Here’s what’s happening to nitrate, pH, and other USGS-funded water quality monitoring in and near the Suwannee River Basin.

USGS discontinued funding for nitrate and pH spring monitoring @ SRWMD 2025-07-08

At the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) Board meeting yesterday, Amy Brown introduced Suzy Hetrick to give an update on the USGS monitoring agreement.

Suzy Hetrick, Update USGS JFA 2025-07-08

Suzy Hetrick, who is Water Resources Office Chief, said that in April SRWMD was informed by USGS that USGS would discontinue funding continous nitrate sampling at all eight springs they were funding.

See the SRWMD video at 1:32:36:
https://www.youtube.com/live/9pousRkUayc?si=Fr7mNxMp0wJaaLqd&t=5556

Other types of monitoring are also being discontinued in October at those locations (pH) and others at other locations. SRWMD is picking up a few of them, but far from all.

And SRWMD also monitors other sites that USGS is not involved in.

She noted that you may see nitrate data continuing to be graphed for a while, but that’s because USGS has not yet retrieved their equipment.

SRWMD will do quarterly grab-sampling at the eight springs, including analysis for nitrate.

This Joint Funding Agreement (JFA) between SRWMD and USGS still has to be approved by the SRWMD Board next month.

Meanwhile, SRWMD Board Chair Virginia Johns asked if it was in the SRWMD budget to pick up what USGS is dropping.

Suzy Hetrick answered, “The short answer is yes. A lot of that we will be absorbing with District time. We are still determining what the cost is going to be for the contractual portions of those….” She promised they would know more before next month.

Nitrate, Manatee Springs Chiefland Gauge, 2025-07-09 –USGS

These are the eight springs:

No Nitrate, Beginning July 1, 2025
PDF

In a table:

Table: USGS Discontinuing
PDF

So that’s:

• Madison Blue Spring
• Blue Springs near Dell (Lafayette Blue)
• Ichetucknee River @ Hwy27 near Hildreth
• Manatee Spring near Chiefland
• Fanning Spring near Wilcox
• Troy Spring near Branford

It’s not just Nitrate. Here’s a map of pH to be discontinued in October:

No pH at these locations
PDF

Details are in the video and in the slides. The slides are on the WWALS website, received in response to a WWALS FOIA to SRWMD. Images of each slide are below.

More later on other news from this SRWMD meeting.

 -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/

USGSJFA

Cover: 2025 USGS JFA Monitoring Stations
PDF

Discontinuation of Continuous Nitrate July 1, 2025
PDF

Continuous Springs WQ Monitoring
PDF

NN2025-07-01

No Nitrate, Beginning July 1, 2025
PDF

MC2025-10-01

Monitoring Changes Beginning October 1, 2025
PDF

WR

Wacissa River near Wacissa * Stage/Discharge * Continuous WQ
PDF

No Continuous WO (Springs Wacissa River near Wacissa
PDF

FR

Fenholloway River near Hampton Springs * Stage/Discharge * Temp/Conductivity
PDF

No Stage/Discharge or Temp/Conductivity for Fenholloway River near Hampton Springs
PDF

Stars upstream: what are they? Fenholloway River near Hampton Springs
PDF

SR

Steinhatchee River near Cross City * Stage/Discharge
PDF

ARR

Alapaha Rise near Jasper * Temp/Conductivity
PDF

FSF

Falmouth Spring at Falmouth * Stage/Discharge * Continuous WQ
PDF

SRDP

Suwannee River at Dowling Park * Temp/Conductivity
PDF

No Temp/Conductivity, Suwannee River at Dowling Park
PDF

LFS

Little Fanning Springs near Fanning Springs * Manual Discharge
PDF

BHS

Blue Hole Spring near Hildreth * Stage/Discharge
PDF

SFRnG

Santa Fe River near Graham * Stage/Discharge
PDF

CSWQM

Continuous Springs WQ Monitoring * pH * Dissolved Oxygen * Conductivity * Temperature
PDF

No pH at these locations
PDF

Table: USGS Discontinuing
PDF

QA

Questions?
PDF

Summary

Beginning October 21, 2025, USGS JFA Monitoring Changes
PDF

Short Link: