Mary Landers

Savannah

Environment reporter at The Current GA

Environment reporter at The Current, Formerly Sav Morning News, Peace Corps (Malawi), Philly native. Tips? [email protected]

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Articles

Twin Pines' financial woes stall mining permits near Okefenokee Swamp

2 days ago | thecurrentga.org | Mary Landers

Twin Pines Minerals, the company waiting for more than a year for permission to mine near the Okefenokee Swamp, has not submitted evidence of financial reserves required to receive its permits, state regulators disclosed this week. The news offers the latest window into the legal and fiscal challenges facing the Alabama-based company. It is fighting two separate lawsuits alleging breach of contract that could cost more than $30 million.
Georgia Power is planning for a huge spike in energy demand. Critics say it’s overestimating

1 week ago | thecurrentga.org | Emily Jones |Mary Landers

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. Georgia’s largest electric utility is preparing to meet what it says is a huge spike in new electricity demand. Georgia Power says it expects it will need to provide 8,200 more megawatts by 2031 – about four times the energy made by its brand-new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle.
Permitting Drags on, PSC Heats Up

1 week ago | thecurrentga.org | Mary Landers |Mary Landers ReporterReporter

Good morning! First up today we have look at what happens behind the scenes as a company waits for its permits to mine near the Okefenokee. We then turn to the Public Service Commission, where after years of electoral delay there’s a flurry of activity lately. Finally, we’re obliged to remind our coastal neighbors that it’s almost hurricane season again. Sorry! But there’s at least one crucial way to prepare now. Let’s get ready!Questions, tips or concerns?
Climate advocates worry as fossil fuels power Georgia's data centers

2 weeks ago | thecurrentga.org | Emily Jones |Mary Landers

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. An expansive former row-crop farm in Lee County, in southwest Georgia, is now home to a flock of sheep with a job to do: eat grass. “My rule of thumb is if I can walk out here among the panels and still see my boots, then that’s effective grazing management,” said site manager Tyler Huber on a recent visit to the farm.
Awaiting permits to mine near Okefenokee, Twin Pines finds time is money

2 weeks ago | thecurrentga.org | Mary Landers

For more than 15 months, Georgia regulators have been pondering the issuance of a permit to mine near the Okefenokee Swamp. Environmentalists who have fought against the permit, saying mining will harm the largest wildlife refuge on the East Coast, were certain a permit decision was about to be issued last summer. When that didn’t happen, they were betting on a post-election announcement. Then Thanksgiving. Then Christmas, then the New Year, then after Trump’s inauguration.
Georgia Power agrees to freeze rates, but bills could still increase

2 weeks ago | thecurrentga.org | Emily Jones |Mary Landers

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. In a surprise move, Georgia’s largest electric company is asking to temporarily freeze rates, though customer bills could still go up next year. The proposal could bring welcome relief for Georgia Power customers who have experienced multiple bill increases, but some advocates said it also raises serious concerns.
Georgia climate scientists sound the alarm on federal research and program cuts

3 weeks ago | thecurrentga.org | Emily Jones |Mary Landers

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. Georgia climate scientists are raising concerns about federal changes they say could hamper research and hurt their overall understanding of climate change. They warn the threat isn’t just to science; farmers, weather forecasters and emergency planners all rely on climate and weather information that’s now at risk.
Hyundai fined $30,000 over wastewater violations

3 weeks ago | thecurrentga.org | Mary Landers

Georgia regulators have fined Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America $30,000 for improper disposal of wastewater from its Bryan County electric vehicle manufacturing site. That fine could have been larger under Georgia law, potentially surpassing $7 million. Instead, officials from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division and Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America reached a settlement and, on April 25, signed a consent agreement that outlines the alleged violations and the agreed-upon fine.
Report shows EV savings for high-mileage drivers

1 month ago | thecurrentga.org | Mary Landers

In Georgia’s 1st Congressional District, about 72,000 drivers put more than 25,000 miles a year on their cars or light-duty trucks. That makes them ripe for significant fuel savings if they switch to an electric vehicle, according to a new report from Coltura, a nonprofit that aims to accelerate the switch from gasoline and diesel to cleaner alternatives. Coltura puts the savings for these high-mileage drivers at almost $4,000 a year.
Riverfront industrial site cleaned up

1 month ago | thecurrentga.org | Mary Landers

In the most recent success for its brownfield program, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division in March removed a Chatham County site from its Hazardous Site Inventory List. The 755 acres on the southern bank of the Savannah River between Old Fort Jackson and The Elba Island LNG facility has been redeveloped as the SeaPoint Industrial Terminal Complex. The SeaPoint site is the latest of 425 brownfield sites cleaned up since Georgia began its brownfield program in 2003.