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ALBANY, GA --
The recent heavy rains have reminded Dougherty County residents that flooding is a continuing problem in low lying areas.

So it should come as no surprise that when a zoning request, for a borrow pit at 1507 Liberty Expressway, was presented to the Dougherty County Commission  that they had concerns.

"The question of course was, with the removal of that much earth, 20 acres of earth, will that cause any problems to our citizens" said Commissioner Gloria Gaines.

The borrow pit, which is a section of land where dirt is removed to be used at another site, will be located in between several houses, which worried Commissioner John Hayes, "We really can’t anticipate future rainfall but can make sure don’t create a situation where those folks could be in harm’s way should we have future flooding."

After hearing from the project managers the commissioners decided the borrow pit wouldn’t increase the likelihood of flooding and voted to approve the zoning request.

Lenier Engineering, the firm behind this project, said the borrow pit has the potential to aid in the fight against flooding.

"Once this borrow pit get constructed, it will basically contain that 20 acres of water within its self rather than running off and adding to any potential problem down stream," said the Director of Engineers, Bobby Donley.

The Public Works Department will have to approve specifics of behind the borrow pit and the Environmental Protection Division will look over the restoration plan to ensure problems won’t arise in the future.