Title 12

The General Assembly, recognizing that the forest lands and resources of the state are a natural resource of great economic value to the citizens of the state, comprising two-thirds of the state’s area, or 24 million acres, and giving employment to over 177,000 Georgia citizens a…

As used in this part, the term: (1) ‘‘Forest fire’’ means any fire burning uncontrolled on any forest land covered wholly or in part by timber, brush, grass, or other flammable material. (2) ‘‘Forest lands’’ means all lands which are situated outside of corporate limits and which ha…

All forest fire protection work shall be under the direction and supervision of the State Forestry Commission, through the director of the commission, subject to this part and the laws of this state relative to forestry and forest fire prevention and suppression. The commission sha…

The members of the State Forestry Commission and any of its authorized agents or anyone acting at their direction shall have the right at any or all times to go upon any land for the purpose of preventing, controlling, or suppressing forest fires, as defined in Code Section 12-6-82…

The State Forestry Commission shall divide the state into fire protection units which will provide efficient and economical fire protection within the unit area. Such units will comprise one or more counties or portions of counties. History. — Ga. L. 1949, p. 937, § 9.

(a) In the discretion of the State Forestry Commission, there may be set up in each fire protection unit a board to be known as the unit forestry board, consisting of five members who shall be appointed by the State Forestry Commission. (b) The State Forestry Commission shall deter…

The duties of the unit forestry board shall be to assist in the efficient performance of this part and in the general conduct of the forestry program in the fire protection unit. History. — Ga. L. 1949, p. 937, § 11.

The State Forestry Commission shall prepare for each unit forestry board a plan for forest fire protection for the fiscal year and shall present such plan at a meeting of the board prior to July 1 of each year. It is the intent of the General Assembly that funds be appropriated to …

(a) As used in this Code section, ‘‘extreme forest fire emergency’’ means a condition whereby forest fires within the state are of such number, size, severity, and intensity that they cannot be controlled by the existing facilities of the State Forestry Commission and are endangeri…

(a) The commission shall have the right to acquire, in the name of the state, by purchase, lease, agreement, or condemnation, such land within the state as may be deemed necessary and proper. Condemnation proceedings shall be subject to the applicable provisions of law relating t…

(a) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this Code section, any person, firm, corporation, or association lawfully entitled to burn any woods, lands, marshes, or any other flammable vegetation, whether in cultivated or uncultivated areas, shall prior to such burning obt…

Unless prohibited by the director of the State Forestry Commission pursuant to the provisions of Code Section 12-6-17, the owners of any forest land may accomplish controlled burning over their own land when a permit therefor is obtained pursuant to the requirements of Code Secti…

The title to all property already acquired or which may be acquired incidental to carrying out this part shall be vested in the State Forestry Commission. History. — Ga. L. 1949, p. 937, § 14.

(a) The funds required to carry out this part and provide for the coordinated protection of uncontrolled fire on all forest lands in the State of Georgia may be provided from annual appropriations made by the General Assembly for this purpose. (b) In the event any county desires f…

This article shall be known and may be cited as the ‘‘Ginseng Protection Act of 1979.’’ History. — Ga. L. 1979, p. 919, § 1; Ga. L. 1996, p. 327, § 1.

As used in this article, the term: (1) ‘‘Commissioner’’ means the commissioner of natural resources. (2) ‘‘Ginseng (Panax quinquefolium L.)’’ means a single stemmed plant arising from a cylindrical root, with prongs (compound leaves) attached to the stem. Each prong is divided in…

It shall be unlawful for any person to harvest ginseng in this state except from September 1 through December 31 and with the written permission of the owner of the property on which the ginseng is located. It shall also be unlawful for any person to harvest ginseng that has fewe…

It shall be unlawful for any person disposing of any ginseng harvested in Georgia to fail to report such disposition by January 31 of each year to the Department of Natural Resources. Such report shall be certified by the department and shall include, but shall not be limited to, …

It shall be unlawful for any ginseng dealer or grower to fail to register with the department, on a form provided by the department, by July 15 of each year. It shall also be unlawful for any ginseng dealer or grower to fail to submit to the department by January 31 of each year …

Upon a determination by the department that this article is no longer necessary for the protection of ginseng in this state, the department shall report such determination to the next session of the General Assembly following such determination. History. — Ga. L. 1979, p. 919, § …

The department is authorized to prescribe the form and content of the registration forms and the reporting forms required by this article. History. — Ga. L. 1979, p. 919, § 7; Ga. L. 1996, p. 327, § 1.

This article shall be known and may be cited as the ‘‘Wildflower Preservation Act of 1973.’’ History. — Ga. L. 1973, p. 333, § 1.

