Company: Legal settlement puts Okefenokee mine back on track

By RUSS BYNUM
Associated Press

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A company seeking to mine in southeast Georgia near the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp says the project is back on track after a federal agency reversed a June decision that had temporarily blocked it. Twin Pine Minerals said Monday that the Army Corps of Engineers agreed to settle a lawsuit by the company by rescinding its finding that Twin Pines’ mining project couldn’t move forward without consulting the Muscogee Creek Nation. A copy of the legal settlement provided by Twin Pines says the Army Corps has reverted to its prior position that it has no jurisdictional authority over the Okefenokee project. Opponents of the project fear that mining close to the swamp’s bowl-like rim could damage its ability to hold water.