Governors work toward resolution of water war

This month, the governors of Georgia and Alabama met with no fanfare as part of their continuing dialog over what has become known as the water war. The conflict, like all wars, is costly: $21 million so far in Georgia’s legal bills, with another $5 million from the governor’s emergency fund earmarked for it.

It is a clash between Georgia, Alabama and Florida over water needed to keep the economy of metro Atlanta humming.

Coweta’s position, downstream of Atlanta but close enough to benefit from the city’s economic momentum, means that our community has a unique stake in the outcome.

When the city of Atlanta was regularly dumping untreated sewage into the Chattahoochee River, Coweta and Newnan were foursquare against it. And we still have an interest in keeping the river clean and the flow adequate, not just because of aesthetics along our county line and local jewel, the Chattahoochee Bend State Park, but also because we may have to depend on it one day as a source of drinking water ourselves as our county continues to grow. At the same time, we enjoy the halo of Atlanta’s prosperity. A significant share of our population works in Fulton, DeKalb and Cobb counties, 15,000 Cowetans, according to the Georgia Department of Labor.

So, we have no interest in turning off the spigot and drying Atlanta’s lifeblood. That would be shortsighted of us even though prudent planning has provided our county with sufficient water supply today and quality high enough that Niagara bottles it and sells it.

Georgia industry recruiters speculate loudly that Alabama and Florida were motivated to use federal environmental laws merely as leverage to cripple Atlanta’s viability. It comes up so often in competition for industry that Peach State recruiters have concluded the water war legal battle is a convenient weapon to scare away prospects from Atlanta.

Either way, it is positive news to learn that Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley are at least talking to one another. The special master appointed by the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case has pressured the governors to reach an out-of-court agreement. Deal is to be commended for trying. Because of our geography, we hope that the agreement is fair to all concerned because that would make it beneficial to Coweta County. It should maintain Atlanta’s share of a vital resource while safeguarding the river’s environment for those of us downstream. Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press