Give and Lake

Fast-growing Atlanta loses rights to major source of drinking water

Posted at 3:27 PM on 06 Feb 2008

An 18-year water war between Georgia, Alabama, and Florida has come to an end of sorts: A federal appellate court has voided an Army Corps of Engineers agreement that would have given Georgia the rights to nearly 25 percent of federal reservoir Lake Lanier as a source of drinking water for metro Atlanta. Alabama and Florida had sued over the plan, saying it would siphon off water that would otherwise flow to their states. Atlanta, which has been accused of not being mindful of water resources while encouraging rampant growth, is "the big loser here," says water-law expert George William Sherk. The three states are negotiating a new division of water, as a record drought continues.

sources: Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The New York Times, Associated Press
see also, in Grist: Housing slump is slowing sprawl in metro Atlanta

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	Read more about: Alabama \| Army Corps of Engineers \| Florida \| Georgia \| news \| placemaking \| urban planning \| water conflicts \| all of these topics Tools: print \| email \| write to the editor \| subscribe \| RSS Share: digg \| hugg \| stumbleupon \| reddit \| newsvine \| fark \| facebook Bookmark: del.icio.us \| google \| yahoo Give and Lake Fast-growing Atlanta loses rights to major source of drinking water Posted at 3:27 PM on 06 Feb 2008 An 18-year water war between Georgia, Alabama, and Florida has come to an end of sorts: A federal appellate court has voided an Army Corps of Engineers agreement that would have given Georgia the rights to nearly 25 percent of federal reservoir Lake Lanier as a source of drinking water for metro Atlanta. Alabama and Florida had sued over the plan, saying it would siphon off water that would otherwise flow to their states. Atlanta, which has been accused of not being mindful of water resources while encouraging rampant growth, is "the big loser here," says water-law expert George William Sherk. The three states are negotiating a new division of water, as a record drought continues. sources: Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The New York Times, Associated Press see also, in Grist: Housing slump is slowing sprawl in metro Atlanta ADVERTISING POLICY < Previous \| Next > Comments: There are no comments. Be the first to post! You are not logged in. Thus, you cannot post a comment. If you have a Gristmill account, log in below. If you don't have a Gristmill account, well, by all means go make one! Meet you back here in five. Username: Password: Forgot your password? Enter your username and click: The comments of Grist users reflect the opinions of those individuals only, and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of Grist, its staff, its board members, their psychotherapists, or their aestheticians. Got it?	Also in Grist The Lawn and Short of It How to green your yard. Those About to Rock Cleveland is more known for smokestacks than greenness, but it's starting to turn its ship around. Where the Wild Things Grow Got weeds? Reach for the food processor, not the lawnmower. Ounce for Ounce Where can you find eco-detergent in bulk? Umbra lines up some options. The Week's Most Popular Viewed Commented Emailed Ask Umbra on plastic bottles and BPA Ask Umbra on soil health A Grist special series on unexpected urban progress Ask Umbra on plastic water bottles How to use extra-virgin olive oils, from the extraordinary to the merely wonderful Alaska legislature looking for polar-bear skeptics Goldman says oil 'likely' to hit $150-$200 by 2010 No more subsidies for nuclear power, McCain et al More hidden costs of our love affair with cheap imported goods Ask Umbra on plastic bottles and BPA Timothy LaSalle of Rodale on the surprising climate benefits of organic farming Ouster of Sierra Club's Florida leaders stirs up a storm of controversy An interview with Stacy Malkan, co-founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics Ask Umbra on plastic water bottles From the Archives We Owe You a Debt of Platitude. Range of green credit cards offer carbon offsets for purchases. Threatened Level: Salmon. Oregon coast coho salmon re-listed as threatened. Missing in Auction. Chukchi Sea oil lease auction goes ahead, polar-bear concerns ignored. News Archives