RIDGELAND -- Gov. Mark Sanford and six former South Carolina governors are backing the State Ports Authority's plans to develop a Jasper County port on the Savannah River and calling on the county to abandon what's been a 10-year effort.

The governor broke his silence on the highly debated port issue Monday, telling The Associated Press he doesn't think "you want to have a county unilaterally in the construction of a port that has statewide impact."

County officials and the State Ports Authority are sparring over the Savannah River land, with both pursuing condemnation plans to build on the 1,863 acres owned by the Georgia Department of Transportation. The Ports Authority challenged Jasper County's efforts in January with a lawsuit in the state Supreme Court filed after the county agreed to a $450 million development agreement with port developer SSA Marine.

Sanford said the Ports Authority should control port operations, but that doesn't mean the state has to build the terminal by itself.

"There are all kinds of different options," including partnerships with private companies or even the state of Georgia, the governor said.

Sanford's position was embraced by six former governors who co-authored a letter published in The (Charleston) Post and Courier on Tuesday calling for Jasper County to bow out of development and operation plans for the port.

"While Jasper County should be praised for its vision, we are convinced that its citizenry, as well as citizens in every part of the state, will be best served by maintaining public seaport facilities under the guidance of the South Carolina State Ports Authority," the letter, signed by former Govs. Robert McNair, James Edwards, Richard Riley, Carroll Campbell Jr., David Beasley and James Hodges, states.

Campbell's son, Carroll Campbell III, was appointed to the State Ports Authority by Sanford in 2004.

"I think the State Ports Authority is responsible for that part of our development," Riley, who served two terms as governor, said Tuesday. "The letter was a support statement."

But county officials who spent Tuesday in Columbia trying to rally support for the port plan questioned Sanford's remarks and the letter.

"The governor's statement isn't consistent with what we're doing," County Council Chairman George Hood said Tuesday. "We've always said we're willing to work with anyone, including the state, on this project."

Jasper County officials maintain they've always been open to a partnership with the state.

"For over 10 years we've been working on this," Hood said. "We tried to work with the state time and again, and only now they say we don't have the authority? It's irresponsible to come forward now with all the time and money the county put into the project."

Sanford spokesman Will Folks said the governor reached his stated position after meeting with "representatives from Jasper County, folks in the Ports Authority, as well as Gov. (Sonny) Perdue on the other side of the river."

"He hasn't encouraged Jasper going it alone because of potential legal entanglements," Folks said.

State ports officials maintained their position against Jasper County developing a port Tuesday and said the letter and Sanford's statement backed their efforts.

"We don't feel we can agree to letting the ports be developed on a county-by-county basis," said Harry Butler, chairman of the State Ports Authority's board of directors. "We're very appreciative that the past governors, both Republican and Democrat, agree and see the value the state ports bring to South Carolina."