Monthly Archives: January 2024

Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle, Langdale Park to Troupville, Withlacoochee River 2024-03-02

Update 2024-03-08: Pictures: Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle, Withlacoochee River 2024-03-02.

Update 2024-02-02: Now no fee required, thanks to a pledge from Georgia Power.

Update 2024-01-29: Press release, Fifth Annual Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle, Withlacoochee River 2024-03-02.

Join us for a leisurely seven-mile four-hour paddle with the Mayor of Valdosta and the Chairman of Lowndes County on the Withlacoochee River.

On a new route this year, we’ll go three miles from Langdale Park Boat Ramp through Langdale Park past Three Mile Branch to Sugar Creek with early takeout. On this all-wooded route it is hard to believe you are next to the most populous city in the Suwannee River Basin.

Stop at Sugar Creek to see the WaterGoat trash trap purchased by the City of Valdosta and cleaned out by volunteer Russell Allen McBride and family, which keeps much trash out of the river.

Then we’ll paddle another four miles under the Norfolk Southern Railroad Bridge, past Wood Valley Subdivision and Sheri Run, and the I-75 and GA 133 highway bridges.

Notice all the deadfalls (fallen dead trees) sawed out of the way by numerous WWALS Chainsaw Cleanups.

We will see all the river frontage of the land recently purchased by Lowndes County for Troupville River Camp and Nature Park. After paddling a third of a mile up the Little River, we will take out at Troupville Boat Ramp.

When: Gather 8 AM, launch 10 AM, end 4 PM, Saturday, March 2, 2024

Put In: Langdale Park Boat Ramp, 3781 N. Valdosta Rd., Valdosta, GA 31602, off of I-75 Exit 22, North Valdosta Road.

GPS: 30.88747, -83.32395

Paddlers 2023-03-04

Continue reading →

Chant for the Okefenokee –Jane Ross Fallon 2024-01-04

As Jane Fallon sings,

There is no right way
To do the wrong thing.

Movie: Chant for the Okefenokee –Jane Ross Fallon

You can help stop a strip mine too near the Okefenokee Swamp for titanium dioxide for white paint:
https://wwals.net/issues/titanium-mining

Georgians, ask your statehouse delegation to pass HB 71 to stop further such mines on Trail Ridge east of the Swamp.
https://protectgeorgia.org/okefenokee/#/366/

Floridians, ask your friends and relatives in Georgia to do this, and ask the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to ask the Georgia Environmental Protection Division to deny the permits for this single point source of pollution upstream of Florida.

Jane Ross Fallon wrote, “I recently won the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest. The contest video of my performance did not turn out, and it was suggested I film one myself. John S. Quarterman, Suwannee Riverkeeper, sent me a banner to use. So I made a video with my cell in my house. I didn’t think the sonic quality of the phone was adequate, so I recorded the song on my computer, overdubbing the video. Never done that before. Then I decided, it’s not about me, it’s about the song and its purpose. So I made a more elaborate presentation. Let me know if it works.😏”

Lyrics

Here is Jane’s video of her Chant for the Okefenokee.
https://youtu.be/UQx9eEWbEcI Continue reading →

Notice: WWALS Board Meeting 2024-01-21

WWALS President Sara Jay will preside over the WWALS Quarterly Board Meeting. The public is invited.

We will be reviewing plans for the Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle, the Big Little River Paddle Tour, and other outings and events such as the WWALS Webinars, as well as for the next WWALS Gala including the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest. See https://wwals.net/outings. Plus trash, sewage, water quality testing, opposition to mines (titanium, phosphate, and sand), excess water withdrawals, coal ash, pellet plants, and LNG export, as well as promotion of water trails and solar power: see https://wwals.net/issues/ And of course finances and fundraising.

That’s for the entire 10,000 square mile Suwannee River Basin, in Georgia and Florida, including the Withlacoochee, Willacoochee, Alapaha, Alapahoochee, Little Alapaha, Little times two, New times two, Black, Dead, Sampson, Santa Fe, and Suwannee Rivers, and all their creeks, springs, sinks, ponds, and swamps, such as Grand Bay, Banks Lake and the Okefenokee Swamp.

When: 6 PM to 8 PM, Sunday, January 21, 2024

Where: Online via zoom, so you don’t even have to go anywhere. The zoom parameters will follow, as will an agenda.

WWALS Board Meeting, 6-8 PM, Sunday, January 21, 2024

Continue reading →

Meeting: Outstanding Florida Springs Basin Management Plans 2024-01-23

Update 2024-01-16: SWFWMD ERP 43046299.000 for 3RT Sand Mine, Levy County, FL 2023-04-19.

