Atlanta ? With an epic drought gripping the region, Georgia lawmakers announced plans Thursday for a network of state reservoirs, while the governors of Alabama and Florida warned that Georgia’s consumption threatens their downstream states.

The Georgia plan would involve building at least four new reservoirs and expanding existing ones. Lawmakers did not say how much state funding would go toward bolstering the state’s water supply.

“We think it’s time to jump-start the building of reservoirs in Georgia,” House Speaker Glenn Richardson said.

Alabama, Georgia and Florida are mired in a decades-long water fight over federal reservoirs. The drought – which government forecasters reported could soon get worse – has intensified the jockeying.

Caught in the middle is the Corps of Engineers, which says it is complying with federal guidelines by sending millions of gallons of water from Georgia downstream to Florida and Alabama to supply power plants and protect federally threatened mussel species.