Coweta-Fayette EMC and eight other EMCs have joined to provide The Nature Conservancy of Georgia with color aerial photography spanning a 180-mile long corridor of the Chattahoochee River from Helen to Columbus.

Participating EMCs include Carroll EMC, Carrollton; Cobb EMC, Marietta; Coweta-Fayette EMC, Newnan; Flint Energies, Reynolds; Grey Stone Power Corporation, Douglasville; Habersham EMC, Clarkesville; Jackson EMC, Jefferson; Sawnee EMC, Cumming; and Troup EMC, LaGrange.

These EMCs, which border the river from Helen to Columbus, have teamed with Atlanta-based Oglethorpe Power Corporation to form a group known as the EMC RiverWatch Coalition.

The 1999 color photography donated by the EMC RiverWatch Coalition consists of digital aerial photography for the entire 180-mile river corridor.

The Nature Conservancy, along with the Trust for Public Land, the Upper Chattahoochee River Keepers and other public and private agencies, will use the aerial photography with Geographical Information Systems (GIS) mapping to compare the riverbank properties on a landscape scale. They will then apply the best available science to protect priority sites within the Chattahoochee River corridor.

“This initiative ensures continued land protection by illustrating the current conditions of the river, increasing opportunities for public participation and scientific research, and demonstrating to all Georgians the importance and beauty of this river,” said Tavia McCuean, vice president and state director of The Nature Conservancy.

Coweta-Fayette EMC President and CEO Michael Whiteside noted that the EMCs of Georgia are committed to protecting the environment and are pleased to be making financial and in-kind contributions toward such a worthy effort.

“This project will benefit current and future cooperative members, as well as all Georgians, for generations to come,” he remarked.

The nine EMCs that form the EMC RiverWatch Coalition provide retail electric service to more than 600,000 Georgians across 46 counties. Oglethorpe Power Corporation is the wholesale power supply cooperative owned by and providing electricity to 39 of Georgia's 42 EMCs.

Coweta-Fayette EMC has expanded over the past 53 years to now serve over 55,000 consumers, working hard to keep costs down, charging a fair price for electricity, providing reliable electric service and contributing to the local community through a wide variety of activities. As an affiliate of Touchstone Energy Cooperatives, a national network of EMCs, it meets the highest standards of service.

Coweta-Fayette EMC serves one of the nation's fastest-growing areas, including Coweta, Fayette, Heard, Meriwether, and portions of South Fulton, Clayton and Spalding Counties. Last year, the company diversified and introduced subsidiary Relyco in order to offer and manage an array of new products and services.

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