Maybe you’d like to ask FDEP some questions about the springsheds of Rainbow Springs, Ichetucknee Springs, or Madison Blue Spring, among many others.

What does it mean for a spring to be declared an Outstanding Florida Water and a Basin Management Plan (BMAP) issued for it if that springshed is not protected from, for example, a sand mine?

OFS Updates Agenda and Rainbow Springs Springshed

Public Notice

Notice: 27937666
Notice of Meeting/Workshop Hearing
Department: DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection announces a public meeting to which all persons are invited.

DATE AND TIME: January 23, 2024 10 AM EDT
PLACE: Webinar: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/240858353506612832
Subject: This is an Outstanding Florida Springs Basin Management Action Plans (BMAP) update meeting to which the public is invited. The BMAPs are the means for implementation of the adopted Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). The primary purpose of this meeting is to provide information on the nitrogen source inventory loading tool (NSILT) updates, as well as an overview of the 2025 BMAP updates.
Continue reading →

Video: Fannie Gibbs Begins WWALS Webinars 2024-01-11

Thanks, Fannie Marie Jackson Gibbs, for the first WWALS Webinar 2024-01-11.

Fannie Gibbs, first WWALS Webinar and sample slides

Fannie Marie Jackson Gibbs of Brooks County, Georgia, has long been active in issues near the Little and Withlacoochee Rivers, especially involving African-American family history. She talked about Brooks County Georgia Settlers, family history, Old and New Macedonia Cemeteries, the Little River, Okapilco Creek, the annual Juneteenth celebrations she organizes at Reed Bingham State Park Lake where WWALS brings boats, and the ongoing sewage problems in Quitman.

Here’s the video: Continue reading →

Dirty Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers 2024-01-11

Update 2024-01-19: Three Clean Rivers 2024-01-17.

We got bad results for Thursday for one Alapaha River site and horrible results for one Withlacoochee River site.

Russ Tatum’s Holly Point site went from zero E. coli for Wednesday to 5,000 for Thursday. We don’t know whether this is related to Valdosta’s Wednesday 100,000-gallon sewage spill into Three Mile Branch to the Withlacoochee River, but it could be. In the last week, no other pollution spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia, and none at all in Florida.

The most recent City of Valdosta Withlacoochee River results we have are for Monday, and they are all too high after last Saturday’s rain. There was more rain Tuesday, and a bit more yesterday (Friday).

If I were you, I would avoid the Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers this weekend. Maybe even the Ichetucknee and Santa Fe Rivers.

We shall see whether the Withlacoochee is clean enough and low enough Sunday week for the Langdale Park to Sugar Creek Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River 2024-01-21.

Chart, Rivers, Map 2024-01-11

WWALS tester Kimberly Godden Tanner tested the Alapaha River at Lakeland Boat Ramp @ GA 122 and at Naylor Park Beach @ US 84. She wrote, “Both locations were clean [of trash]. The only additional item of note was a couple a dead fish on the ground at the boat ramp in Lakeland. I am not a fisher, so I am unaware of why this might be.” Continue reading →

Valdosta sewage spill, Three Mile Branch, Withlacoochee River 2024-01-10

Update 2024-01-24: More about the Valdosta Knob Hill or Williamsburg Drive sewage spill 2024-01-10.

Update 2024-01-18: According to Valdosta Acting Utilities Director Jason Barnes, the spill really was from a manhole at 213 Knob Hill Drive, but it was not due to a collapsed sewer line; actually there were rocks in the pipe.

Update 2024-01-13: Dirty Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers 2024-01-11.

Valdosta yesterday reported a massive sewage spill from a collapsed sewer line into Three Mile Branch, through Langdale Park, into the Withlacoochee River.

Valdosta Sewage Spill, Williamsburg Drive to Three Mile Branch and Withlacoochee River, January 10-12, 2024

I compliment the City of Valdosta on getting a bypass pump there to deal with the situation.

And I compliment the City for a specific location, 213 Knob Hill Drive. However, that is where the report came from that caused Valdosta Utilities to investigate. By the description in the press release of “a manhole overflowing from the backside of Williamsburg Drive”, it would appear the manhole was actually at 2019 Williamsburg Drive.

“The Sanitary Sewer overflow stopped at 12:30 am on January 12, 2024, releasing approximately 100,000 gallons into a drainage ditch that discharges into the Withlacoochee River.”

Two ditches actually go into Three Mile Branch which goes to the Withlacoochee River, but I compliment the City on saying which river is affected.

