The Lake Lanier Association is working to raise awareness about the possibility of a US Army Corps of Engineers’ project to restore commercial navigation on the lower parts of the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) river system.
Congress has appropriated $100 million for repairs to locks and dams and $3 million to examine reinstating dredging and channel restoration to support navigation.
“The problem for Lake Lanier is that reliable navigation has historically required both a deepened river channel and water releases from upstream reservoirs to float the barges,” according to a LLA white paper distributed to elected officials. “Because Lanier has 66 percent of the system’s water storage capacity, that means navigation cannot be viewed simply as a downstream issue.”
The white paper continues: “The LLA notified the full congressional delegation representing the Lake Lanier area, as well as contacted the Corps and relevant Georgia state elected representatives and ACF stakeholders to raise awareness of the project’s potential implications for homeowners and those who depend on Lake Lanier for recreation and water supply.”
In essence, the association is seeking assistance to ensure (that the Corps perform) a rigorous economic analysis of the project’s potential impacts on the lake before completing the project’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and before implementing any operational changes associated with navigation and dredging.
For more information, visit lakelanier.org.
