Clean Withlacoochee, Little, and Santa Fe Rivers 2026-08-04

The Withlacoochee, Little, and Santa Fe Rivers tested clean for E. coli in the results we have for this week, as did Batterbee Branch in Ray City, GA, upstream from Cat Creek and the Withlacoochee River.

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida or Georgia, except for one of unknown size in Tifton, GA, upstream of the Little River, plus clay silt runoff in Valdosta, GA, into the Withlacoochee River.

According to the results we have, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating, if you can avoid the rains.

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

Clean Withlacoochee, Little, and Santa Fe Rivers, 2026-08-05

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, Little, and Santa Fe Rivers 2026-08-05 –WWALS Composite Chart 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.

Batterbee Branch

Newish WWALS tester Tish Hall sampled Batterbee Branch Monday, August 3, on Shiloh Road in Ray City, Georgia.

She got a pretty clean 200 cfu/100 mL E. coli.

She noted, “Water is very low.”

That’s upstream from Cat Creek, which runs into the Withlacoochee River about a mile downstream from Franklinville Road and Tyler Bridge.

Batterbee Branch @ Shiloh Road 2026-08-03 –Tish Hall for WWALS

Little River

Tifton had a sewage spill Wednesday at 1103 Golden Road West, which is uphill from what we call Willow Creek, which runs into Tanzer Creek, into the Little River downstream from US 319.

See other post:

https://wwals.net/?p=70842

Table: Sewage Spill, 1103 Golden Road West, Tifton, GA, 2026-08-05 –GA EPD 2026-08-06

1103 Golden Road West, Tifton GA, 2026-08-07 –Google Street View

WWALS tester John S. Quarterman sampled the Little River Tuesday at the fish weir just upstream from Troupville Boat Ramp. He got an OK 166 cfu/100 mL.

Fish weir just above Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River, 2026-08-04 –jsq for WWALS

Withlacoochee River

For Tuesday, WWALS tester John S. Quarterman sampled the Withlacoochee River just upstream from the Little River Confluence, after the Monday clay silt runoff down St. Augustine Road.

He got a pretty clean 133 cfu/100 mL.

He reporte, “Why no picture at the sample site? Lost my phone. Found it halfway back up. So the picture is of the silt runoff site, for which see separate post.

https://wwals.net/?p=70837

He added, “Why not sample off the GA 133 bridge? That would be above where the silt runoff went into the river. Also, Valdosta Utilities already sampled at that bridge Monday; see below.”

Silt ran off here down the GA 133 ditch to the Withlacoochee River, 2026-08-04 –jsq for WWALS

For Monday, August 3, 2026, Valdosta Utilities got a pretty clean 195 cfu/100 mL at the GA 133 (St. Augustine Road) bridge over the Withlacoochee River. That’s downstream from Sugar Creek.

They got a pretty clean 200 at US 84. That’s downstream from the Little River Confluence with the Withlacoochee River.

Table: GA 133 & US 84, Withlacoochee River 2026-08-03 –Valdosta Utilities

WWALS tester Russ Tatum sampled Wednesday at Holly Point, downstream from Allen Ramp on the Withlacoochee River, about four miles upstream from the Suwannee River, and got a clean 66 cfu/100 mL.

He noted, “Still nice and clear.”

Holly Point, Withlacoochee River @ NE Withla Bluffs Way 2026-08-05 –Russ Tatum for WWALS

Santa Fe River

Bob Mills and Kurt Hurzeler sampled Wednesday at Mills Dock, somewhat upstream from Poe Springs on the Santa Fe River.

They got a quite clean 66 cfu/100 mL.
Air Temp 27.77 C
Air temp 25.8 c

They noted, “River level unchanged. Minimal current.”

Mills Dock, Santa Fe River @ NW 282nd Dr 2026-08-05 –Bob Mills and Kurt Hurzeler for WWALS

Water quality testing training and funding

WWALS testers Suzy Hall, Gretchen Quarterman, and Tish Hall reviewed the WWALS results. Such review is part of the WWALS standard ongoing testing quality analysis.

WWALS Water Quality Testing Trainer Gretchen Quarterman ordered and received testing materials and delivered some to several 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, 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/