However, in addition to being ten times the 10,000 gallons required for a major spill, that 100,000 gallons is an awful round number. And while the City provides a stop date and time for the spill, they don’t really say when it started, just when it was reported. So that manhole could have been spewing sewage for quite a while at 2019 Williamsburg Drive before somebody at 213 Knob Hill Drive noticed and reported it.

This appears to be the location of “a manhole overflowing from the backside of Williamsburg Drive”, at 2019 Williamsburg Drive. Continue reading →

Valdosta city trash, parking lots, ordinances, WaterGoat, and cleanups –WTXL TV 2023-12-18

Update 2024-03-06: WTXL TV report and Pictures: Valdosta WWTP water quality lab ribbon cutting 2024-03-05.

Valdosta is the main waterway trash problem in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida. Which gives the City government an opportunity to fix that problem.

Valdosta trash is not like other cities

Malia Thomas, WTXL, December 18, 2023, Area group pushes code enforcement for dealing with Valdosta’s trash,

WWALS Watershed Coalition is pushing the City of Valdosta to strictly enforce ordinances as a means of keeping the streets clean.

The video starts with WTXL Reporter Malia Thomas pointing at trash in a parking lot. Continue reading →

WWALS River Revue, September 7, 2024

Hahira, Georgia, January 9, 2024 — Save the date for the second annual WWALS River Revue. This indoor sit-down fundraising dinner will be held 5-9 PM, Saturday, September 7, 2024, at the Turner Center for the Arts in Valdosta, Georgia. Tickets are $100 a person. It will include the 7th Annual Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, with 2023’s First Prize winner Jane Fallon as 2024 Headliner. Chuck Roberts returns as Master of Ceremonies.

Follow this link for sponsorship opportunities and more:
https://wwals.net/pictures/songwriting2024/

WWALS River Revue, September 7, 2024, and Jane Fallon winning First Prize, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2023, as M.C. Chuck Roberts looks on

WWALS President Sara Jay Jones said, “Get your song ready about the Suwannee or another river, creek, spring, sink, swamp, or pond in the Suwannee River Basin. We will open song submissions in the Spring.”

Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman said, “Your ticket or sponsorship helps support everything WWALS does, from water quality tests, paddle outings and swimming & boating lessons, to chainsaw cleanups, and beyond to advocacy to stop trash at its sources, strip mines, and pipelines. We work for water trails, solar power, and Right to Clean Water, with growing engagement for youth and marginalized communities.”

Organizing Committee member Arinda Kennedy said, “Maybe you’d like to join the organizing committee!”

About WWALS: Since June 2012, WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. (WWALS) is an IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity working for a healthy watershed with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable water.

Mission: WWALS advocates for conservation and stewardship of the surface waters and groundwater of the Suwannee River Basin and Estuary, in south Georgia and north Florida, among them the Withlacoochee, Willacoochee, Alapaha, Little, Santa Fe, and Suwannee River watersheds, through education, awareness, environmental monitoring, and citizen activities.

Our Watershed: The 10,000-square-mile WWALS territory includes the Suwannee River from the Okefenokee Swamp to the Gulf of Mexico, plus the Suwannee River Estuary, and tributaries such as the Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers as far north as Cordele in Georgia, as well as parts of the Floridan Aquifer— the primary water source for drinking, agriculture, and industry for millions of Georgia and Florida residents.

Suwannee Riverkeeper: Since December 2016, WWALS is the WATERKEEPER® Alliance Member for the Suwannee River Basin and Estuary as Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®, which is a project and a staff position of WWALS focusing on our advocacy.

Contact: John S. Quarterman
Suwannee Riverkeeper
song@suwanneeriverkeeper.org
850-290-2350

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PFAS in the Santa Fe River Basin in Florida

Some people are interested in whether PFAS from titanium dioxide (TiO2) mines or other sources is getting into the New or Santa Fe Rivers in Florida.

For example, the new Chemours Trail Ridge South Mine southeast of Starke, Florida, appears to drain into Double Run Creek, which runs into the Santa Fe River.

PFAS in Santa Fe River from TiO2 Mines?
Detail from WWALS map of the Suwannee River Water Trail.

We don’t know about those rivers yet, because nobody has tested them. We do have a few datapoints for a few city drinking water systems, and they’re all clean, although Newberry, just outside the Basin, is not.

No doubt it is possible to find that data in FDEP’s Oculus Document Management System, in the same way it is possible to win a jackpot in Las Vegas. If you already know about six very specific parameters, sure, Oculus will find it. Continue reading →

WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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