Over at Bloglanta today, Robert has a long post about the coming water wars within the region.

Never mind exactly where the Eastern Continental Divide sits (he places it along Peachtree Street, a commenter says Druid Hills drains west, and I've seen a wall marking it along DeKalb Avenue) the point is that Atlanta draws its water from two main sources, and one (the western one) may dry up one day.

Specifically he's pointing to a Georgia Public Policy Foundation study on the water question. Intense needs in agriculture are causing aquifers to salt-up, and the political fight for groundwater rights is becoming intense. Regarding the Chattahoochee Basin (that's the western water source) Georgia's fight with Alabama and Florida is heading for the U.S. Supreme Court.

A loss there could push development away from the Chattahoochee and toward the Flint River, which is entirely within Georgia's control:

if Georgia does not fair well in the settlements with Alabama, you could see a large development shift going east where more of the water heads to the Atlantic. This would mean higher densities in Dekalb, Rockdale, and Gwinnett, and even more need for transportation options, including suburban rail...which brings us full circle.

It will mean more than that. How we handle water will determine whether we have a future, and at what price. Atlanta is already paying a high price for its water-handling, in the form of a huge sewer project. Someday soon, the rest of the metro area will have to pony up too, one way or another.