ATLANTA - News that South Carolina is aiming to build a new seaport along the Savannah River left southeast Georgia lawmakers worried Wednesday about how such a development could affect Georgia's port system.

The South Carolina Port Authority board voted earlier this week to begin the process of developing a public seaport on South Carolina land that is closer to the Atlantic Ocean than Georgia's port terminal in Garden City.

The property under consideration is within South Carolina's boundaries, across the river from downtown Savannah's River Street; however, the Georgia Department of Transportation actually owns the land and uses it to dump mud that is dredged up during river channel maintenance.

During a break from budget hearings at the Capitol, Sen. Regina Thomas, D-Savannah, said Wednesday she is concerned that a port across the Savannah River in Jasper County, S.C., could siphon jobs and money away from Georgia's robust port industry.

"I don't see what good can come out of this," said Ms. Thomas, whose district includes the Garden City terminal. "The port is an economic engine for the entire state. When everyone else was suffering from the recession, ... we were doing pretty good and were pretty busy because of the ports."

In announcing their interest in developing the new port, South Carolina officials said they would not rule out condemning Georgia's land in order to reclaim ownership of the property.

That position left some Georgia lawmakers doubting an amicable resolution is possible.

"It puts us in a little more jeopardy to have a state agency like that move to condemn the property," said Sen. Tommie Williams, R-Lyons. "I think, in the long term, we're going to have to decide this in the courts."

Heather Hedrick, a spokeswoman for Gov. Sonny Perdue, said the port issue is on the governor's radar. However, she could not say what his next steps would be or whether the governor fears a new South Carolina port would hurt Georgia's terminal.

Reach Brian Basinger at (404) 681-1701 or brian.basinger@morris.com.

PORTS BACKGROUND

The Georgia Ports Authority says Georgia's deepwater ports directly and indirectly support 275,000 jobs.

Georgia's ports are responsible for:

 •  $35.4 billion in annual sales

 •  $10.8 billion in annual income

 •  $1.4 billion in annual state and local taxes Source: University of Georgia study

The Georgia Department of Transportation, which owns the land where South Carolina wants to build a new seaport, holds its monthly board meeting today.