Georgia steps up bid for access to Tenn. River

Josh Brown, The Tennessean | USATODAY

NEW HOPE, Tenn. -- Less than 100 yards of muddy grassland separates Georgia from the Nickajack Reservoir along Tennessee's southern border, but if Peach State lawmakers have their way, the land could one day be theirs.

What they really covet is water from the Tennessee River, which feeds the reservoir. But they're serious enough about quenching the growing thirst of metropolitan Atlanta that Georgia legislators last week passed a resolution authorizing the state's attorney general to sue Tennessee if it doesn't voluntarily give up a 1.5-square-mile parcel of land they say is rightfully theirs.

Standing on the reservoir's banks recently, Marion County (Tenn.) Commissioner Jody Rollins said he understood the Georgians' plight — but only to a point.

"Everybody in the world should have clean drinking water," Rollins said as fishing boats and ducks floated nearby. "I don't want them all to take it out of the Tennessee River."

The origins of the dispute date to 1818, when surveyors mapped out the border between the states. Georgia lawmakers say the surveyors got it wrong, placing it too far south.

The proper border, they say, lies along the 35th parallel, about a mile north of where it is now. That could give it access to river water, which is controlled by the Tennessee Valley Authority.

"What this is, is a solution to a problem that has existed for 195 years," said Georgia Rep. Harry Geisinger, a Republican who represents northern parts of Metro Atlanta and who sponsored the bill.

Geisinger said his resolution would settle the border dispute by officially giving Tennessee the more than 60 square miles that he says are technically part of Georgia, while taking back the strip of land that would give his state access to the water.

"They're beginning to understand that if they went to court, they'd lose the case anyway," he said of Tennessee. "All of those people become Georgians. Think of all of those cities — East Ridge — all of that stuff would have to change. Their heads would be swimming for years. This is a solution to a problem."

Sympathy is limited

Not surprisingly, Tennessee lawmakers don't see it that way. They say residents below the 35th parallel have voted, paid taxes, taken out licenses and engaged in all kinds of other activities as Tennesseans for nearly 200 years.

They say Georgia never got serious about its complaint until water was at stake. The Georgians dispute that, saying they've staked a claim to the land many times over the years.

Tennessee state Rep. Billy Spivey, R-Lewisburg, would lose a piece of the Marion County district he represents if the border changed. He, too, worries about how pumping water to Georgia will affect the Tennessee River.

"I don't want to make too much light of it, because I know it's very important to them," he said. "I sympathize with what they're up against."

He said there are other ways that Georgia could try to resolve its water shortage, such as keeping its growth in check or cutting back on water. Then he frames the argument a little more bluntly.

"If I didn't have water in my yard, I wouldn't plant a garden," Spivey said. "If our neighbors to the south were already thick-tongued and dying of thirst, it would be a different conversation."

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam doesn't seem too eager to hand over Tennessee land.

"The governor will continue to protect the interests and resources of Tennessee," spokesman Dave Smith said in an email.

Community identity

Geisinger, the Georgia lawmaker, said the Tennessee River has so much excess capacity that most people wouldn't even notice if some of the water was diverted to Georgia.

"It would have maybe a half-a-foot effect in a drought year," he said.

Geisinger also argues that more than a billion gallons of water flows from Georgia into the Tennessee River each day.

Even if Georgia gets the land, Geisinger acknowledged, TVA, which oversees the reservoir, would have to approve of Georgia siphoning the water.

His bill, which the Georgia House approved last week 157-13, gives Tennessee and Georgia officials until next year to reach an agreement over the land before the Georgia attorney general could take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, where border disputes between states are often settled.

For Rollins and other Marion County residents, the reservoir is more than just a source of water. The river snakes its way through ridges just west of Chattanooga and provides a spot for recreation. It's tied up in the community's identity. Fears of Georgia draining the lake dry run deep.

"It's a beautiful area," said Rollins, who has lived in the county his entire life. "What's it going to look like to have a pump station out there?"

He, too, believes Georgia should rein in its use of water rather than looking for new streams to tap.

"They built all these big fancy homes and fancy subdivisions. If this was in Atlanta, it would be Bermuda grass, and there'd be a sprinkler every 30 feet," Rollins said. "Why do they use so much water?"

Just a few miles away in South Pittsburg, diners leaning over their sweet tea and fried chicken at Harvey's Pirate Drive-In scoffed at Georgia's attempted land grab.

"If I were in their place I'd probably be trying this, too," said Bob Hookey, 68. "We admit that the state line is in the wrong place, but after 200 years, there's not much chance of moving it."

He smiled.

"We're not really worried about it."