A quarter century ago, then-Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt visited the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in southeast Georgia and denounced a nearby titanium strip mining project proposed by corporate giant DuPont before the company even applied for a single permit.
Babbitt’s visit marked a turning point in environmentalists’ efforts to protect the Okefenokee, the largest wildlife refuge in the Eastern United States. DuPont eventually backed off its mining plan and donated its 16,000 acres to The Conservation Fund.
On Friday, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland visited the Okefenokee as a newly revived mining proposal advanced by Alabama-based Twin Pines Minerals is making its way through the state permitting process. Her position carries no regulatory authority over the mine, but it does allow her to shine a spotlight on risks it poses to the swamp.
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