WWALS got pretty clean water quality results for the Withlacoochee River upstream and down for Wednesday, and even Sugar Creek seems cleaner.
This is surprising after Valdosta’s much worse results for Monday.
Also surprising is the dirty winner of Wednesday: Beatty Branch, which runs into Cat Creek before that gets to the Withlacoochee River.
No new sewage spills have been reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida or Georgia since the report of the Valdosta Sugar Creek spill for July 13.
If you can avoid the thunderstorms predicted this weekend, happy paddling, boating, swimming, and fishing. At least the temperature is predicted to be somewhat lower.
OK Withlacoochee River, Cleaner Sugar Creek, Dirty Beatty Branch, 2025-07-30
Maybe join us tomorrow for Longer chainsaw from Langdale Park, Withlacoochee River 2025-08-03.
Cat Creek
WWALS tester John S. Quarterman (jsq) got 300 cfu/100 mL E. coli for Cat Creek at Cat Creek Road. That’s well below the 410 one-time test limit. He did hear from a neighbor that there aren’t nearly as many fish in Cat Creek as there used to be.
WWALS is working on a grant strategy to do systematic testing of Cat Creek, Beatty Branch, and Beaverdam Creek to get at the bottom of that. It will be expensive, because it will require DNA testing in addition to many frequent E. coli tests.
Sign, Cat Creek @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 09:16:42, –jsq for WWALS 30.9905981, -83.2455160
Beatty Branch
For Beatty Branch at Cat Creek Road, jsq got much higher 1,233 cfu/100 mL. That’s above the 1,000 one-time test limit.
Plates, Beatty Branch @ Cat Creek Road, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
Beatty Branch runs into Cat Creek, which joins the Withlacoochee River below Franklinville.
Map: Beatty Branch highlighted, Cat Creek, Withlacoochee River
in the WWALS
map of the withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT)
Withlacoochee River upstream
For Franklinville Landing at Tyler Bridge, upstream from Cat Creek, jsq got a very clean 33 cfu/100 mL.
WWALS tester Cindy Vedas also got 33 for Staten Road, downstream from Cat Creek. Apparently the Beatty Branch contamination is being diluted by the larger amount of water in the Withlacoochee River.
At Langdale Park Boat Ramp, jsq got slightly higher 200 cfu/100 mL. This is not surprising, considering there is very little flow there right now, and stagnant water breeds bacteria.
Chart: Clean Withlacoochee River, Cleaner Sugar Creek, Dirty Beatty Branch 2025-07-30
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 ProtectionRain: From USGS and UGA and other gauges.
For Monday at US 41, just upstream from Langdale Park, Valdosta Utilities got 460 cfu/100 mL, which is higher than anyone would like.
Table: Sugar Creek Withlacoochee Results, 2025-08-28 –Valdosta Utilities
Evidently whatever that was already mostly washed downstream.
Sugar Creek
Valdosta Utilities’ Sugar Creek results for Monday were still way too high, 1,140 cfu/100 mL at Baytree Road, and even higher downstream at Gornto Road: 11,800. For comparison, 1,000 is the alert limit.
Table: Sugar Creek Results, 2025-08-28
—Valdosta Utilities
Withlacoochee River downstream
Valdosta Utilities for Monday also got very high for GA 133 on the Withlacoochee River: 1,850 cfu/100 mL.
Table: Withlacoochee River Results, 2025-08-28 —
Valdosta Utilities
But for Wednesday jsq got only 100 cfu/100 mL for GA 133.
For Wednesday at Troupville Boat Ramp on the Little River, jsq got zero (0). Can’t get better than that.
For Monday at US 84, Valdosta got 570 cfu/100 mL. One hopes that also came down by Wednesday, but we have no results there for that day.
Downstream on the Withlacoochee River in Florida at Holly Point, not far up from the Suwannee River, WWALS tester Russ Tatum for Wednesday got 66 cfu/100 mL, which is pretty clean.
He remarked, “While the River is the best it’s looked in a long time, low and clear with just a ting of tannic, the e-coli results were not as clear as I had hoped, but good considering what’s going on up stream. As the old saying goes … flows down stream.”
Water quality testing training and funding
WWALS tester Suzy Hall reviewed the other results. Such review is part of WWALS quality control.
