SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A company that has spent years battling conservationists as it seeks a permit to mine outside the Okefenokee Swamp and its federally protected wildlife refuge needs to do just one thing before regulators make a final decision: set aside $2 million for future restoration of the mining site.
Sixteen months after being notified of the requirement, Twin Pines Minerals still hasn’t submitted a surety bond or equivalent financial assurance to show the Georgia Environmental Protection Division that it has access to that amount of cash or credit.
That’s brought an unexpected halt to a project that appeared on the cusp of winning final approval early last year. Georgia regulators issued draft permits in February 2024 despite warnings from scientists that mining so close to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge could irreparably harm a national treasure…