The Lake Lanier Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection of the massive reservoir, warns that dredging of the lower end of the Chattahoochee River for commercial barge navigation could have a major impact on the Lake Lanier economy, residents, and the lake as a drinking water resource for millions in north Georgia.
The group says such additional commercial barge navigation in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River system would require large additional water releases from the lake.
“Lake Lanier cannot refill fast enough or often enough to stay at full if you’re taking more water out of it to support navigation. They are looking at resuming navigation, which has been a failed commercial water transportation system for over 20 years,” said Lake Lanier Association representative Clyde Morris…