Water park proposed during Ga. drought

BUFORD, Ga., May 4 (UPI) -- A proposal for a new water park in Buford, Ga., will be given consideration despite the state's ongoing drought, officials say.

Atlanta Regional Commission official Tom Wetandt said water-use priorities will be an important factor in reviewing the proposal for a 200,000-square-foot water park by the Georgia Land and Commercial Solutions real estate group, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Sunday.

"Water consumption will be a major component of the review," the head of the ARC Comprehensive Planning Division said.

Yet with Georgia already three years into the drought, opponents of the proposal say the state's water supplies should be reserved for necessities, not recreation.

"This is a time when we should be focusing on protecting our natural water resources and not using massive amounts of water to replicate some water park in ... an area that has a water crisis," said Sally Bethea of the Georgia water protection group Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper.

The Journal-Constitution reported that an official news release regarding the proposed park is due in a couple weeks from the real estate group.