Thanks to the more than two dozen organizations, local, regional, statewide in Florida and Georgia, national, and international, that oppose the titanium mine that would be far too close to the Okefenokee Swamp. The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge (ONWR) provides boating, birding, fishing, and hunting nearby to the tune of more than $60 million a year and more than 700 jobs, making it the NWR of most economic benefit to each of Georgia and Florida. The Okefenokee Swamp is a unique ecological treasure, and is the headwaters of the Suwannee and St. Marys Rivers. The burden of proof is on the miners, and they have not met it.

Organizations For Okefenokee Swamp, Against Titanium Mine
PDF
Add your organization here: https://forms.gle/Dyqc77EBsjXBsz93A

You can still file a comment with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. If the Corps actually issues a permit, which they may in the next few weeks, anything filed can be used in any ensuing lawsuit.

Exactly how many organizations oppose that strip mine is hard to say, since some, such as Waterkeepers Florida, represent others all over a state, and Waterkeeper Alliance has more than 350 member organizations worldwide. The Georgia Water Coalition (GWC) put the Okefenokee Swamp on its 2019 Dirty Dozen worst threats to Georgia’s waters because of this proposed mine, and GWC has more than 250 partner organizations. Southwings volunteer pilots have flown several times over the mine site, around the Okefenokee Swamp, and down to where Twin Pines Minerals is already under a Florida Consent Order along with Chemours for violations at four titanium strip mines in north Florida. And thanks to Citizens Against Phosphate Mines (CAPM) that obtained that Florida Consent Order.

014North Maxville Mine Chemours
Photo: Wayne Morgan for Suwannee Riverkeeper on Southwings flight, pilot Allen Nodorft, October 5, 2019.

So let us thank at least Suwannee Riverkeeper, St. Marys Earthkeepers, Sierra Club, Defenders of Wildlife, Center for Biological Diversity, Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), Georgia River Network, Georgia Conservancy, Environment Georgia, One Hundred Miles, Glynn Environmental Coalition, Wayne Morgan Artistry, St. Marys Riverkeeper, Satilla Riverkeeper, Flint Riverkeeper, Savannah Riverkeeper, Ogeechee Riverkeeper, Waterkeepers Florida, Our Santa Fe River, Dogwood Alliance, Georgia Women and those who stand with us, Friends of Georgia State Parks, National Parks Conservation Association, National Wildlife Refuge Association, The Nature Conservancey, The Wilderness Society, Wilderness Watch, Waterkeeper Alliance, Georgia Water Coalition, Citizens Against Phosphate Mines (CAPM), and Southwings.

Plus both U.S. EPA and GA-EPD filed comments saying the miners’ application was missing much key information. GA-EPD even explicitly cited Suwannee Riverkeeper’s comments. Even the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which operates the Okefenokee NWR, filed comments about the ecological and economic value of the Swamp and the application’s lack of information.

For much more information, see: wwals.net/issues/titanium-mining/

How to Comment

Help Suwannee Riverkeeper save the Okefenokee Swamp
You can object to a titanium strip mine proposed far too near the Swamp.

GA-EPD had a public comment period open until March 20, 2023 on the Twin Pines Minerals Mining Land Use Plan.

You can still send a comment to the addreseses below, even though the comment period is over. You can comment from anywhere: not limited to Georgia.

Here is the Public Notice and the documents on which you need to comment.

You can email or paper mail your comments, or join one of two zoom webinars.

• Land Protection Branch,
  4244 International Parkway,
  Atlanta Tradeport- Suite 104,
  Atlanta, Georgia 30354
• twinpines.comment@dnr.ga.gov
• https://gaepd.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_2DroBrvkTZGU_4OsogtPSQ
  Zoom Meeting Registration February 21 or 23, 2023

You can write to your Georgia state representative or senator or governor or lieutenant governor and ask them to refuse any such instrument.

Here's a convenient comment form by Georgia Water Coalition:
https://protectgeorgia.org/okefenokee/#/320/

Or to find your legislator you can type in your ZIP code here: http://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/

These are the Georgia state Senators with districts most involved with the Okefenokee Swamp:

• District 003 Senator Mike Hodges (R-Brunswick), (404) 463-1309, (912) 464-1989, mike.hodges@senate.ga.gov (Charlton, Brantley, and east half of Ware Counties).
• District 008, Senator Russ Goodman (R-Homerville), (404) 463-1318, 912-218-0447, russ.goodman@senate.ga.gov, rustingoodman@gmail.com, (Lowndes, Lanier, Echols, Clinch, Atkinson, and west half of Ware Counties).

These are the Georgia state Representatives with districts most involved:

• 174, John Corbett, R - Lake Park, (404) 656-5105, john.corbett@house.ga.gov, Charlton, Brantley, south half of Ware, Clinch, Echols, east third of Lowndes Counties.
• 180, Steven Sainz, R - Woodbine, (404) 657-1803, steven.sainz@house.ga.gov, Camden and part of Glynn Counties: no Suwannee River Basin Counties after recent redistricting.
• 176, James Burchett, R - Waycross, 404-656-5105, Suite 1318, james.burchett@house.ga.gov, southwest Coffee, Atkinson, Lanier, and northeast Lowndes Counties
• 177, Dexter Sharper, D - Valdosta, 404.656.0126, dexter.sharper@house.ga.gov, Lowndes County

You can also write to your U.S. Representative or Senator and ask them to urge the Corps to take back up its oversight of the mine site. See former letter from former Rep. Al Lawson (FL-05).

For the requested Georgia state permit regarding Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, you can send a comment or request for public hearing to
Stephen Wiedl, Wetlands Unit, stephen.wiedl@dnr.ga.gov
Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Division, Water Protection Branch, 7 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30334.
Be sure to mention Applicant: Twin Pines Minerals, LLC, Application Number: SAS-2018-00554.

For the Georgia Coastal Management Program certification, you can send a comment to
Federal Consistency Coordinator, Ecological Services Section, Coastal Resources Division,
Georgia Department of Natural Resources, One Conservation Way, Brunswick, Georgia 31523-9600
Telephone 912-264-7218.

You can also write to the Georgia DNR board, asking them to refuse any such instrument.
Georgia Board of Natural Resources
2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, SE, Suite 1252, Atlanta, GA 30334

To submit a letter to the editor of the Charlton County Herald, you can email editor@charltonherald.com.
Or write to your local newspaper.
You can also contact radio, TV, and of course post on social media.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!

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