‘Deadhead' logs bill passes committee

By Kristina Torres

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Sunken logs could be raised from Georgia's rivers and sold to the highest bidder under a bill that cleared a Senate committee Wednesday.

Environmentalists oppose "deadhead" logging, saying it chokes waterways with sediment and contaminants and eliminates habitats for fish and aquatic species.

Senate President Pro Tem Tommie Williams, R-Lyons, however, has pushed for years to sanction it. He said Senate Bill 362 would create jobs for loggers and raise money for the state.

Cut down by ax or saw during the 19th and early 20th centuries, the logs sank as they were floated downstream to coastal markets. Cut primarily from old-growth forests of longleaf pine and cypress trees, they have characteristics not found in modern timber, with a fine grain and color highly valued for flooring and other carpentry.

SB 362 would allow individuals to bid for the right to raise deadhead logs from the Altamaha, Flint, Ocmulgee and Oconee rivers. It passed the Senate Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee on a 6-1 vote, with Sen. Nan Orrock, D-Atlanta, opposed. It still needs approval from the powerful Senate Rules Committee before it can go before the entire Senate.