According to some accounts, Spanish missionaries first settled what later came to be known as Genesis Point in the 1500s. Some 300 years later, Fort McAllister was built on Genesis Point.

Now, a Florida developer wants to build a new Genesis Point on a 2,230 acre tract roughly nine miles east of Richmond Hill on land bordering Richmond Hill State Park and Fort McAllister. The development will include single and multi-family housing, an 18-hole golf course, an interconnected lake system and a commercial amenity center, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The project, which has been in the works for years, may soon take another step forward. The Corps of Engineers is currently considering an application to fill in more than 34 acres of wetlands.

That may seem like a small amount of land when compared to the overall size of the project. Indeed, it seems the developer plans on preserving at least three times that much acreage through restrictive covenants. But there's reason for concern any time our fragile coastal ecosystem is threatened with development.

For one thing, there's only so much of it to go around and it's disappearing fast. For another, we owe it to this planet and future generations to ensure there's still plenty of it left when we're gone.

That's why we're opposed to the filling in of any more wetlands, period. And that's why we believe it's important that everyone who cares about this coast one way or the other let the Corps of Engineers know their thoughts by the June 15 deadline.

But do some research first. You can see a copy of the public notice online by going to www.sas.usace.army.mil/permit.htm and clicking on current public notices, then scroll down to public notices dated May 16, 2007 and the link titled "To develop a mixed use residential devopment-Bryan County." A copy also is available at the front desk of the Bryan County News office in Richmond Hill.