• The Georgia Department of Natural Resources is seeking public input on an updated State Wildlife Action Plan until March 21st.
• The plan, updated every decade, aims to protect native species and their habitats to prevent them from becoming endangered.
• The plan highlights Georgia’s rich biodiversity, including being second only to Texas in the Southeast for the number of plant species.

In an effort to protect wildlife, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources is asking for public input on an updated strategy. 

“The things that we need to do to conserve our wildlife are fundamental to the quality of life for all Georgians,” Brett Albanese, state wildlife action plan coordinator at the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division, told The Augusta Chronicle on Wednesday. “Our mission is to conserve natural areas by minimizing the impact of development on species and their habitats. We also want to educate people about the diversity of species that call Georgia home.”

A draft of Georgia’s revised State Wildlife Action Plan can be reviewed until March 21 at georgiawildlife.com/WildGeorgiaSWAP. 

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The plan was created 20 years ago and is updated every decade. The plan guide works by protecting native animal and plant species from becoming more rare and costly to conserve, according to a Department of Natural Resources news release. 

The list of species varies from gopher tortoises and bald eagles to tangerine darters and Chapman’s fringed orchids.

“Georgia is one of the most diverse areas in the country for several groups of species like freshwater aquatic species like fish, mussels and crayfishes,” said Albanese. “We are second in the Southeast, next to Texas, in terms of the number of plant species. We have over 3,000 native plant species in Georgia.”

The plan features a link to a digital version of the plan, a short presentation orienting viewers and a survey for providing comments. After the March 21 deadline, DNR will use the comments to make final revisions.

Key points about plan

• Now through March 21: Public comment period for the draft 2025 Georgia State Wildlife Action Plan.
• Submit comments at https://georgiawildlife.com/WildGeorgiaSWAP.
• The website includes a brief presentation about the plan, a survey for providing comments and a link to a digital version of the draft.
• Questions? Email WCScomments@dnr.ga.gov.

The plan will be sent to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in June for approval. States update their wildlife action plans every 10 years to remain eligible for federal and state wildlife grants. The plans are crucial to funding targeted, voluntary conservation to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered.

“One of our purposes in developing and implementing this wildlife action plan is to avoid species from becoming extinct,” said Albanese. “We want to be preventative. If we work hard on proactive measures for conservation, we can keep species from rising to the level of endangerment where they need extreme, costly and regulatory measures to protect them.

“We work cooperatively with the Fish and Wildlife Service, federal partners and the conservation community, to try to recover species off of the US Endangered Species list. So that’s really the purpose of the swap. Once a species is extinct, it’s gone forever.”

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with several funders and Journalism Funding Partners.

Erica Van Buren is the climate change reporter for The Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at EVanBuren@gannett.com or on X: @EricaVanBuren32.