Author: Ben Young

Some very good news for Georgia's environment came out of the November elections. Meanwhile, Democrats have called for a land deal probe concerning Gov. Sonny Perdue's property adjacent to Oaky Woods Plantation.

Environmental News From Around The State

The wolf may be at Georgia's back door. The state Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division has announced an application by LS Power Associates to build and operate a coal-fired power plant in Early County.

The GreenRoom: Environmental Update

Don't lose sleep over Wayne Mason's pulling out of the Beltline. He wanted residents before transit, which would have made surrounding areas miserable with traffic, and he opposed creation of a multimodal transit facility that would pick up commuters using the proposed Lovejoy light rail line in Atlanta.

In what could be a first for Georgia conservation efforts, the Nature Conservancy purchased 299 acres of land in the Chattahoochee National Forest in Lumpkin County in February, to be turned over to the Georgia Department of Transportation for safekeeping.

It's been a good year so far for Metro Atlanta's environment. The city and the Beltline Partnership purchased the Bellwood Quarry from Vulcan Materials. Plans call for a 50-acre lake with 351 acres of greenspace - the nation's largest city park.

GreenRoom is glad to see Georgia's northern right whales featured in the "Georgia Explorer" exhibit at the new Georgia Aquarium. Few Georgians are aware that these beautiful creatures spend the winter and give birth to their calves in our waters.

Former MARTA General Manager Nathaniel Ford, Sr., who has resigned to head the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, leaves MARTA in a better situation than he found it, having, among other things, called attention to its plight.

It's been a good fall for Georgia's greenspace. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources completed the $7.3 million purchase of 2,421 acres of land in Southwest Georgia's Red Hills region in September, along the banks of the Ochlockonee River and Barnetts Creek in Thomas County

"Because of the way we've protected our coast, Georgia would be able to bear the brunt of a hurricane like Katrina better than lot of surrounding states," says Patty McIntosh, director of coastal resources for the Georgia Conservancy.