HB 561: Okefenokee Protection Act; enact

Trail Ridge is a geological ridge along the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp that controls how water drains from the swamp toward the Atlantic Ocean. It also contains heavy mineral sands that have drawn two major mining proposals over the past 25 years. This bill, titled the 'Okefenokee Protection Act,' adds a new section to Georgia's surface mining law (O.C.G.A. Title 12, Chapter 4) that would stop the state from allowing new mining there. Specifically, it defines the boundaries of Trail Ridge and then bars the director of the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources from issuing, modifying, or renewing any surface mining permit, or accepting any mining bond, for Trail Ridge. The ban applies to any permit application or amendment submitted on or after July 1, 2025. The bill also lays out legislative findings describing the swamp's ecological, cultural, and historic importance.

• Adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 12-4-85) defining the geographic boundaries of Trail Ridge using watershed and elevation markers.
• Prohibits the Environmental Protection Division director from issuing, modifying, or renewing surface mining permits on Trail Ridge.
• Prohibits the director from accepting any mining bond for surface mining operations on Trail Ridge.
• Applies the prohibition to any permit application or amendment submitted on or after July 1, 2025, meaning existing permits are not directly addressed.
• States legislative findings on the Okefenokee Swamp's statewide significance, its hydrology, and risks from mining to wetlands, water quality, wildlife, and cultural heritage.

Mining companies seeking to extract heavy mineral sands from Trail Ridge, the Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, communities and indigenous groups connected to the Okefenokee Swamp, and Georgians who rely on the swamp for tourism, recreation, or water resources.

If enacted, companies would be unable to get state approval for new mining operations on Trail Ridge after July 1, 2025, closing off a mineral sands extraction route that has been proposed twice in the last 25 years and that critics say threatens the swamp's water levels and wildlife.

• Section 1 names the bill the 'Okefenokee Protection Act.'
• Section 2 sets out legislative findings on the Okefenokee Swamp's importance and the risks surface mining on Trail Ridge poses to wetlands, water, wildlife, air quality, and cultural heritage.
• Section 3 adds new O.C.G.A. § 12-4-85, defining Trail Ridge by its watershed and elevation boundaries.
• Section 3(b) bars the Environmental Protection Division director from issuing, modifying, or renewing permits or accepting bonds for surface mining on Trail Ridge for applications submitted on or after July 1, 2025.
• Section 4 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-02-24House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-21House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-20House Hopper (House)

• Darlene Taylor (R, HD-173)Primary sponsor
• Ron Stephens (R, HD-164)
• Steven Sainz (R, HD-180)
• Gerald Greene (R, HD-154)
• Debbie Buckner (D, HD-137)
• Carolyn Hugley (D, HD-141)

• Okefenokee Swamp
• surface mining
• environmental protection
• Trail Ridge mining
• water resources