As used in this article, the term: (1) ‘‘Person’’ means any natural person, firm, corporation, partnership, proprietorship, or other legal entity. (2) ‘‘Protected species’’ means a species of plant life which the department shall have designated as such and shall have made subject…

(a) The Department of Natural Resources shall from time to time designate as a protected species any species of plant life within this state which it may determine to be rare, unusual, or in danger of extinction, and upon such designation such species will become subject to the p…

No person within this state shall cut, dig, pull up, or otherwise remove any protected species from any public land unless such person has secured written authorization from the department. History. — Ga. L. 1973, p. 333, § 4.

No person within this state shall sell or offer for sale, for any purpose, any protected species unless such species was grown on private land and is being sold by the landowner or with the permission of the landowner. History. — Ga. L. 1973, p. 333, § 5.

No person within this state shall transport, carry, or otherwise convey any protected species from the land of another unless each shipment thereof has affixed thereto a tag supplied by the department showing that the person so transporting, carrying, or conveying such protected …

Any person who violates any provision of this article or a rule or regulation promulgated by the Board of Natural Resources pursuant to this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. History. — Ga. L. 1973, p. 333, § 7. ARTICLE 4 HARVEST AND SALE OF PINE STRAW

As used in this article, the term: (1) ‘‘Director’’ means the director of the State Forestry Commission. (2) ‘‘Harvesting’’ means the various methods or processes of gathering pine straw for preservation, storage, use, or sale. (3) ‘‘Landowner’’ means the person who owns land on …

The General Assembly finds that: (1) The natural occurrence of pine straw constitutes a significant economic resource for owners of timbered property; (2) Such owners have been victimized by continuous and repeated trespasses onto their lands by persons engaged in harvesting pine s…

(a) As a condition of selling pine straw to a pine straw dealer within the State of Georgia, the seller shall obtain and present to the pine straw dealer a certificate of harvest. A certificate of harvest shall be a written or printed document signed by the landowner where the pine…

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or offer to sell pine straw to a pine straw dealer or seller within the State of Georgia without presenting to the pine straw dealer or seller a certificate of harvest or landowner’s certificate of harvest. (b) It shall be unlawful fo…

The director may issue and enforce written or printed stop sale, stop use, or removal orders to the owners or custodians of any pine straw ordering them to hold the same at a designated place, when the director finds that such pine straw is being offered or exposed for sale in vio…

Any pine straw obtained or offered for sale in violation of this article shall be subject to seizure on the complaint of the director to the superior court of the county in which the pine straw is found. If the court finds the pine straw to be in violation of this article, and ord…

This article shall not be construed so as to affect any farmer or other person harvesting or handling pine straw for home or personal use. History. — Code 1981, § 12-6-206, enacted by Ga. L. 1989, p. 386, § 1.

This article shall be known and may be cited as the ‘‘Georgia Carbon Sequestration Registry Act.’’ History. — Code 1981, § 12-6-220, enacted by Ga. L. 2004, p. 343, § 1; Ga. L. 2021, p. 589, § 1/HB 355.

As used in this article, the term: (1) ‘‘Building embodied carbon’’ means the global warming potential results from a whole-building life cycle assessment covering all life cycle stages, such as extraction, transportation, manufacturing, construction, and end-of-life, except oper…

(a)(1) The commission shall establish a Georgia Carbon Sequestration Registry, which shall be in operation not later than one year after the effective date of this article. (2) The commission may contract with the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority to develop an…

The purpose of the Georgia Carbon Sequestration Registry shall be to do all of the following: (1) Encourage voluntary actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including, but not limited to, the construction of buildings made out of materials that sequester carbon dioxide; (2) …

For purposes of the registry, the commission shall: (1)(A) Adopt rules or regulations specifying acceptable types of carbon sequestration results consistent with paragraph (1) of Code Section 12-6-221 and this paragraph and providing procedures and protocols for the monitoring, e…

(a) The director shall establish the Sustainable Building Material Technical Advisory Committee. The advisory committee shall consist of: (1) One representative from the Georgia Institute of Technology with expertise in engineering and architecture; (2) One representative with ex…

The procedures and protocols for monitoring, estimating, calculating, reporting, and certifying carbon sequestration results established by, or approved pursuant to, this article shall be the only procedures and protocols recognized by the state for the purposes of the registry a…

Procedures and protocols adopted pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of Code Section 12-6-224 shall not be interpreted or construed as a condition for any lease, permit, license, certificate, or other entitlement for an ongoing use of forest land. History. — Code 1981, §…

Participation in the registry shall be voluntary, and participants may withdraw at any time. History. — Code 1981, § 12-6-227, enacted by Ga. L. 2004, p. 343, § 1; Ga. L. 2021, p. 589, § 1/HB 355.

(a)(1) Participants shall initially report their certified carbon sequestration results for the most recent year for which they have complete data as specified in this article. This shall include sequestration of carbon dioxide from standing trees. After establishing baseline resul…

To support the estimation, calculation, reporting, and certification of carbon sequestration results in a consistent format, the commission, in consultation with the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority, shall adopt standardized forms that all participants shall us…