MAINTAINING CELL PHONE PRIVACY—Georgia PIRG Advocate Jill Johnson speaks with Gov. Perdue after he signs the Wireless Privacy Act, which gives cell phone customers the right to withhold their name from Wireless 411 directories.

Gov. Perdue Signs Cell Phone Privacy Bill

On May 10, Gov. Sonny Perdue signed the Georgia PIRG-backed Wireless Privacy Act, requiring cell phone companies to obtain a customer’s express consent before including his or her name and phone number in any wireless directory or database.

The law also stipulates that a customer can revoke their consent to have their phone number listed at any time and cannot be charged for electing to be excluded from a directory or database.

Last year, wireless carriers announced that they were going to create a Wireless 411 Service that would allow cell phone numbers to be available for a fee to individuals. The 411 directory would leave consumers at risk of incurring charges for unwanted incoming phone calls and text messages.

An Oct. 2003 survey found that 75 percent of metro Atlanta households own a cell phone, one of the highest rates in the nation.

Georgia PIRG Advocate Jill Johnson said, “We applaud Gov. Perdue for protecting consumers’ privacy from an industry with some of the highest numbers of customer complaints.”

Judge Attempts Sale Of Water Permits

Georgia PIRG is working with the Georgia Water Coalition to ensure that the state’s waters belong to the public, not to private companies. Two years ago, Georgia PIRG helped defeat legislation that would have allowed the sale of water withdrawal permits.

A federal bankruptcy judge, however, made a controversial decision this summer to include water permits in the sale of assets of the Durango Paper Mill in St. Mary’s. Attorney General Baker and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) have petitioned to have the water permits removed from the auction, but the judge has not been moved.

This fall, Georgia PIRG staff are urging Georgia EPD Director Carol Couch to revoke the permits.

Report Finds Increase In Beach Closings

Beach closings due to hazardous bacterial contamination are on the rise at Georgia beaches, according to “Testing the Waters,” a Natural Resources Defense Council report.

In 2003 there were zero days reported; in 2004, beaches were closed or health advisories were issues 364 times. Advisories and closures affected beaches on Tybee Island, St. Simon’s Island, Jekyll Island, Sea Island and Little St. Simon’s Island.

Improved monitoring spurred by previous reports is now uncovering the true extent of the pollution problem caused by improperly treated sewage and bacteria-contaminated stormwater runoff.

Green Power Program Threatened

Georgia’s Green Power program was established in 2001 to support the development of clean energy sources, such as biomass, wind and solar power. Georgians voluntarily enroll in the program and pay a little extra on their monthly utility bill to purchase green energy. bill to purchase green energy.

In July, however, the City of Savannah petitioned the Public Service Commission (PSC) to change the definition of Green Power to include energy from their solid waste incinerator.

Waste incineration is a significant source of air emissions and toxic wastes. Dioxin, mercury, lead and other harmful substances are released when trash is burned. Georgia PIRG staff testified at a PSC hearing in August and urged reserving the Green Power label for energy sources that do not harm the environment and public health.