Here is a story from the THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA:
Describing it as a “singularly important case.” Florida and Alabama this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve their long-running fight with Georgia about water at Lake Lanier north of Atlanta.
Florida and Alabama are seeking to overturn an 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling last year that would allow large withdrawals from the lake for Atlanta’s water-supply needs. Florida and Alabama contend that such withdrawals would cause major damage downstream, including affecting critical fisheries in Apalachicola Bay.
Lake Lanier is a reservoir on the Chattahoochee River, which flows into the Flint and Apalachicola rivers. A Supreme Court petition filed by Florida and the city of Apalachicola argues that the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals opinion conflicts with an earlier appeals-court ruling. Also it contends that the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees water allocations at Lake Lanier and other reservoirs, would need congressional approval to allow such large withdrawals for local water-supply needs.
The Florida and Apalachicola petition said the dispute between the states will “fester” if the Supreme Court does not take up the issue. “Three states have been fighting over a critical resource for decades, billions of dollars are at stake, and there is no end in sight,” the petition says.
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