--- title: SR 989. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE); to reinstate and fully fund radiological and water quality protections for the Savannah River and surrounding communities; urge collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr989 cite_as: SR 989, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr989 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr989.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr989/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74206 date: 2026-03-19 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr988.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr990.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 95 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr989.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 989 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2026-03-18 last_action: Senate Read and Referred sponsors: - Nan Orrock - Sally Harrell - Tonya Anderson - Gail Davenport - Randal Mangham - Donzella James - Michael Rhett - Jaha Howard - David Lucas - Nikki Merritt - Freddie Sims - Sheikh Rahman - Ed Harbison - Kim Jackson - Elena Parent - Harold Jones - Kenya Wicks text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR989/2025 upstream_id: 2135868 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - Savannah River - nuclear site monitoring - water quality - environmental protection - Burke County --- # SR 989. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE); to reinstate and fully fund radiological and water quality protections for the Savannah River and surrounding communities; urge ## Text Senate Resolution 989 By: Senators Orrock of the 36th, Harrell of the 40th, Anderson of the 43rd, Davenport of the 17th, Mangham of the 55th and others A RESOLUTION Urging the United States Department of Energy (DOE) to reinstate and fully fund radiological and water quality protections for the Savannah River and surrounding communities; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, the Savannah River is an essential source of drinking water, economic activity, recreation, and natural habitat for the people of the State of Georgia; and WHEREAS, the Savannah River Site (SRS), owned by the United States Department of Energy (DOE), lies adjacent to the Savannah River and has historically been used for production, processing, and cleanup of nuclear materials; and WHEREAS, concerns about potential environmental and radiological impacts along the Savannah River, including downstream Georgia communities such as Burke County and Richmond County, have led to calls for independent monitoring and public engagement; and WHEREAS, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division previously conducted a state-supported environmental monitoring program in Georgia until 2004; and WHEREAS, the radiological and water quality monitoring work previously supported by DOE and undertaken by the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (SREL) at the University of Georgia provided critical data, science-based context, and educational outreach to residents of Burke County, including water, soil, wildlife, and food sampling, under the Radiological Education, Monitoring, and Outreach Project (REMOP); and WHEREAS, REMOP was designed as a community-centered project to collect environmental data, educate local residents about radionuclides and heavy metals, and synthesize existing monitoring information from multiple sources for public understanding; and WHEREAS, REMOP activities between 2017 and 2019 included the creation of outreach materials; community talks; sampling of air, surface water, groundwater, soil, fruits, vegetables, meat, and milk; and compilation of current and historic data from DOE-SRS, Georgia EPD, South Carolina DHEC, and Plant Vogtle environmental reports; and WHEREAS, REMOP represented an important model of partnership between an academic research institution, a community-based nonprofit, and federal agencies to increase transparency and community access to environmental data; and WHEREAS, earlier resolutions urging for the restoration of independent monitoring in Georgia successfully advanced community monitoring activities and strengthened engagement with affected citizens; and WHEREAS, renewed federal activities at the SRS, including proposed plutonium pit production along with ongoing water quality concerns in Burke and Richmond counties, underscore the need for robust, independent environmental protections and consistent monitoring of radioactive and chemical constituents in the Savannah River watershed. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body urge the United States Department of Energy to reinstate, fully fund, and expand comprehensive radiological and water quality protections, monitoring, and reporting along the Savannah River corridor between the Savannah River Site and Plant Vogtle, all of which should include transparent public reporting of results, coordination with state agencies and academic institutions, and meaningful engagement with affected Georgia communities. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to the public and the press. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia Senate resolution urges the U.S. Department of Energy to restore and expand radiological and water quality monitoring along the Savannah River, affecting Burke and Richmond county communities near the Savannah River Site. ### Plain-language summary This resolution does not change Georgia law. It expresses the Georgia Senate's position calling on the federal Department of Energy to reinstate and fully fund environmental monitoring programs along the Savannah River, particularly between the Savannah River Site and Plant Vogtle. The resolution points to a past program, the Radiological Education, Monitoring, and Outreach Project (REMOP), run between 2017 and 2019 by the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory at the University of Georgia, which sampled water, soil, food, and wildlife and shared results with Burke County residents. It notes that federal funding for this kind of independent monitoring lapsed and that renewed activity at the Savannah River Site, including proposed plutonium pit production, has raised new concerns. The Senate asks DOE to fund transparent public reporting, coordination with state agencies and universities, and engagement with affected Georgia communities. ### What it does - Formally urges the U.S. Department of Energy to reinstate and fully fund radiological and water quality monitoring along the Savannah River. - Calls for monitoring to be expanded to cover the corridor between the Savannah River Site and Plant Vogtle. - Requests that DOE ensure transparent public reporting of monitoring results and coordination with state agencies and academic institutions. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. - Does not create any new Georgia law, funding, or regulatory requirement; it is a statement of the Senate's position directed at a federal agency. ### Who it affects Residents of Burke and Richmond counties near the Savannah River Site, users of the Savannah River for drinking water and recreation, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory at the University of Georgia, and the U.S. Department of Energy. ### Why it matters If DOE responds to this request, communities downstream of the Savannah River Site could see restored independent testing of water, soil, and food for radioactive and chemical contamination, giving residents more public data as federal nuclear activity at the site, including proposed plutonium pit production, increases. ### Key provisions - The whereas clauses describe the history of the Radiological Education, Monitoring, and Outreach Project (REMOP), which sampled air, water, soil, and food in Burke County between 2017 and 2019. - The resolved clause urges DOE to reinstate, fully fund, and expand monitoring and reporting along the Savannah River between the Savannah River Site and Plant Vogtle. - The resolution requests transparent public reporting, coordination with state agencies and academic institutions, and engagement with affected Georgia communities. - A final clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. ## Status - Status: Introduced (2026-03-18) - Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2026-03-19) - Sponsors: Nan Orrock, Sally Harrell, Tonya Anderson, Gail Davenport, Randal Mangham, Donzella James, Michael Rhett, Jaha Howard, David Lucas, Nikki Merritt, Freddie Sims, Sheikh Rahman, Ed Harbison, Kim Jackson, Elena Parent, Harold Jones, Kenya Wicks - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74206 > The history, votes, and amendments (95 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr989.md?full=1