 people in the valley, and if it goes dry tomorrow, there’s no plan,” said president of

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