"Growing Wisely on the Coast," presented by the Georgia Conservancy February 22-23, drew a standing-room-only crowd at the Jekyll Island Club Hotel. Representatives of diverse groups, ranging from environmental organizations to developers, gathered at the event to learn about ways to balance coastal Georgia's rapid growth with preservation of the area's natural resources and way of life. Participants gained an understanding of how planned growth can benefit the environment as well as the economy and community.

Ed McMahon, director of land use programs for The Conservation Fund, presented examples of communities that demanded and received economically viable, environmentally responsive development. His slides showed parking lots that look like parks and McDonald's restaurants that blend in with the historic buildings around them. Development plans "should encourage development that is good for the environment, good for the economy and good for the community," McMahon asserted. "We don't have to choose."

He added that protecting the integrity of coastal Georgia is important simply because it's worth money. "You can take beauty to the bank," he remarked.

Cullen Chambers, director of the Tybee Island Historical Society, warned that the traits that lure tourists to Georgia's coast are being lost by the results of increased tourism. "What do you mean when you say you love this place?" Chambers asked. "Do you love until all that makes the area unique is gone?" To illustrate his point, he showed slides of quaint beach cottages replaced by look-alike condominiums - and of Tybee's historic DeSoto Hotel bulldozed for cookie-cutter high rises.

Laurie Fowler, environmental attorney and director of the public service faculty at the University of Georgia's Institute of Ecology, described three tools that can help protect green space, streams and groundwater recharge areas.

Fred Holland, director of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources' Marine Resources Research Institute, described the toll growth has taken on his state's coastal rivers and streams. Institute studies revealed that creeks in developed areas have fewer, smaller shrimp and fish and water with more salt and less oxygen. Holland outlined steps local government can take to mitigate the effects of growth on coastal areas, including enforcing existing environmental laws; planning strategically by restricting alterations to freshwater drainage into wetlands, setting limits on impervious surfaces and increasing open spaces and vegetation; and restoring degraded habitat quickly.

Lindsay Thomas, Georgia Chamber of Commerce president, stressed the importance of the link between water and economic prosperity. "We are a product of our water...Our economy depends on our water resources," Thomas said.

Thanks go to the other speakers whose presentations garnered high praise, including: Dr. Doug Bachtel, leading demographic expert at the University of Georgia; Douglas Porter, president of the Growth Management Institute; Dr. Liz Kramer of UGA's Institute of Ecology; Craig Pendergrast, an attorney who specializes in environmental law at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky and Walker; Dr. Doug Shaw, biohydrologist with the Nature Conservancy's Altamaha Bioreserve; and Janisse Ray, author of Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, whose remarks and readings delighted and inspired conference participants.

"Growing Wisely on the Coast" was sponsored in part by the Center for a Sustainable Coast, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Management Program, Georgia Southern University, the Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve, and the J.W. and Ethel I. Woodruff Foundation. Special thanks go to our volunteers from the Glynn Environmental Coalition and the Coastal Georgia Audubon Society.