State moves forward with conservation plan for former mining tract near the Okefenokee

A long-running effort to preserve land surrounding the Okefenokee Swamp reached a new milestone this week after the Georgia Department of Natural Resources approved its first purchase of property once proposed for mineral extraction.

According to WABE, the state will acquire nearly 2,900 acres from The Conservation Fund, a nonprofit that purchased almost 8,000 acres adjacent to the Okefenokee last year after the property had been assembled for a proposed strip mine by Twin Pines Minerals. The organization’s goal is to permanently protect the land by transferring it into public ownership and retiring the mineral rights.

The purchase marks the beginning of a multi-phase conservation plan. Stacy Funderburke of The Conservation Fund told WABE the acreage approved this month “will become a new state wildlife management area called Alachua Trail WMA, right there along the eastern, southeastern edge of the Okefenokee.”

The Department of Natural Resources Board approved spending more than $8 million on the acquisition. The deal is expected to close in August, with another purchase of roughly 1,000 acres planned for March 2027. Together, the two transactions will create a 4,000-acre wildlife management area.

Money for the initial purchase comes from Georgia’s Outdoor Stewardship Program, which funds conservation projects using tax revenue generated from outdoor recreation equipment sales.

Funderburke said the project is expected to benefit both wildlife and the public.

“This is a great opportunity for new recreation opportunities — I think a lot of folks in that area will be excited about hunting and rec access,” Funderburke told WABE.

He added that the property will also give the state room to restore longleaf pine habitat while protecting species including gopher tortoises and eastern indigo snakes.

Once the state completes its portion of the acquisition, the remaining 4,000 acres owned by The Conservation Fund are expected to be added to the federal Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, permanently protecting the entire tract from future mining.