Greg Deen and his family have farmed along Lick Creek in Middle Tennessee since shortly after the Civil War. The children of Vange Johnson's large extended family were baptized in the creek. Bea and Neil Jobe, now in their 80s, no longer grow tobacco irrigated with creek water but still get their drinking water from a nearby well.
Their Hickman County homes and farms lie just beyond Nashville's sprawling bedroom communities, but the city's rapid growth is starting to be felt here. In early January, a small sign appeared on the side of the highway stating a utility in the next county planned to use their creek to dump wastewater from a new sewage plant. The utility says the plant is needed to support development and bring jobs. Residents worry the scheme will destroy aquatic life; contaminate wells, springs and crops; and increase flooding.
