GEOH-004. Ben Slade interviewed by Betsy Bean, September 23, 2013.
Ben Slade discusses getting involved with environmental issues and his friendship with Georgia representative Reid Harris. He discusses Harris's efforts to pass legislation to protect marshlands during Lester Maddox's administration. He talks about Kerr-McGee's plan to strip-mine the marshes and the development of a community coalition to protect the salt marshes. Slade discusses the attitude of the South towards government intervention and the difficulty of balancing community interests with marshland protection.
Slade discusses his efforts to repurpose the Naval Air Station at Glynco and to attract businesses other than heavy water users. Slade also discusses Superfund sites such as the Hercules Manufacturing plant (and its Toxaphene pollution and contamination). He also talks about Escambia Wood Treatment facility that used creasote to treat logs to be made into telephone poles.
Slade discusses the development of the St. Simons Land Trust and the work of the organization, including the John Gilbert nature trail. He mentions the importance of utilities to development on the coast. Slade also talks about St. Simons' "greenprint" and the land trust's goal of keeping 15-20% of the land in public form. He talks about sites on St. Simons Island such as Cannon's Point (which was preserved by the trust) and the African American population of St. Simons, including the Harrington School House (which may be a Rosenwald school). Slade also discusses efforts to link green spaces and the issue of beach renourishment.
For more information, please see the Russell Library Finding Aid for the Georgia Environmental Oral History Collection:
http://purl.libs.uga.edu/russell/RBRL345GEOH/findingaid