Chattahoochee River - Atlanta

Atlanta

Atlanta is built upon the crest of a large ridge, rather than in the floodplain of the river. This has contributed the preservation of much of the natural scenic beauty of the section that runs through metropolitan Atlanta. North of the metropolis, the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area protects other portions of the riverbanks in a region that is spread across several disconnected areas.

The river traverses through much of Atlanta's hilly topography of the northern suburbs. Wealthy suburban communities in northern metro Atlanta that abut the river include: Vinings, Buckhead, Sandy Springs, East Cobb, Roswell, Dunwoody, Peachtree Corners, Johns Creek, and Berkeley Lake.

As three states have needs related to the river, there has been increasing controversy since the late twentieth century related to competing development among the regions and the implications for the river. The enormous growth of metropolitan Atlanta has increased its water withdrawals from the river. This has effects downstream. For example, the oysters in the Apalachicola Bay, Florida, depend on the brackish water mixture of river and ocean water, and the alternating freshwater and saltwater flows that the river and the tides provide. The amount of flow in the Chattahoochee has also been decreased by interbasin water transfers, where water is withdrawn from the Chattahoochee, but discharged as treated sewage water into another river, such as the Oconee River, which flows to the Atlantic Seaboard.

Interest groups and the state of Florida have asked the United States Congress to intervene to reduce the priority given to put navigation of the lower Chattahoochee, south of Columbus, by river barge. This requirement causes large water withdrawals, which environmental supporters consider a waste of water needed to support habitats, especially during droughts. The navigation issue has aggravated the fight between Georgia, Florida, and Alabama over rights to the river water. A lawsuit has been filed in the case to reduce priorities given to navigation. The lawsuit is now in court, and may take years to resolve.