Floyd County has a long history of industrial development. For generations, residents have lived alongside manufacturing facilities, paper mills, landfills, coal ash sites, and other industrial operations that have contributed to economic growth while also raising concerns about environmental quality and public health.

State and federal cancer surveillance data show that Floyd County experiences elevated incidence rates for multiple cancers compared to many counties across Georgia. These patterns do not identify a specific cause, but they underscore the importance of investigating all potential contributing factors, including environmental exposures.

Residents have repeatedly raised concerns about air quality, water quality, industrial emissions, legacy contamination, and emerging pollutants such as PFAS. These concerns deserve to be taken seriously.

Floyd County already has a long industrial history and documented environmental concerns. Multiple large-scale data centers have been approved. Before additional infrastructure is built, residents deserve transparent disclosure of water demand, wastewater management plans, power requirements, and independent studies evaluating cumulative environmental impacts.

As Rome and Floyd County move forward with unprecedented data center expansion, citizens are asking local leaders to apply the lessons of the past. Economic development should not come at the expense of transparency, environmental stewardship, or public health.

We therefore call for:

• Independent environmental and water-use studies before additional large-scale industrial projects move forward.

• Full public disclosure of projected water consumption, power demand, and infrastructure impacts.

• Ongoing environmental monitoring, with results made publicly available.

• Community advisory boards that give residents a meaningful voice in decisions affecting their neighborhoods.

• Stronger protections for local water resources, natural habitats, and public health.

The people of Floyd County are not opposed to progress. We simply believe that growth should be responsible, transparent, and accountable to the communities that will live with the consequences for decades to come.

Our families deserve clean water.
Our communities deserve honest answers. 
Our future deserves careful planning.

Healthier Georgia, Healthier Families believes protections for our community should be the driving force of policy, not tax incentives.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EfnwRZAuD/?mibextid=wwXIfr​

https://statecancerprofiles.cancer.gov​

https://oasis.state.ga.us/