The latest plan to extract profits out of sand near the Okefenokee Swamp fits a pattern that started in the late 1800s and has ties to historic names in Atlanta’s growth – including Inman Park developer Joel Hurt, and an owner of the ‘Atlanta Journal’ who parleyed presidential endorsement editorials into a post as U.S. Secretary of Interior.
Tag: Environment
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Metro Atlanta’s ongoing growth to get assist from expanded sewage plant in Roswell
Metro Atlanta’s relentless growth results in part from the ability to process sewage. Fulton County is poised to foster growth in Roswell, Alpharetta and other areas north of Sandy Springs with construction set to start this fall on the expansion of the Big Creek Water Reclamation Facility.
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GSU advances research into fighting Zika virus; Dengue epidemic re-emerges
Researchers at Georgia State University appear to have made a breakthrough in the potential to harness the body’s innate defenses to fight the mosquito-borne Zika virus – a disease with no known treatment or vaccine.
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Okefenokee Swamp: Proposed sand mine may have national security implications
The proposal to mine sand near the Okefenokee Swamp could involve matters of national security. Products created with components in the sand are used in military aircraft, satellites, missiles and munitions, and naval vessels. The U.S. now imports almost 100 percent of the material and the top two sources are Japan and Russia; the Commerce Department is conducting a security analysis.
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Climate experts say rescue food can reduce warming; it now feeds those in need
Climate-change scientists meeting in Geneva released a report Thursday that locks on to one of metro Atlanta’s popular social action programs as a way to stem global warming – rescuing food that’s destined for the landfill and getting it on someone’s table.
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ARC goes high tech to reach public to devise plan for 2050
By David Pendered
Think of ARC’s long-range, regional planning blueprint done with 3-D animation. It would feel more alive, more real-time representational of the region it aims to serve. And the conversation has already started about the future the blueprint aims to inform.
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Along the South River, large tracts of tree canopy under siege
By Guest Columnist RYAN GRAVEL, AICP, founder of Sixpitch, Inc.
The latest tale in the slow destruction of Atlanta’s iconic tree canopy might seem like a bizarre aberration. When you see it in context of generational disinvestment in the South River watershed, however, suddenly it’s not so surprising. As it turns out, this tale is not an anomaly, but if you look closely, an elegant and aspirational solution to the larger narrative is hiding in plain sight.
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Just as mayor sings of ‘birds in the air,’ little Pine Lake named Wildlife Sanctuary
Pine Lake folks talk big about theirs being the smallest city in DeKalb County. On Thursday, this self-described “micropolitan” was recognized as the latest Atlanta Audubon Certified Wildlife Sanctuary. There was no word if the mayor will be singing about the award.
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Summer rite of ‘Shark Week’ highlights bipartisan support for shark conservation
Bobby Kennedy’s grandson might not have much in common with a Texan who taught high school English before she was elected to Congress. But both congressmembers have signed legislation intended to protect sharks – an effort gaining attention during ‘Shark Week.’
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South River Watershed Alliance to DeKalb County: Stop dumping raw sewage into river
A polluted river isn’t like a pothole – it doesn’t shriek for attention every time you drive over it. The polluted South River is quiet like that, though now its advocates are calling on DeKalb County to stop dumping raw sewage into the river.
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Leadership search for politically active Sierra Club of Georgia begins Saturday
The discussion begins Saturday about replacing the departing director of the Sierra Club’s Georgia chapter, one of the state’s few environmental organizations that endorses political candidates, seeks to influence legislation and sway public opinion.
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Vine City Peace Park – Much more than a name: A place to study war no more
By Guest Columnist ANDREA L. BOONE, Atlanta City Councilmember and daughter of the late civil rights leader Rev. Joseph E. Boone
In 2008, the city named the north border of Rodney Cook Sr. Peace Park for my late father, the Rev. Joseph E. Boone. The park located on Atlanta’s west side will consist of 16 acres of green space, with a lake, and, of most significance, a Peace Pantheon with a library, 18 sculptures and tributes to civil and human rights leaders from the area. All said, it will be the largest peace park in America.
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Canada geese: Few options to manage troublesome birds, though oiling eggs a trend
A few Canada geese were minding their own business on a sidewalk outside Perimeter Mall Saturday afternoon when the soft “oohhh” murmurs of passersby gave way to a tone more harsh as the pedestrians passed through the birds’ droppings. This is a sign of the summer season in metro Atlanta.
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Fulton County bans disposable plastics, declares residues could harm humans
Fulton County’s Board of Commissioners has banned the use of most disposable plastic food packaging in the county’s facilities. The ban is to be phased in and take effect Jan. 1, 2020. It also declares humans could be harmed by particles of plastics.
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Downtown Atlanta is about to lose its only streets that actually move traffic
By Guest Columnist JACKSON FAW, a writer, actor and activist based in Atlanta
On July 1, against promises made to downtown Atlanta hotels and businesses that oppose the plan, the Atlanta City Council rushed a vote to begin eliminating the city’s only downtown streets designed to move large volumes of traffic quickly.
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Bald eagles survived Hurricane Michael, fewer hatchlings estimated in nests
Georgia’s population of bald eagles has survived the ravages of Hurricane Michael, though the storm destroyed 14 nests when it barreled through South Georgia in October, according to a new report from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources on eagle nests in the state.
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Spaceport Camden: FAA moves ahead with review; negotiates over releasing environmental reports
The FAA has decided it has enough information to review the launch permit application for Spaceport Camden – including environmental information. This occurs even as an environmental law group continues to fight the FAA in federal court in Atlanta for a full accounting of potential environmental hazards of proposed rocket launches over Cumberland Island National Seashore.
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Park service seeks comments for planned upgrades at park along Chattahoochee River
More improvements are planned near the southern tip of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, including a proposed trail and elevated overlook with views of the river. The deadline for public comment is July 7.
Posted inColumns
A 17-mile trail system taking shape in Sandy Springs to connect parks, neighborhoods, destinations
Sandy Springs is moving forward briskly with planning for an estimated 17-mile set of trails to link parks, Perimeter Center and the city’s central park. The city council has allocated $750,000 to further a plan still on the drafting tables at PATH Foundation.
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Georgia’s endangered marine mammal to get relief from planned halt of offshore oil exploration
The second dead right whale of the year was reported last week, and by coincidence it was spotted the same day the U.S. House voted to block the expansion of offshore oil drilling in waters of Georgia and most of the rest of the nation. Offshore oil drilling activities are a hazard to endangered right whales and to other sea life, according to the federal government.
