Bishop Meets with Officials on Tired Creek

Cairo, GA - On Friday, April 30, 2010, Congressman Sanford Bishop met with officials from Grady County, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Florida Fish and Wildlife, Georgia Environmental Protection Division, and other constituents to discuss a Section 404 Permit for the construction of a 960-acre lake to meet the fishing needs of Grady County and surrounding areas. Congressman Bishop and the participants held a meeting at the Grady County Chamber of Commerce and subsequently made an on-site visit to the point on Tired Creek where the dam for the reservoir is to be constructed.

“The federal government has been working on this project since the 1930s, initially proposing to use the property to develop a lake and a park,” said Bishop. “Grady County is now trying to get a permit to develop the lake and I just want the issue resolved in a way that is most beneficial to the people in the Grady County area.”

In a letter to the Corps dated April 20, 2010, the EPA recommended that the permit for the proposed lake project be denied based on the EPA’s concerns regarding several issues with the project; specifically, the need for the project, clarification of water quality issues, mitigation properties, and degradation of the property surrounding the lake. Grady County officials responded to the EPA in a letter to the Corps dated April 29, 2010, stating that the County had satisfied all established standards and requested a favorable permit decision from the Corps.

Based upon the information presented at Friday’s meeting, the Corps of Engineers is expected to meet this week with the EPA to address those issues and the possibility of issuing a permit. At this point, the outcome is unclear; however, the Grady County delegation remains optimistic.