Update 2024-02-22: Some Knights Creek plans in Valdosta Boone Drive and Knob Hill small sewage spills 2024-02-20.

Update 2024-01-31: Spill from Chemours Trail Ridge South TiO2 mine SE of Starke, FL 2024-01-30.

Four small Valdosta sewage spills appeared in the January 26, 2024 GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report, all listed as happening December 17, 2023, and as “Did not enter State waters”.

Four small Valdosta sewage spills 2023-12-17

However, Valdosta Acting Utilities Director Jason Barnes confirms that these spills did happen. Which you can see for yourself in the pictures I took on January 23 of the Mile Street spill locations.

The most unusual part of these spill reports is that bit for “WATERWAY IMPACTED”: “Did not enter State waters”. That means these spills were stopped and contained before they could reach Knights Creek or Cherry Creek. Which is impressive considering that Sunday, December 17, 2024, saw more than an inch of rain at every gauge we follow, after more than half an inch the previous day. (See below for one reservation about one of these spills.)

Nobody is going to be happy until the number of Valdosta sewage spills is zero. And WWALS continues watching closely.

However, watching also includes complimenting Valdosta Utilities when things go right. So, congratulations, Valdosta Utilities, for catching these spills before they did any damage.

Curiously, these spills did not appear in the next day’s Sewage Spills Report, or in any later days. Considering recent typos in those GA-EPD Sewage Spills Reports, I’m assuming those later omissions are due to EPD’s problems with lack of staffing and funding.

Let’s look at each of these spills.

Four small Valdosta spills –GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report 2023-12-17

We’ve already investigated in some detail the January 10, 2024, Knob Hill Road spill into Three Mile Branch upstream of the Withlacoochee River, so follow that link if you want to know more about that spill.
https://wwals.net/?p=63980

Cherry Creek spill

The December 17 Cherry Creek Spill of 1,500 gallons was at the same location as the February 12, 2023, spill of 2,800 gallons: the Boys & Girls Club Lift Station, 3658 Lake Laurie Drive, on a branch of Cherry Creek, upstream from Lake Cleve (aka Cherry Lake) and the Withlacoochee River.

Map: Cherry Creek to Withlacoochee River in the WWALS map of the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail.

WWALS testing along Cherry Creek after that February spill showed Cherry Creek bad downstream of the spill, but worse farther downstream, and the Withlacoochee River was actually worse upstream than downstream of where Cherry Creek enters it.

Chart: bad Cherry Creek and Withlacoochee River 2023-02-12
For context and the entire WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills, see:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing

Given that the December 17th spill was smaller, it is likely to have less effectd, even if it did get into the creek, which Valdosta Utilities says it didn’t.

Miles Street spills

It was easy to see where the spill was at 200 Miles Street when I went there on Tuesday, January 23, 2024.

Closeup, 200 Miles Street excavation, 11:49:53, 30.8411950, -83.2541440

That’s right in front of the house.

200 Miles Street excavation, 11:49:57, 30.8411950, -83.2541440

Here’s the mailbox.

200 Miles Street mailbox, 11:50:26, 30.8411950, -83.2540000

The spill at 201 Miles Street did not leave such obvious clues. However, somebody was leaving that house when I get there, and he pointed to this cleanup next to his mailbox as where that spill occured.

201 Miles Street cleanout, 11:50:14, 30.8412500, -83.2539500

This is looking north down Miles Street to Eastview Road. 201 Miles Street is on the left, and 200 on the right.

201 and 200 Miles Street at Eastview Road, 11:50:49, 30.8413000, -83.2540200

Drainage from those houses goes into this ditch along Eastview Road, which I photographed from the corner of Price Street, east of the spill sites.

Ditch along Eastview Road at Price Street, 11:52:52, 30.8402350, -83.2560096

Here’s a map.

Miles Street sewage spills 2023-12-17 in the WWALS map of the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT)

Turning around, that other ditch is the Cypress Street Branch of Knights Creek.

Looking down the Eastview Road ditch and across Knights Creek Cypress Street Branch along Price Street, 11:53:00, 30.8402350, -83.2560096

Looking north, you can see East Hill Avenue (US 84).

E Hill Ave (US 84) seen up Knights Creek Cypress Street Branch, 11:53:16, 30.8402350, -83.2560096

Here’s a different zoom.

Looking up to E Hill Ave (US 84) along Knights Creek Cypress Street, 11:53:19, 30.8402350, -83.2560096

Looking south, this is that branch of Knights Creek.

Down Knights Creek Cypress Street Branch along Price Street, 11:53:23, 30.8402350, -83.2560096

And zoomed in for a bit more detail.

Closeup, Knights Creek Cypress Street Branch along Price Street, 11:53:27, 30.8402350, -83.2560096

Mildred Street

Since I was nearby, I also went by Mildred Street, where multiple sewage spills have happened in previous years.

Mildred Street, site of 11:56:51, 30.8410220, -83.2607150

More patches show in the street than the last time I was there. There is no lime nor any other signs of a spill. No spill was reported there for December 2023. So maybe that site is finally resolved.

Mildred Street to Sasser Landing, Alapaha River in the map of the Alapaha River Water Trail.

As you can see on the above map, Knights Creek flows into Mud Swamp Creek, then the Alapahoochee River, then the Alapaha River.

1800 E. Park Ave. spill and Knights Creek

I am a bit dubious about the 1800 E. Park Ave spill not reaching Knights Creek, given the results of Valdosta’s own Knights Creek upstream and downstream water quality testing for that weekend and days following.

Knights Creek Testing Results after 2023-12-14 –Valdosta Utilities

Maybe that contamination was still washing out after the December 11-14, 2023, 425,000-gallon E. Park Ave. spill. Or maybe some of it came from the far smaller December 17 spill. It is impossible to tell.

Also, the Withlacoochee River from US 84 downstream also tested bad that week, and that is not downstream from Knights Creek. The heavy rainfall caused much contamination from multiple sources.

So we’ll keep watching for larger sewage spills that do reach state waters.

And looking forward to the day that Valdosta will have fixed all its sewer system infrastructure, and dealt with all cases of vandalism, so that there are no more spills.

Unfortunately, given the magnitude of the problem, that day will probably be after some years and more millions of dollars spent by the city.

 -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/

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