"The U.S. Supreme Court appears hesitant to side with Florida in a bitter water dispute that pits state’s oystermen against Georgia farmers.

The justices heard oral argument on Monday on Florida’s latest plea for a cap on Georgia’s use of a shared river basin. The case is an original jurisdiction proceeding, a rare type of dispute that goes straight to the Supreme Court rather than working through lower benches first.

“Denying relief in these circumstances not only would be a death sentence for Apalachicola but would extinguish Florida’s equal right to the reasonable use of the waters at issue,” Latham & Watkins LLP lawyer Gregory G. Garre, representing Florida, told the justices, referring to the epicenter of the state’s wild oyster industry."

Ellen M. Gilmer reports for Bloomberg Environment February 22, 2021. [2]