Another ‘Water Wars’ Case Goes Georgia’s Way

A floating dock sits on the shore as Lake Lanier water levels recede about eight feet below normal in 2016.

David Goldman / AP Photo

There’s more good news for Georgia in the decades-long legal battles between the state and its neighbors over water: A judge has sided against Alabama in a case concerning metro Atlanta municipalities’ use of water from Lake Lanier.

Alabama and Florida have long complained about Georgia’s water use, but this is the second case to go Georgia’s way this year in the ongoing fights over water in the Southeast. This past spring, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Georgia in another case, ending Florida’s effort to put a cap on how much water Georgians could use.

In the case decided this week, Alabama and environmental groups were challenging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ plan for how it manages Lake Lanier and other reservoirs and dams in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin.