This week’s announcement from Florida Gov. Rick Scott that he plans to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to limit Georgia’s water use short-circuited negotiations among the governors of Alabama, Florida and Georgia and opened up a new, more hostile chapter in the multi-decade “water wars.”
Deal, who said he was blindsided by Scott’s statement, urged the states to resume talks but seemed resigned to the fact that Georgia will confront another taxing legal fight that could take years to resolve
“We’re talking about water that falls on Georgia’s soil and flows through the state of Georgia. There’s a reason for us to be protective. We will not roll over. If Florida wants to fight, we’ll fight,” Deal told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday. “We think we have plenty of ammunition and that we have shown good faith on our side.”
