WWALS and Valdosta Utilities got good E. coli results on the Withlacoochee River.

We don’t know about Sugar Creek; nobody tested that this week.

No new sewage spills have been reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida. There was one tiny spill near Adel, Georgia, reported to be completely contained.

Rain or thunderstorms are likely for the next ten days.

Since these recent tests were after previous rains, apparently we’re past first flush. That means whatever was in the woods has washed out now, so more rain may not cause much contamination.

So as near as we can tell, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend, if you can beat the rain!

Clean Withlacoochee River in Georgia and Florida, 2025-06-26; Small spill near Adel, GA, 2025-06-20, Morrison Creek, Little River

Maybe by a week from Saturday there will be no rain for Turner Bridge to Cone Bridge Paddle, Suwannee River, 2025-07-05.
https://wwals.net/?p=67557

Withlacoochee River

Just upstream from Langdale Park, Valdosta Utilities reported nothing for US 41 (North Valdosta Road), because the city was only testing there as part of the major spill followup testing.

Table: GA 133 & US 84, Withlacoochee River Test Results 2025-06-26 — Valdosta Utilities

For Wednesday Valdosta Utilities reported 110 at GA 133 and 90 at US 84, both very good, and both downstream from Sugar Creek.

Table: GA 133 & US 84, Withlacoochee River Test Results 2025-06-26 — Valdosta Utilities

WWALS tester Russ Tatum got zero for Tuesday at Holly Point, a few miles upstream from the Suwannee River.

He remarked, “Clean Withlacoochee, though somewhat tannic and silty.”

Chart: Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-06-26
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.

Sewage Spill near Adel

In the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA-EPD) Sewage Spills Report for Monday, June 23, 2025, is a June 20, 150-gallon raw sewage spill at 3140 J-M Drive, Adel, GA 31620. That’s in the watershed of Morrison Creek, which flows into Wells Mill Creek and then the Little River below Cook County Boat Ramp on GA 76.

However, the GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report says the spill Did Not Enter State Waters. According to the report, apparently the sewage is supposed to go to the Adel WPCP.

2025-06-20 sewage spill, Morrison Farms, Adel, GA in 2025-06-23 GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report

That address is for Sanderson Farms, which sells chicken products. It’s part of Wayne Sanderson Farms, which has operations from Texas to North Carolina.

Anyway, you can see the Sanderson Farms spill highlighted on this map, with Morrison Creek, Wells Mill Creek, and the Little River going south from there.

Map: Sanderson Farms Spill, Morrison Creek, Little River in the WWALS map of the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT)

A bit to the northeast of Sanderson Farms and southeast of Adel, the Adel WPCP is visible on Bear Creek, which flows into the Withlacoochee River below Youngs Mill Creek Landing on GA 37.

This map shows

Map: Holly Point, Withlacoochee River in WLRWT

Water quality testing training and funding

WWALS tester Kimberly Godden Tanner reviewed Russ Tatum’s results. Such review is part of every WWALS tester’s ongoing training.

WWALS water quality testing trainer Gretchen Quarterman retrained two testers.

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/

HP

Holly Point, Withlacoochee River @ NE Withla Bluffs Way –Russ Tatum for WWALS, 2025:06:25 13:11:14, 30.4138139, -83.2065972

Short Link: