MACON, Ga. — As Georgia sees a worker shortage and a gas shortage from panic buying, there's another shortage on the horizon this summer.
With many public swimming pools opening this month, a national chlorine shortage may spoil the summertime fun.
Some Central Georgia pool supply stores and Macon-Bibb County Recreation folks explain if chlorine supplies will sink or swim this summer.
Macon-Bibb County Parks and Recreational director Robert Walker oversees six public pools.
Even though some people in the pool industry are concerned about a chlorine shortage, he isn't.
"We have a stockpile of chlorine from our previous season," said Walker. "We have chlorine as well as the other chemicals to open."
After so many summer vacations were canceled last year, some people ended up investing in a backyard pool.
In addition, a chemical plant fire in Louisiana last August also helped cut into chlorine supplies nationwide.
Walker said, "When I got ready to place my order, they did only let me know there were only so many containers available."
Fortune reports that a 50-pound bucket of In Swim brand three-inch stabilized chlorine tablets went from $109 to about $170 dollars on Amazon.
Fortune also notes that liquid chlorine is still widely available, but it's also likely to get more expensive.
While some pool companies have talked about using salt tablets instead to clean water, Walker doesn't think Macon-Bibb will have to do that.
Walker said, "We are in a good place with what we have. I've been doing it now since 2012, so I know what we need and what we use. Based off our inventory, we are good to go."
It's good news as Central Georgia swimmers get ready to dive into summer.
The owner of Griffins Pool Supply on Riverside Drive says they could be out of chlorine supplies by June.
They say for now, they are not seeing any delays from their suppliers or limits on how much they can buy.