Bad water quality, Withlacoochee and Santa Fe Rivers 2023-12-21

Update 2023-12-28: Clean Withlacoochee and Santa Fe Rivers, dirty Sugar Creek 2023-12-28.

We got bad results for three sites on two rivers in Florida for Wednesday, Withlacoochee and Santa Fe. Plus Valdosta’s Wednesday results at US 84 in Georgia on the Withlacoochee were also bad.

Last weekend’s rain was much more than the previous weekend, and the E. coli washed into the rivers did not get diluted or wash downsgtream nearly as quickly.

There’s been no more rain since Sunday, and no more predicted until Monday. And it’s cold and the rivers are near flood.

So I’d suggest staying off the rivers until maybe Sunday. All of the rivers: they all got 2 or more inches of rain. And we have never seen a too-high result for the Santa Fe River until this week, nor for the downstream Holly Point Withlacoochee River site.

Maybe instead join us Tuesday for the Banks Lake Full Cold Moon Paddle 2023-12-26. Assuming we don’t get rained out.

Chart, Rivers, Map 2023-12-20

In the last week, no pollution spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida.

And no new ones in Georgia since the Valdosta major spill of 450,000 gallons near 1800 E. Park Ave. and Knights Creek, which flows into Mud Swamp Creek, the Alapahoochee River, and the Alapaha River, and of course the preceding 7,500 gallon spill at apparently the same location, and the December 2 Pin Oak Circle One Mile Branch spill above Sugar Creek and the Withlacoochee River.

Russ Tatum tested the Withlacoochee River at Holly Point, between Allen Ramp and the Suwannee River, and got horrible results. Specifically 666 cfu/100 mL, which, in addition to the perhaps mystically significant number, is higher than the 410 one-time test limit. Russ remarked, “The Devil is in the water! Thanks Poopdosta.”

Most the contamination we detected in the Withlacoochee and Santa Fe Rivers cannot be from those Valdosta sewage spills. Knights Creek is not upstream of the Withlacoochee River, and Valdosta is not upstream of the Santa Fe River.

So where did all that E. coli come from? Out of the woods that all the animals use as a latrine, off of people’s yards, from cattle manure in pastures, etc., most likely.

Russ also noted, “I also tested at Florida Campsites boat ramp but only had Petrifilm for two slides each slide. Had 5. I really thought being upstream from [Madison] Blue Springs those results would be significantly higher but they were not.”

Since the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream protocol we follow requires three petrifilm slides per site, we can’t count Russ’ Florida Campsites result. I will note that I count 5 colonies on each of his two slides, for 10 total, times 100 / 2 would be 500 cfu/100 mL, which is also higher than 410.

Joanne Tremblay tested two sites on the Santa Fe River Wednesday. At the US 27 Ramp she got her first too-high result, of 500 cfu/100 mL. She remarked, “The river is up, after about 6″ of rain on the 17th. Bacteria counts are up. Quite a jump up from the norm.“

About Hollingsworth Bluff Ramp, which is downstream of Ginnie Springs and various other sites, she noted, “I opted to check a new location downstream. E-coli counts are 2+5+2=9/3=3*100=300 cfu/100 mL.”

That is higher than the 126 30-day average limit, which, along with her US 27 result, is the first time she has seen that on the Santa Fe River.

WWALS Testing Committee Chair Suzy Hall reviewed all the results and some were recalibrated in the ensuing discussion.

WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman delivered testing supplies to several testers, including Russ Tatum today.

If you want to get trained to be a WWALS water quality tester, please fill out the form:
https://wwals.net/?p=47084

As previously noted, Valdosta’s last downstream tests were September 1, 2023.

Chart: Bad water quality, Withlacoochee and Santa Fe Rivers 2023-12-20
For context and the entire WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills, see:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing

So some WWALS “beaches” for which we have recent data are still red, and others maybe should be, on the map.

For those who may be wondering how the Santa Fe River test sites relate to the Withlacoochee and Alapaha test sites, here’s a map with High Springs Ramp at US 41 highlighted towards center bottom.

Map: Santa Fe River in the WWALS map of the Suwannee River Basin

Here’s a live Swim Guide Map.

Thanks to Joe Brownlee and Georgia Power for another generous grant for water quality testing equipment and materials.

You or your organization could also donate to the WWALS volunteer water quality testing program.

There are more images below.

-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can help with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable, water in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin in Florida and Georgia by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/

-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can help with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable, water in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin in Florida and Georgia by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/

Short Link:

WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

A healthy watershed with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable water.

HP

sf27

Hollingsworth

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