The federal government is seeking public input on a proposal that would allow the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to acquire property near the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge that could soon be mined.
The proposal is for a “minor expansion” of the refuge’s existing boundaries to bolster protections of the unspoiled freshwater wetland system and wildlife habitats found in the largest blackwater swamp in North America.
The change would add about 22,000 acres around the perimeter of the existing refuge if property owners of the newly eligible turf choose to sell the land.
That includes property currently held by an Alabama-based company, Twin Pines Minerals LLC, which plans to mine for titanium and zirconium just outside the current refuge’s boundaries.
The mining proposal has been met with loud public opposition since it was first proposed in 2018. Opponents of the mine argue that Trail Ridge, where the mining would take place, plays a vital role in maintaining the swamp’s water levels and, therefore, supporting the refuge’s famously diverse ecosystem.
One of the permits would also allow the company to withdraw 1.4 million gallons per day from the Floridan Aquifer, sparking additional concerns about the impact on the swamp’s water levels and the risk of wildfires.
Supporters of the federal proposal, which includes a one-mile fuel reduction zone to limit the risk of fires, argue it’s important to help protect the inside of the swamp by shielding the land just outside of it. They say the proposed expansion is a step toward protecting Trail Ridge.
But Twin Pines representatives say they still plan to move forward with their mining plans.
When the refuge boundary expansion proposal was first announced in October, the company’s president, Steve Ingle, said it was the first he had heard of it and that their “plans to commence mining upon permit approval are unchanged.”
A company spokesman repeated that sentiment when reached Wednesday: “When permits are granted, we plan to move forward with our mining project.”
The state Environmental Protection Division issued draft permits early this year for the controversial project.
An agency spokeswoman said Wednesday that EPD is still working on the response to the public comments received on those draft permits. More than 70,000 people wrote in to voice their opinion on the permits this spring.
As of now, final permits have not been issued.
But opponents of mining near the Okefenokee Swamp are urging the federal agency to look beyond the Twin Pines project and start taking additional steps to protect other vulnerable nearby land.
In a letter submitted as part of the public comment process, members of the Okefenokee Protection Alliance pressed the Fish and Wildlife Service to add more nearby properties to the plan in hopes landowners might be willing to sell them.
They point to other large tracts of land near the Twin Pines site on Trail Ridge.
“While we are heartened by the proposal, FWS should view the minor expansion as one step in a tiered process of acquisition that must continue to secure enduring and durable protections for the Okefenokee,” the alliance’s executive members wrote in its letter. “Mining is without question an existential threat, but virtually all of the threats now facing the Refuge originate outside its border.”
The alliance represents a coalition of more than 50 groups, including the Southern Environmental Law Center and Georgia-based advocacy groups like One Hundred Miles and the Georgia River Network.
“In sum, we strongly support the Service’s proposal but implore the agency to think bigger,” the alliance’s executive members wrote.
“Of all the once-mighty wetland ecosystems — the Grand Kankakee in Illinois and Indiana, the Everglades of Florida, and the Great Dismal Swamp of Virginia and North Carolina — the Greater Okefenokee Ecosystem is the last of its kind: alive, intact, and wild.”
The public comment period has been extended, with a new deadline to submit a written comment set for Dec. 13. Comments can be emailed to Okefenokee@fws.gov.
A virtual hearing is set for 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 9. Those interested in attending must register in advance.
This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with Georgia Recorder.
