An update: It has been a little more than two months since our Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and to my knowledge, the United Nations has not installed a One World curriculum in the Charlton County school system, or started microchipping stray cats in Ware County.
In fact, a check of other cities in the U.S. that have World Heritage Sites seem to indicate they have successfully resisted a U.N. takeover, although there are rumors that the local buffalo in Yellowstone have been acting a bit strange lately.
As for our Okefenokee, all seems well, except the issue of mining the area for titanium dioxide so that the world never runs short of toothpaste whitener still remains a possibility. We seem to be in a temporary timeout.
Much will depend on how important the issue is to our new governor, whether Republican Rick Jackson or Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms. Neither have mentioned mining in our Okefenokee thus far that I am aware of. I hope someone will remember to ask them.
The key, of course, is the Legislature. How much pressure will they feel from pro-mining or anti-mining forces? I remind you that in a democracy, all political decisions are made with either the application of pressure or its absence. So far, it has been a stalemate. In a clumsy effort to absolve themselves of having to take the heat, legislators tried to cop out from making a decision by claiming it was for the bureaucrats in the state Environmental Protection Division to decide. Your reaction, along with many others, put the heat right back where it belongs – on the people we elected, not unelected bureaucrats.
Bipartisan efforts to institute a permanent ban or even a temporary moratorium on drilling were bottled up in the House Natural Resources Committee and never saw the light of day, thanks to its chair, Lynn Smith (R-Newnan), who never saw fit to respond to your questions as to why.
“Chairwoman Smith has established a legislative legacy that will safeguard the environment and natural treasures across our state for future generations to cherish,” intoned House Speaker Jon Burns.
Oh, please. Tell that to Pogo the Possum.
Advocates for a permanent ban on drilling aren’t taking any chances. For them, the beat goes on. On Friday, Oct. 16, the College of Coastal Georgia in Brunswick is hosting a day-long Okefenokee science symposium featuring several scientific speakers on all aspects of the swamp. You can find more information on the College of Coastal Georgia website.
On Saturday, Oct. 17, Georgians for the Okefenokee, along with Georgia Interfaith Power and Light and Adamah ATL, are co-hosting Sabbath at the Swamp, a multi-faith prayer service at the swamp’s edge. It will be followed by a catered, working lunch, and then a boat tour of the swamp. For details, visit Georgia Interfaith Power and Light online.
And then there is the Student Swamp Coalition, a consortium of undergraduate and graduate students from 10 schools in the state, including UGA, Georgia Tech, Georgia State University, Georgia Southern University, Coastal College of Georgia, Kennesaw State University, Columbus State University, Emory University, The Galloway School, and Summerour Middle School.
They are focused on big corporations like Home Depot, Procter & Gamble, Mondelez, Chemours, and others that either use titanium dioxide or sell products containing the mineral, asking them to find another source. Of course, they have been ignored and dismissed by all the corporate suits.
I have some bad news for said corporations. I was once a corporate suit myself. (Look it up.) These students aren’t going away. Neither are the antimining coalitions. Neither are a group of active and responsive readers and the organizations they represent from all over Georgia who take mining in and around our Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge up-close-and-personal. Neither am I. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
As stated, things are currently on hold as we await the upcoming elections and a new cast of characters (along with some holdovers) under the Gold Dome. And then the fight to allow the mining of titanium dioxide in the Okefenokee area or to ban it will likely heat up again. As that noted philosopher Yogi Berra stated, “It ain’t over till it’s over.”
