Apalachicola, FL – The city of Apalachicola, Florida, is suing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to block any future reductions in water flowing from three rivers that fill the area's water needs.
The suit claims any more reductions of the Chattahoochee, Flint and Apalachicola rivers could devastate the important oyster and shrimping industries.
The suit asks for a judge to declare unlawful the actions taken by the Corps in recent months to reduce flows to respond to drought and to prohibit them from making future reductions.
Apalachicola is the first Florida city to turn to the courts.
Two cities in Georgia have been parties to lawsuits challenging the Corps' management of water from Lake Lanier outside Atlanta, all the way to the Jim Woodruff Dam, next to Lake Seminole on the Georgia-Florida border.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)