"The $60 million purchase by the Conservation Fund will halt a proposed titanium mine along the ends of North America’s largest blackwater swamp."
"A contentious, years-long fight over a proposed mine next to one of the South’s last truly wild places ended abruptly Friday, when a nonprofit group announced it would spend nearly $60 million to acquire thousands of acres of land near the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in rural Georgia.
The Conservation Fund, which works around the country to acquire and protect threatened landscapes, said it had agreed to purchase roughly 7,800 acres from Alabama-based Twin Pines Minerals, as well as the underlying mineral rights.
The landmark deal halted a proposed titanium mine on the site, which has been the subject of legal and political fights, as well as sustained criticism from advocacy groups, scientists, lawmakers and other citizens. The opponents argued that mining the mineral-rich area known as Trail Ridge would not only be risky but also environmentally reckless, given its proximity to the largest blackwater swamp in North America."
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