HB 562: Natural Resources, Department of; five-year moratorium on acceptance of applications for new or requests to modify existing permits; provisions

Trail Ridge is a geological formation bordering the Okefenokee Swamp that has been the site of mining permit disputes because of concerns about the swamp's water levels. This bill adds a new section to Georgia's surface mining law (O.C.G.A. § 12-4-85) that defines Trail Ridge's boundaries using specific watershed and elevation markers. From July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2030, the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources would be barred from accepting any new permit applications or any requests to expand existing permits for surface mining operations on Trail Ridge. The bill carves out an exception: applications or modification requests already submitted and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30, 2025 could still be accepted or denied under the moratorium.

• Adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 12-4-85) defining 'Trail Ridge' by its geographic boundaries near the Okefenokee Swamp.
• Prohibits the Environmental Protection Division from accepting new surface mining permit applications on Trail Ridge from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2030.
• Prohibits the division from accepting requests to modify existing permits if the modification would expand the land affected by mining on Trail Ridge during that same five-year window.
• Exempts applications or modification requests already submitted and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30, 2025 from the moratorium.

Mining companies seeking to open or expand surface mining operations on Trail Ridge, the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources, which processes the permits, and residents and environmental groups concerned about the Okefenokee Swamp's water levels and ecology.

For five years, no new or expanded mining permits could move forward on Trail Ridge, pausing any efforts to grow surface mining footprint near the Okefenokee Swamp, while permit requests already filed and deemed complete before the deadline could still proceed through the normal review process.

• Section 1 adds new Code section 12-4-85 to Georgia's surface mining law, defining Trail Ridge using specific watershed divides and a 100-foot elevation line as its eastern boundary.
• Subsection (b) imposes the moratorium: from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2030, the division cannot accept new permit applications or requests to expand existing permitted mining areas on Trail Ridge.
• Subsection (c) exempts from the moratorium any applications or modification requests submitted and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30, 2025.
• Section 2 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)

• surface mining
• Okefenokee Swamp
• environmental permits
• Trail Ridge
• Department of Natural Resources