If you want to get trained
by WWALS water quality testing trainer Gretchen Quarterman
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/
FR
Tyler Bridge, Withlacoochee River, Franklinville Road, 2025:07:30 09:48:18, –jsq for WWALS 30.9815874, -83.2679551
Downstream, Franklinville Landing, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 09:48:23, –jsq for WWALS 30.9815874, -83.2679551
Plates, Franklinville Landing, Withlacoochee River, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
CCCCR
Cat Creek @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 09:15:34, –jsq for WWALS 30.9896028, -83.2444250
Sign, Cat Creek @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 09:16:42, –jsq for WWALS 30.9905981, -83.2455160
Plates, Cat Creek @ Cat Creek Road, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
BBCCR
Beatty Branch @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 14:09:54, –jsq for WWALS 30.9801819, -83.2463414
Downstream, Beatty Branch @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 14:10:05, –jsq for WWALS 30.9801819, -83.2463414
Upstream, Beatty Branch @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 14:10:35, –jsq for WWALS 30.9801819, -83.2463414
Elderberry flower, Beatty Branch @ Cat Creek Road, 2025:07:30 14:10:49, –jsq for WWALS 30.9801958, -83.2462435
Plates, Beatty Branch @ Cat Creek Road, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
staten
Staten Road, Withlacoochee River @ Staten Road 2025-07-30, 2025:07:30 12:42:21, –Cindy Vedas for WWALS 30.9279528, -83.2934194
Staten Road other, Withlacoochee River @ Staten Road 2025-07-30, 2025:07:30 12:43:22, –Cindy Vedas for WWALS 30.9281833, -83.2934333
LPER
Private development, entrance, Langdale Park, 2025:07:30 10:50:39, –jsq for WWALS 30.8871811, -83.3153222
Work needed, entrance road, Langdale Park, 2025:07:30 10:51:17, –jsq for WWALS 30.8871811, -83.3153222
LPBR
Downstream, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:02:39, –jsq for WWALS 30.8874635, -83.3240574
Sample site, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:02:42, –jsq for WWALS 30.8874635, -83.3240574
Upstream, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:02:45, –jsq for WWALS 30.8874635, -83.3240574
Ogeechee Tupelo, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:03:04, –jsq for WWALS 30.8874635, -83.3240574
Ogeechee limes, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:03:12, –jsq for WWALS 30.8874635, -83.3240574
Mud tracks, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:04:00, –jsq for WWALS 30.8874425, -83.3240343
Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:05:05, –jsq for WWALS 30.8877327, -83.3237435
Plates, Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
BTR
Baytree Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:20:21, –jsq for WWALS 30.8471193, -83.3141101
Downstream, Baytree Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:20:28, –jsq for WWALS 30.8471193, -83.3141101
Across, Baytree Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:20:45, –jsq for WWALS 30.8470393, -83.3139198
Maypop with bee, Baytree Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:19:56, –jsq for WWALS 30.8471193, -83.3141101
Another maypop with bee, Baytree Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:21:29, –jsq for WWALS 30.8470393, -83.3139198
Plates, Baytree Road, Sugar Creek, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
GTR
Gornto Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:37:33, –jsq for WWALS 30.8596538, -83.3173024
Green water, Gornto Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:37:36, –jsq for WWALS 30.8596538, -83.3173024
Downstream, Gornto Road, Sugar Creek, 2025:07:30 13:37:40, –jsq for WWALS 30.8596538, -83.3173024
Plates, Sugar Creek @ Gornto Road, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
GA133
Sample site, GA 133, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:54:56, –jsq for WWALS 30.8498470, -83.3399557
Downstream, GA 133, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:55:01, –jsq for WWALS 30.8498470, -83.3399557
Bridge, GA 133, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 11:55:13, –jsq for WWALS 30.8498470, -83.3399557
Muddy spot, access road, GA 133, Withlacoochee River, 2025:07:30 12:00:23, –jsq for WWALS 30.8502895, -83.3406781
Plates, GA 133, Withlacoochee River, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
TBR
Fish weir sample site, Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2025:07:30 11:31:40, –jsq for WWALS 30.8517586, -83.3474471
Upstream to Troup Bridge, Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2025:07:30 11:31:45, –jsq for WWALS 30.8517586, -83.3474471
Downstream past Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2025:07:30 11:31:52, –jsq for WWALS 30.8517586, -83.3474471
Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2025:07:30 11:32:37, –jsq for WWALS 30.8517586, -83.3474471
Signs, Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2025:07:30 11:33:18, –jsq for WWALS 30.8513968, -83.3475143
Plates, Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2025-07-30 –jsq for WWALS
IB
Two incubators, 2025:07:30 15:04:10 –jsq for WWALS
HP
Holly Point, Withlacoochee River @ NE Withla Bluffs Way 2025-07-30, 2025:07:30 12:35:42, –Russ Tatum for WWALS 30.4138917, -83.2071833
Holly Point other, Withlacoochee River @ NE Withla Bluffs Way 2025-07-30, 2025:07:30 12:37:21, –Russ Tatum for WWALS 30.4137583, -83.2068472
-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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