Georgia Paper Mill Closures Leave Communities Reeling

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The sudden closure of several Georgia paper mills has left workers and communities stunned, with state lawmakers scrambling to contain the economic fallout from one of the state’s most important industries.

Georgia-Pacific shut down its Cedar Springs mill earlier this year, cutting more than 500 jobs. Weeks later, International Paper announced it would shutter mills in Savannah and Riceboro, eliminating another 1,100 positions. The Savannah mill, first opened in the 1930s, had provided steady work since the Great Depression.

“These mill closures will undoubtedly deal a devastating blow not only to Georgia’s timber industry but to the economic fabric of the entire southeast Georgia region,” House Speaker Jon Burns, a Newington Republican, said in a statement.

Forestry is one of Georgia’s largest industries, covering two-thirds of the state and supporting about 140,000 jobs. Lawmakers worry the closures will ripple far beyond millworkers to timber growers, truckers, tire shops, restaurants and schools in small towns that have long depended on the mills.

 At Emory University, economics professor Tom Smith is using the closures as a real-world teaching example.

“As go small manufacturers and main streets, so goes the economy,” Smith said. “Failures in small communities ripple outward—and with job numbers this low, the risk of recession is real.”

State leaders say they are launching programs to place displaced workers in new jobs and connect them with retraining opportunities. Restarting operations at the shuttered mills won’t come quickly—experts estimate it could take up to three years before the Savannah International Paper plant could operate again under new ownership.

Georgia lawmakers are holding hearings this month to explore solutions and safeguard the state’s status as a global leader in timber production.

 Courtesy: www.wctv.com