Georgia has asked an appeals court to allow metro Atlanta to use Lake Lanier for most of its water needs, warning that a contrary decision "will be devastating to 3 million residents who have no meaningful alternative source of water supply."
Separately, Gwinnett County also asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta to reverse a ruling last July that declared the region has no legal right to rely on Lake Lanier for most of its water supply.
The ruling "imposed what can only be termed the death penalty for subsistence by existing households and businesses, as well as future economic growth within Gwinnett," the county said. It noted that its approximately 800,000 residents rely on the lake as their sole source of water supply.
The almost 200 pages of legal briefs filed by Georgia parties and Gwinnett are the first salvos in a high-stakes appeal over water rights to Lake Lanier. The 11th Circuit has set a briefing schedule that ends July 26. Once all legal briefs are filed, the court is expected to schedule oral arguments in the case.
For rest of article please visit AJC.com-http://www.ajc.com/news/georgia-politics-elections/georgia-appeals-devastating-water-429545.html
Friday, April 2, 2010
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Great comment. I think that rainwater collection for private homes and businesses can be part of the solution regardless of the court ruling. With similar adoption rates as have been seen in parts of Australia,metro Atlanta could see a contribution of 50-100 million gallons per day from rainwater collection for homes and businesses. This would put a huge dent in the shortfall in the event the Lake Lanier decision does not go our way. The beauty is that it can be implemented faster than building large new reservoirs and without using public funds. Even if the court decision is in favor of Gwinnett County and Georgia, we face a shortfall in water supply over the next 25 years. With water demand expected to rise 50% to a billion gallons a day we will need viable sustainable solutions like rainwater collection if we are to continue prospering.
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