Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025
Good morning! First up today is a spirited data center discussion in Port Wentworth. Then we take a look into the origin of the shrimp at your favorite Coastal Georgia restaurant. Finally, we recap the goings on at the PSC, where two lame duck commissioners will cast their final votes later this week on a last-minute plan to increase Georgia Power’s electricity generation.
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NEWS: ENVIRONMENT
Data center disapproval
Coastal Georgia has no large data centers, not yet anyway. But Port Wentworth is talking about the possibility, distressing residents of this small city in Chatham County, as The Current GA‘s Mary Landers reports. At a planning commission meeting Monday, more than a dozen locals spoke out against a proposal to define data centers in the city’s zoning code, citing concerns about water and electricity usage as well as noise pollution. The planning commission seemed to listen, but as an advisory panel they can only make suggestions to city council, which meets Thursday with the proposed data center ordinance on the agenda.
NEWS: BUSINESS
Where your restaurant gets its shrimp
Coastal Georgia restaurants sometimes rely on local ambiance to suggest the shrimp they’re serving are fresh from a shrimper’s net. But earlier this year, DNA testing proved that to be misleading in many Savannah area restaurants. Most of the dishes in that random sample were swimming with imported shrimp. Now the same DNA testing has been used in Golden Isle restaurants. Check the story to see how your favorite eatery fared.
NEWS: ENVIRONMENT
Lame ducks to vote on fossil fuel expansion
Georgia Power and the Public Service Commission last week came to a surprise agreement about expanding the utility’s generating capacity, largely to accommodate anticipated growth from data centers, as Alander Rocha of the Georgia Recorder reports. They agreement was revealed at the start of a public hearing Wednesday at which dozens had prepared to comment without any knowledge of the deal. Georgia Power says the plan will “put downward pressure on rates,” but that’s also what the utility said about its Plant Vogtle expansion, which increased bills dramatically, as Patty Durand of Georgians for Affordable Energy reports.
WABE’s Emily Jones noted that some of the public comment last week centered on not just the possible cost to Georgians’ wallets, but also the cost to their health, as Georgia Power builds more capacity based on climate-warming fossil gas.
“In 2075 I will be 70 years old. I hope to have children, even grandchildren, by then, and I’m scared for the future I will have to pass on to them,” Emory student Ava Trachtenberg told the PSC.
The five-member PSC — including Tim Echols and Fitz Johnson, who will serve only until January after losing in the November election — votes on the proposal Friday.
Also noted
Ford Motor Company has ceased production of the all-electric F-150 Lightning, its flagship full-size electric pickup, and will focus instead on hybrid vehicles and a future line of smaller, cheaper EVs, NPR reports.
The Georgia Conservancy recently released its 2026 state legislative preview. Among the bills it’s following is one that would provide dedicated funding for the Georgia Farmland Conservation Program.
As temperatures plunged this week across Coastal Georgia, forecasters announced a “cold weather advisory.” As Savannah-based Enki Research points out, the criteria for these advisories varies from place to place. For example, in the Savannah area, a “cold weather advisory” is triggered when the wind chill is 20 degrees F or below. But in Florida it’s announced at 25 degrees F.
There is an ever-growing push to make home solar systems more accessible, writes the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. Enter plug-in solar, small photovoltaic systems typically under 2 kilowatts that can be plugged directly into a wall outlet to offset a portion of a household’s energy consumption. This so-called “balcony solar” is already popular in Germany and is starting to pick up buzz in the U.S., as this primer explains.
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Port Wentworth panel advises against data centers
The Port Wentworth planning commission unanimously rejected a proposal to define data centers in the city’s zoning ordinance, after citizens raised concerns about water and electricity usage, noise, and air pollution.
DNA testing shows Golden Isles restaurants serve American shrimp
The Southern Shrimp Alliance conducted a genetic analysis of 44 randomly selected restaurants in the Golden Isles area and found that 43 of the 44 dishes sampled were wild-caught American shrimp, confirming that shrimp served in the area is likely to be wild-caught American shrimp.
Agreement with Georgia Power met with outrage at regulatory hearing
Georgia Power and the Public Service Commission have agreed to a plan to increase energy capacity by 10,000 megawatts, with Georgia Power promising to lower power bills , but environmental organizations are skeptical of the promise and argue that the plan will actually raise power bills.
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