SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) – In a letter provided by local environmental group Ogeechee Riverkeeper and verified by WTOC News, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers tells the Savannah Harbor-Interstate 16 Corridor Joint Development Authority that it may re-examine some permits for Hyundai’s electric vehicle plant in Bryan County.

The Army Corps district commander in Savannah said initial information from the JDA led regulators to believe the project would not require water withdrawal permits.

According to the Aug. 23 letter, that decision may be reconsidered after the Georgia Department of Environmental Protection last month released drafts of four permits related to the Hyundai project that would allow Bulloch and Bryan counties to extract millions of gallons of groundwater daily.

“So far, all we’ve seen are conclusions, final statements, saying there will be no impacts, without explaining to us how they came to that conclusion,” said Ben Kirsch, legal director for Ogeechee Riverkeeper.

At the beginning of the year, the local environmental group threatened to sue the US Army Corps of Engineers, which is responsible for reviewing the permit applications, alleging that the agency had overlooked concerns about the water supply at the Hyundai site.

“We see this as a small victory along the way, a step in the right direction to ensure that all impacts to this site are fully considered,” Kirsch said.

The letter calls on business leaders to provide an overview of the impacts the electric vehicle production plant and associated restrictions would have on municipal and private water supplies.

In a joint statement, representatives from the JDA, the Georgia Department of Economic Development and the Savannah Economic Development Authority said:

We have received a request from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to provide additional data on the proposed water supply for Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA). We appreciate the diligence USACE is taking to ensure all information is included in its permit, and as we have done with all USACE requests, we will provide this information as quickly as possible. Our plan will provide water to HMGMA while protecting and preserving the local environment, and we remain committed to doing this the right way.

Hyundai plans to begin production at its Bryan County facility later this year. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is giving business leaders 10 days to confirm they will provide regulators with requested information.

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