---
title: HB 561. Okefenokee Protection Act; enact
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb561
cite_as: HB 561, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb561
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb561.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb561/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70612
date: 2025-02-24
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb561.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 561
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-20
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Darlene Taylor
- Ron Stephens
- Steven Sainz
- Gerald Greene
- Debbie Buckner
- Carolyn Hugley
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB561/2025
upstream_id: 1978235
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- Okefenokee Swamp
- surface mining
- environmental protection
- Trail Ridge mining
- water resources
---
# HB 561. Okefenokee Protection Act; enact
## Text
House Bill 561
By: Representatives Taylor of the 173rd, Stephens of the 164th, Sainz of the 180th, Greene of
the 154th, Buckner of the 137th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 3 of Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 12 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to surface mining, so as to prohibit the director of the Environmental
Protection Division of the Natural Resources Department from issuing, modifying, or
renewing any permit or accepting any bond to conduct surface mining operations on Trail
Ridge for future permit applications and amendments; to provide a definition; to provide for
a short title; to provide for legislative findings; to provide for related matters; to repeal
conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Okefenokee Protection Act."
SECTION 2.
The General Assembly finds that:
(1) The Okefenokee Swamp is a vital part of Georgia with more than local significance,
is of equal importance to all citizens of the state, is of state-wide concern, and
consequently is properly a matter for regulation and protection under the authority of the
State of Georgia to ensure the values and functions of the Okefenokee Swamp, including
its status as a popular and historic tourist attraction, are not impaired and to fulfill the
responsibilities of each generation as public trustees of the Okefenokee Swamp for
succeeding generations; and
(2) Trail Ridge is a key element in the formation and continued existence of the
Okefenokee Swamp. It shapes the hydrology of the area and controls drainage of the
swamp to the Atlantic Ocean. Trail Ridge contains heavy mineral sands, resulting in two
major surface mining proposals in the past 25 years. The people of Georgia as well as
state and national leaders overwhelmingly rejected the first proposal. Surface mining on
Trail Ridge risks adverse impacts to the wetlands, water quality and quantity, wildlife
habitat, air quality, and wilderness values of the Okefenokee Swamp. As a danger to the
future of the Okefenokee Swamp, Trail Ridge mining impacts the cultural heritage of
indigenous peoples of the area, as well as the historic heritage of the people and
communities whose existence has been shaped by the swamp.
SECTION 3.
Part 3 of Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 12 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to surface mining, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"12-4-85.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term 'Trail Ridge' means that elevated, geological
feature bounded on the west by the Okefenokee Swamp and its watershed; on the east by
an elevation of 100 feet above mean sea level; on the south by the triple divide of the
Soldiers Camp Island, Boone Creek, and Barbar Branch watersheds; and on the north by
the triple divide of the Upper Buffalo Creek, Big Creek, and Okefenokee Swamp
watersheds.
(b) The director of the division shall not issue, modify, or renew any permit or accept any
bond to conduct surface mining operations on Trail Ridge for any permit application or
permit amendment submitted on or after July 1, 2025."
SECTION 4.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## Summaries written by Georgia Commons
The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.
House Bill 561 would permanently bar new surface mining permits on Trail Ridge, the ridge bordering the Okefenokee Swamp, to protect the swamp's wetlands and water flow.
### Plain-language summary
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.
### What it does
- 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.
### Who it affects
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.
### Why it matters
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.
### Key provisions
- 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.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-20)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-02-24)
- Sponsors: Darlene Taylor, Ron Stephens, Steven Sainz, Gerald Greene, Debbie Buckner, Carolyn Hugley
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70612
> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb561.md?full=1