Clean Rivers 2023-11-09

Update 2023-11-17: Mostly clean Withlacoochee River 2023-11-16.

The rivers were still clean, in yet another week with no rain: the Withlacoochee, Alapaha, and Suwannee Rivers. Even famously filthy Crawford Branch was clean. However, notoriously dirty Sugar Creek was dirty, but it did not seem to affect the Withlacoochee River much.

No rain is predicted for this weekend.

In the last week, no new sewage spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida.

So happy swimming, boating, and fishing this weekend!

Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-11-09

Heather Brasell got good results for Sunday, November 5, 2023, at an outflow creek from the Alapaha Wastewater Treatment Plant and on the Alapaha River just upstream from Sheboggy Boat Ramp at US 82.

All other results are for samples taken Thursday, November 9, 2023.

Reina Lingle got clean results for the Suwannee River at Ivey Metropolitan Park in Branford and at Royal Springs, “Clean films, clean water.”

Cindy Vedas very got good results for the Withlacoochee River at Franklinville, “Water level very low;” Crawford Branch, “Lowest counts since I have been sampling;” Staten Road, “Perfect;” and Langdale Park, “At the park there was corn thrown out by the boat ramp on the sandbar deer had been eating it. ??? I’m scratching my head on this one. The trash cans were empty, our trash pickup is gone. This was my highest count. Which is not too bad.”

WWALS Testing Committee Chair Suzy Hall got clean at Clyattville-Nankin Boat Ramp on the Withlacoochee River.

She conducted an experiment on Sugar Creek, “It does appear the fish hole is yielding more E. coli than above and below, but above was not clean, although it was the lowest of the three… So, we have E. coli coming downstream, but multiplying in the hole, either from the fish population OR natural multiplication in a mostly confined area. Then it slowly releases downstream and on towards the river. What’s the cause? It’s all fairly high really.
Upstream, 5,5,2 = 400 cfu/100 100 mL
In the hole, 8,6,6 = 667 cfu/100 100 mL
Sugar creek AAS location, 5,6,4 = 500 cfu 100 mL

Russ Tatum got clean results for the Withlacoochee River at Holly Point, between Allen Ramp and the Suwannee River.

WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman delivered testing supplies to several testers, and trained a couple more testers.

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

The most recent Valdosta results we have are for Wednesday upstream, which were good. As usual, Valdosta’s last week upstream results corroborated what WWALS saw Thursday last week.

And, as previosly noted, Valdosta’s last downstream tests were September 1, 2023.

Chart: Clean Rivers 2023-11-09
For context and the entire WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills, see:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing

So I’ve marked green for all the WWALS “beaches” for which we have recent data, on map.

Map: Clean Rivers, Swim Guide 2023-11-09

Here’s a live Swim Guide Map.

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/

Franklinville downstream, Withlacoochee River @ Frankinville Road 2023-11-09

Plates, Franklinville 2023-11-09

-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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WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

A healthy watershed with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable water.

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