Wastewater destination weighed

Wednesday, June 3, 2026

Good morning! We travel today to Liberty County, where officials and residents are trying to decide which of its rivers can best handle a new pulse of wastewater. Further south, the Okefenokee looks very close to joining a prestigious list of some 1,200 World Heritage Sites. Coastwide, we’re focused on Georgia Power bills and the PSC elections that will shape those bills in the future.

Questions, tips or concerns? Send me a note at mary.landers@thecurrentga.org

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NEWS: ENVIRONMENT

Liberty wastewater

The Liberty County Development Authority is considering a plan to discharge treated wastewater from a proposed water reclamation plant into the Laurel View River or the North Newport River in Riceboro, The Current GA’s Robin Kemp reports. The plant would process up to 3 million gallons of wastewater per day at full buildout and is a key component of a proposed mixed-use development that would more than double the population in the area. Opponents of the plan fear that discharging into the Laurel View River would harm the area’s sensitive ecosystem, while some residents have suggested rerouting the discharge to the North Newport River instead. A public hearing on the proposed plant is set for June 9.

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ENVIRONMENT: NEWS

An honor for the Okie

The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge has been nominated for UNESCO World Heritage Site designation, which, if approved, would make it Georgia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site and the first national wildlife refuge in the country to receive the status. The World Heritage Committee is expected to finalize the swamp’s new status by vote when it meets in South Korea July 19-29, as Ryan Krugman of Inside Climate News reports.

The Okefenokee hosts the largest blackwater swamp in North America. It is home to a rich array of plants and animals, including endangered species like the red-cockaded woodpecker and Eastern indigo snake. Over the last three decades, supporters have fended off two major mining proposals that threatened the integrity of the swamp, both times resolving the issue by protecting more land around the refuge.

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NEWS: ENVIRONMENT

Georgia Power bills shaved

The Georgia Public Service Commission approved a deal that will lower what Georgia Power charges ratepayers for fuel, resulting in a slight decrease in power bills for millions of Georgians, as Emily Jones of WABE/Grist reports. The lower fuel rate offsets an increase related to the cost of cleaning up from Hurricane Helene, and the monthly bill for a typical 1000-kilowatt-hour customer will go down by about $4. The changes to power bills went into effect on June 1, but that was also the start of higher summer electricity rates, meaning bills may not decrease from May to June.

Commissioner Peter Hubbard, one of two Democrats newly elected to the commission, introduced several amendments that would have reduced bills further, but the Republican majority on the five-person PSC rejected them.

Hubbard faces former Commissioner Fitz Johnson in a November rematch for the PSC seat. Republicans Josh Tolbert and Bobby Mehan are in a runoff for the District 5 seat against Democrat Shelia Edwards. Early voting begins Monday in that statewide runoff. Tolbert and Mehan squared off Sunday in a debate that can be viewed here.

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Also noted

• Join Green Drinks from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 4 at Twitty Park, 3000 Frederica Road, St. Simons. Wake Up Coffee will provide iced coffee and lemonade to enjoy with lawn games, mingling and tree hugging. Glynn Environmental Coalition will provide information about Twitty Park and current development plans threatening it.

• Feral hogs got a reprieve recently when Gov. Brian Kemp cut a $1 million public-private pilot program and a $200,000 wild pig eradication program from the state budget, despite the House passing a bill to use drones to hunt feral hogs and allow their capture without a license.

• Speaking of reprieves, the suspension of Georgia’s gas tax ended Tuesday, effectively adding 33 cents a gallon to prices at the pump. With gas prices nudging more drivers to consider an EV, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy recently published a guide to buying a used electric vehicle. It includes where to look and what to consider before you make your purchase.

• Using DNA analysis, researchers recently found 59% of the Savannah restaurants tested served imported/farm raised shrimp despite stating or implying they were serving local, wild-caught shrimp. That’s a slight improvement over the 77% misrepresentation the researchers found last year, as WTOC reports. Georgia shrimp industry advocates are hoping a new law championed by State Rep. Jesse Petrea of Savannah will bring those numbers down further. The law requires all food service establishments serving shrimp imported from foreign countries to notify customers on their menu or through other signage.

• New research from William & Mary shows climate change pushing the Atlantic mangrove fiddler crab into temperate salt marshes along the southeastern U.S. coast. The study documents the species as far north as Beaufort, SC, almost 200 miles north of its traditional range in Florida.

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