Clean Withlacoochee River and Sugar Creek 2026-05-06

Even after the rains last Saturday, Valdosta Utilities got a pretty good E. coli number for Monday at GA 133 (St. Augustine Road) on the Withlacoochee River, and a good result at US 84 that same day.

WWALS got an even better result downstream in Florida.

WWALS results for Sugar Creek for Sunday were also OK.

There was more rain yesterday, but less than last Saturday. Still no new sewage spills have been reported this week in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida or Georgia.

As always, we can only advise with the results we have. Happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend, if you can find any water.

More rain is predicted Saturday through Monday.

If there is rain, maybe it will at least dampen some wildfires. Remember not to light anything outdoors.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

Clean Withlacoochee River and Sugar Creek 2026-05-06, after rains, more rain coming

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet.

Chart: Clean Withlacoochee River and Sugar Creek, 2026-05-06 –WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results
For context see:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing

Previous WWALS water quality reports are here:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

Also follow that link for the underlying spreadsheet of water quality, sewage spills, and rainfall from Georgia and Florida sources for the Suwannee River Basin.

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.

Upstream Withlacoochee River

WWALS tester Cindy Vedas got 33 cfu/100 mL at Franklinville Landing for Thursday, April 30.

Tyler Bridge, Franklinville, Withlacoochee River @ Frankinville Road 2026-04-30 –Cindy Vedas for WWALS

Sugar Creek

WWALS tester Suzy Hall for last Thursday, April 30, 2026, got 200 cfu/100 mL for Sugar Creek at the WaterGoat. That’s again well below the 410 one-time test limit.

Sugar Creek @ WaterGoat 2026-05-03 –Suzy Hall for WWALS

She got zero (0) for that same day at Staten Road.

Staten Road, Withlacoochee River @ Staten Road 2026-04-30 –Cindy Vedas for WWALS

And she got zero (0) for that same day at Langdale Park.

Langdale Park Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River @ North Valdosta Road 2026-04-30 –Cindy Vedas for WWALS

Downstream Withlacoochee River

Valdosta Utilities for Monday, May 4, 2026, got 300 cfu/100 mL for GA 133 on the Withlacoochee River. That’s below the 410 one-time test limit, and actually lower than the previous week, despite rain two days before.

And they got a very clean 30 at US 84, below the Little River Confluence.

Table: GA 133 & US 84, Withlacoochee River 2026-05-04 –Valdosta Utilities

WWALS tester Russ Tatum got 33 cfu/100 mL for Wedensday, May 6, 2026, at Holly Point on the Withlacoochee River four miles upstream from the Suwannee River.

He remarked, “Got a little rain this afternoon. YAY!”

Holly Point, Withlacoochee River @ NE Withla Bluffs Way 2026-05-06 –Russ Tatum for WWALS

Water quality testing training and funding

WWALS testers Kimberly Tanner, Cindy Vedas, Tish Hall, and Suzy Hall reviewed the WWALS results. Such review is part of the WWALS standard ongoing testing quality analysis.

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, Don Hutchinson, 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/

Map: River Gauges 2026-05-09 –NOAA