WASHINGTON - Georgia's decision in February to ease outdoor-watering restrictions in metropolitan Atlanta undercuts its claims the federal government should continue limiting downstream flows out of that state, says a Florida official.

"The proposal is unjustified in light of Georgia's unfathomable refusal to implement and sustain meaningful water-conservation measures...," said Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole, in a letter released Thursday.

Sole's letter to the U.S. Corps of Engineers instead suggests Georgia should address worries about reservoir levels near Atlanta "by aggressively implementing all authorized measures available to reduce demands on the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers."

Dated Tuesday, the letter is the latest salvo fired in the decades-old feud between Florida, Georgia and Alabama over water from the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river system, exacerbated by what has been two years of regional drought conditions.

"It's easy to make excuses and make accusations, but the facts aren't there," responded Bert Brantley, a spokesman for Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue's office.

Brantley said the added Atlanta water consumption resulting from the easing of some outdoor watering rules in early February is relatively minor.

At the same time, he said, allowing "some reasonable water use" is helping the Georgia landscaping industry, farmers, and plant-sellers to "get back on their feet" during the dry period that has had serious impact on their businesses.