Withlacoochee River and Two Mile Branch better, Hightower and Sugar Creeks very bad 2024-11-14 | WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

Update 2024-11-20: Madison Health lifts Health Advisory for Withlacoochee River 2024-11-20.

It’s best to avoid the Withlacoochee River for a few more days at least, with it still in Action Stage around Valdosta, and not coming down fast, plus still questionable water quality results.

We have rescheduled to next week our Withlacoochee River Chainsaw Cleanup after Hurricane Helene, Troupville Boat Ramp 2024-11-23.

Better luck with the Suwannee or Santa Fe Rivers, or the Ichetucknee if any park entrances are open there.

Remember, many parks and put-ins remain closed after Hurricane Helene. So check before you go.

Filthy Hightower and Sugar Creeks Better Withlacoochee River 2024-11-14 OK Two Mile Branch Good Franks Creek

Water quality has improved for the Withlacoochee River, although Fecal coliform was still high at GA 133 and US 84 as well as One Mile Branch (Valdosta Utilities), and State Line (Madison Health).

Meanwhile, Valdosta Utilities reported E. coli and Fecal coliform still too high on Sugar Creek at Gornto Road and increased to extremely high on Hightower Creek at St. Augustine Road.

While no new sewage spills were reported in Georgia or Florida, it’s a little hard to believe there is no sewer spill on Hightower Creek with 42,500 cfu/100mL E. coli (42 times the 1,000 alert limit), especially since River Street is closed at St. Augustine Road on Hightower Creek.

Map: Hightower Creek in the WWALS map of the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT)
Google maps labels it Sugar Creek, but the sign on St. Augustine Road and Valdosta Stormwater’s Master Plan says it Hightower Creek.
Wainwright Drive on Two Mile Branch is at the right edge of the map.

Chart: Horrible Hightower and Sugar Creeks 2024-11-14
For context, see: https://wwals.net/issues/testing

The numbers in the chart boxes indicate E. coli levels as colony-forming units per 100 mililiters (cfu/100 mL), according to Georgia Adopt-A-Stream bacterial monitoring protocols:
Zero (0) is what we want to see, and often we do, on the Alapaha and upstream on the Suwannee Rivers.
From 1-125 is within long-term average limits according to U.S. EPA and Georgia and Florida state agencies.
From 126-409 long-term is not good, and is likely to make some people sick.
From 410-999 is likely to make some people sick; try not to get that water on you.
From 1,000 and up: high alert; best not to get close to that water without gloves; wash clothes afterward.
The letters before the numbers indicate the source of the datapoint, as in W100 means 100 cfu/100 mL found by a WWALS tester.
W: WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. (WWALS), Suwannee Riverkeeper
V: Valdosta, GA
L: Lowndes County, GA
Q: Quitman, GA
SGRC: Southern Georgia Regional Commission
SRWMD: Suwannee River Water Management District
FDOH: Florida Department of Health
FDEP: Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Rain: From USGS and UGA and other gauges.

WWALS testers found Franks Creek (Little River) and the Alapaha River with OK water quality, as well as the Withlacoochee River near the Suwannee River.

Alapaha River

For Wednesday, WWALS tester Kim Tanner got 233 cfu/100 mL at Lakeland Boat Ramp on GA 122 and 166 at Naylor Park Beach near US 84, both OK results. She wrote, “Both locations look good. Water is still high. Not much beach at Naylor Beach.”

Franks Creek (Little River)

For Wednesday, WWALS tester Debbie Smith got 333 cfu/100 mL for Franks Creek at GA 122, west of Hahira, upstream from the Little River. That’s an OK result.

Withlacoochee River

For Thursday, WWALS tester Cindy Vedas got 233 cfu/100 mL for Franklinville with water almost up to the bottom of Tyler Bridge, and 333 for Staten Road, both OK results.

As mentioned, for Thursday Valdosta Utilities got increased and way too high results for Hightower Creek at St. Augustine Road, 42,500 cfu/100 mL E. coli, 42 times the 1,000 alert limit.

And still too high on Sugar Creek at Gornto Road, 2,400, 2.4 times the alert limit.

Table: Valdosta Sugar Creek Testing Results 2024-11-14

Once again I commend Valdosta for posting its November 2024 overflow testing results. on its website. Valdosta is the only municipal (or county) sewage spill reporter I know of that posts its permit-required followup testing results like that.

Madison Health continues its Health Advisory for the Withlacoochee River.

Madison Health Detection Summary for 2024-11-13
PDF

The two most recent Madison Health test reports, for Wednesday and Thursday, are on the WWALS website.

Madison Health Detection Summary for 2024-11-14
PDF

The locations in those reports are:

Boundary Bend Ramp on the Suwannee River, upstream from Dowling Park
SR6 is FL 6, just upstream from Madison Blue Spring on the Withlacoochee River.
CR 150 is at Sullivan Launch, the first public landing on the Withlacoochee River in Florida.
CR 150 is State Line Boat Ramp, aka Mozell Spells or Madison Highway Boat Ramp.

WWALS tester Russ Tatum got excellent 66 cfu/100 mL for Wednesday at Holly Point, downstream near the Suwannee River. He wrote, “The River has crested and is falling slightly. The water is looking much better. Results have decreased significantly.”

WWALS Testing Committee Chair Suzy Hall reviewed some of the results.

WWALS Testing Trainer Gretchen Quarterman delivered testing materials to a tester and did annual retraining.

This contamination and flooding was largely caused by the foot of rain on Valdosta from the fringe of Hurricane Rafael.

Here’s a map for orientation.

Map: Valdosta to Sullivan Launch and Boundary Bend Ramp in the WWALS map of all public landings in the Suwannee River Basin.

Water quality testing training and funding

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

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/

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