By Associated Press
Tallahasee FL – Florida lawmakers are accusing Georgia of negligence in managing its water. And they are calling on the federal government to intervene to prevent further damage downstream in Florida's Apalachicola Bay.
The complaints were raised at a meeting in Washington Thursday. The lawmakers said a recently unveiled federal plan for the region's river basin gives Georgia a free pass for failing to implement more stringent conservation measures. They say that because Georgia's water consumption affects other states, the federal government should force Georgia to do more.
Brig. Gen. Joseph Schroedel of the Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the river basins, responded that the agency does not oversee state water planning. He said each state in the region has strengths and weaknesses in how it manages resources.