https://apnews.com/eb9b151389ddc4a4116b230a54dc34fe

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A mining company said Tuesday that it plans to dig for minerals without a federal permit at the edge of the vast wildlife refuge in the Okefenokee Swamp, a big step for a once-embattled project that's now benefiting from the Trump administration's rollback of environmental rules.

For more than a year, Twin Pines Minerals pursued a permit under the federal Clean Water Act to mine less than 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) from the home of the largest U.S. wildlife refuge east of the Mississippi River. Conservationists worry mining could cause irreparable harm to a fragile ecosystem that serves as a habitat for alligators, bald eagles and other protected species.