Cook Co. residents continue fight to stop wood pellet plant

ADEL, Ga. (WALB) - Adel residents are still fighting against a Wood Pellet Plant coming to the area.

They are concerned about the effects it will have on the environment and their health.

Community members gathered in a virtual town hall meeting to discuss their concerns.

“We can’t be quiet, our lives depend on it,” said Dr. Treva Gear, the founding member of Concerned Citizens of Cook County.

Gear tells us they had an environmental scientist speak about the possible impacts this pellet can bring.

People who live in areas where there’s a wood pellet plant discussed the issues they currently face.

“The big thing is for us to continue to sound the alarm and say don’t do this to us because once the plant is here then we have to deal with the outcomes of it. We have to deal with the health issues that come with it. We have to deal with the loss of property value that comes with it, we’re going to have to deal with the extra traffic,” said Gear.

Back in September, when city officials first met to discuss the first steps towards the possibility of allowing the plant to be built, a group who opposed the plans protested in front of city hall.

The city council approved the rezoning of the area, which is near the South Georgia Motorsports Park.

Then it was left up to the economic development commission.

Gear tells us, the plans are going forward and now it’s a matter of when.

“Today is Cook County, today is Adel. But tomorrow, it could be your city. These types of pellet plants like to come to our types of towns. They like to come to small rural areas where a high percentage of people of color and high levels of poverty because those communities don’t often know what’s going on until it happened to them,” said Gear.

Even though this plant would bring jobs to the area, Gear said they want jobs that will build the community, not break them.

“We can’t sit back and watch, because if we let it get here, it’s too late. Then our fight has to look different. So we’re actually fighting the thing that’s poisoning us. It hasn’t gotten here to poison us yet. So we will continue,” said Gear.

We reached out to city officials but they did not have a comment at the moment.

We will continue to follow this story.

Copyright 2021 WALB. All rights reserved.