"[4] The river rises in the Blue Ridge Mountains in western McDowell County, North Carolina, approximately 20 miles (30 km) east of Asheville.

On January 10, 2007, the North Carolina state environmental panel authorized Concord and Kannapolis to pump up to 10 million US gallons (38,000 m3) a day from the Catawba River.

[7] Concord's city manager said the approval of the water transfer was "bittersweet", since the panel authorized an amount much lower than was originally requested and the action is likely to be delayed by lawsuits.

Starting in the early autumn months of 2007, residents and businesses of the Catawba basin, along with large swaths of the Southern United States, began to feel the effects of an extreme drought.

On October 15, 2007, the Morganton News Herald reported that North Carolina Governor Mike Easley described the drought as "the worst in recorded history".

[9] On January 29, 2008, Duke Energy, the utility responsible for managing the Catawba River, extended its estimated time frame for Stage 4 water restrictions to August.

"[11] Reasons cited for the river's condition are the drought, the presence of 11 hydroelectric dams, global warming, and unchecked development along its banks, with the latter reported as the most serious threat.

[13] On December 11, 2014, Duke Energy received approval from North Carolina to dump coal ash (containing arsenic, lead, thallium and mercury, among other heavy metals) from the Marshall Steam Station into Lake Norman in order to repair a rusted, leaking pipe at their facility.

[15] On October 3, 2015, Duke Energy reported that a sinkhole had formed at the base of the Marshall Steam Station dam north of Charlotte on Lake Norman.

[16] The Catawba River basin is one of only four areas left in the southeast with significant populations of Hymenocallis coronaria, the Shoals spider lily.