DNR, Georgia Conservancy, ACCG Team Up For Coastal Conservation

ATLANTA- The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Georgia Conservancy and the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) announced a joint effort today to conserve wildlife and natural habitats and promote sustainable development in the state's fast-growing coastal region.

Representatives signed an agreement for coordination of the Coastal Georgia Land Conservation Initiative during the Board of Natural Resources' monthly meeting. The three-year project, funded in part by a $700,000 grant from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation, will map critical natural areas in 11 coastal counties while also providing data, technology and training to help governments and residents in the region make sound land-use decisions.

"Growth on our coast is placing tremendous pressures on our natural resources," DNR Commissioner Noel Holcomb said. "Having this information is critical to making good decisions in the future, and we are pleased to team up with the Georgia Conservancy and the Association County Commissioners of Georgia on this extremely important project."

Growth is reshaping Georgia's coast. The population in the 11-county area is expected to double in the next 20 years, impacting natural habitats such as coastal beaches and dunes, rivers, salt marshes, freshwater wetlands and upland forests. These habitats support a remarkable diversity of wildlife, protect drinking water supplies, control pollution and underpin commercial fishing and recreational businesses including a $1 billion-a-year nature-based economy. The southern coastal plain, which includes the target counties, has 187 plants, animals and habitats listed as a high conservation priority in the State Wildlife Action Plan.

But the stakes reach even beyond state lines. Georgia has one-third of the eastern seaboard's coastal marshlands and natural resources rated internationally significant, according to the Georgia Conservancy.

"Georgia is blessed with unique environmental riches along the coast," said Jim Stokes, president of the Georgia Conservancy.
"Without careful planning, rapid growth and tourism activities are on a collision course with coastal drinking water supplies, habitats and public lands.

"Through our partnership with DNR and ACCG, we will be able to identify critical coastal lands, establish a regional land conservation network, promote sustainable development practices and organize grassroots efforts to engage citizens in land-use activities."

The Coastal Georgia Land Conservation Initiative will mesh planning for green and gray infrastructure: natural and built environments. Local leaders and communities, the level at which most development decisions are made in Georgia, will be equipped with tools such as region-specific GIS-based software designed to analyze conservation needs, development patterns and compatible land uses. Data from the project will be posted online. Partners will provide technical support, establish a region-wide conservation network and foster public outreach geared to sustainable growth.

The strategy dovetails with an ACCG land-use management project that emphasizes collaboration and marks the coast as a high-priority region.

"The Association County Commissioners of Georgia is proud to work on this important collaborative project with our partners from state government - the Georgia Department of Natural Resources - and an established environmental organization like the Georgia Conservancy, which strives to achieve a balance between necessary and desirable environmental protection and important and desirable economic development" ACCG Executive Director Jerry Griffin said.

"ACCG has spent the past two years concentrating on development of land-management initiatives throughout Georgia. Our coastal region is clearly in need of priority attention. This unique coastal conservation project will help us bring vitally important resources to this historic and treasured region."

As a first step, biologists with the DNR's Wildlife Resources Division are compiling a natural resources inventory of the coastal region, surveying habitats through aerial photographs, satellite images and fieldwork, and following up on reports of rare plant and animal species. The current focus is on state-owned Jekyll Island. That focus will soon spread, first to the six counties along the Atlantic Ocean - Chatham, Bryan, Liberty, McIntosh, Glynn and Camden - then to the more inland counties of Effingham, Long, Wayne, Brantley and Charlton.

When fully implemented, the Coastal Georgia Land Conservation Initiative will help sustain healthy coastal ecosystems and local economies by promoting growth patterns that are in harmony with the region's unique natural resources.

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