LAKE WYLIE, N.C. — A commission responsible for one of the Charlotte region’s biggest bodies of water says it now opposes a plan to move more water out of the Catawba River.
According to our partners at the Charlotte Observer, the Lake Wylie Marine Commission has rescinded its support for Charlotte Water’s request to modify its interbasin transfer agreement, the group’s leadership told Mecklenburg County commissioners during its annual report on Tuesday.
Lake Wylie is part of the Catawba River basin.
In 2024, Charlotte Water started the years-long process of requesting to modify its agreement, which regulates how much water it can take from one river and the creeks and lakes that feed into it and move to another. Currently, Charlotte Water is allowed to transfer up to 33 million gallons of water per day from the Catawba River basin to the Rocky River basin.
The utility said at the time the move was necessary to keep up with demand amid growth. Charlotte Water takes water from Lake Norman and Mountain Island Lake in the Catawba River basin, some of which is eventually discharged into the Rocky River basin.
One group that remains supportive of Charlotte Water’s latest request is the Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition, the advocacy group’s general counsel, Larry Shaheen, told the Observer. He said the “business community stands behind” the project and will be working to address concerns.
©2026 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
