Ala. to seek Supreme Court review of water feud

ATLANTA - Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley says his state will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to decide a long-running water feud with Georgia.

His decision Monday came shortly after the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals refused a request from Alabama and Florida to reconsider a ruling favorable to Georgia in a fight over water rights.

The full appeals court decided Friday that it will not reconsider a decision from an appeals panel that found metro Atlanta has the right to withdraw water from Lake Lanier, which serves roughly 3 million people. Florida officials say they are still considering their options.

Georgia supports the appeals panel ruling since it tossed aside a lower court's order that would have severely restricted Atlanta's water supply. Neighboring states say metro Atlanta uses too much water.