Georgia lawmakers slogged through bipartisan attempts to protect Okefenokee, sinking in the end

The push by a large coalition of Georgia legislators to protect the Okefenokee Swamp from mining failed this session even before legislators could vote on a panel to study ways to protect the diverse wildlife refuge.

The failure of Georgia legislators to pass bills designed to protect the Okefenokee natural resource was another blow to environmentalists who have tried to block the surface mining permit for the past several years. Twin Pines Minerals of Alabama is asking state environmental regulators to approve its plan to dig for heavy minerals three miles from the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge

An Okefenokee mining protection bill with actual teeth was filed early in the session. Thomasville Republican state Rep. Darlene Taylor’s House Bill 71, which limited the future expansion of surface mining along barrier regions of the Okefenokee Swamp, and prohibited companies — like the Alabama-based company — from modifying or renewing their mining applications. Taylor said her concern about development on the edge of the swamp stems from her years living in south Florida, where the Everglades was ravaged by modern society’s intrusions.