Category Archives: PR

Press Release

Ensuring Sabal Trail compliance with LWCF

WWALS signed onto a letter asking for Sabal Trail to be examined for LWCF compliance.

Jonathon Berman, Sierra Club Georgia Chapter, 12 April 2016, Conservation groups call for public parks to be put ahead of corporate polluters’ pipeline plans,

Atlanta, GA — Today, seven groups called on the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) state liaison officers for Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi to ensure that the proposed Sabal Trail pipeline, a joint venture by Duke Energy, NextEra Energy, Inc., and Spectra Energy Corp, and Magnolia Extension, owned by American Midstream, does not threaten public parks and recreation areas.

Map of Southeast Mid-Stream Natural Gas Pipelines The letter highlights the environmental dangers the proposed Sabal Trail and Magnolia Extension projects pose to at least 11 parks and public recreation areas paid for by the LWCF.

Created in 1965, the LWCF is a federal program that provides matching grants and other federal assistance for public parks and recreation areas. The program has safeguards to ensure that lands purchased with its funds are protected for public outdoor recreation. The groups warn that rapidly multiplying planned pipeline projects do not appear to be compliant Continue reading →

WWALS at Little River Fest, Reed Bingham State Park, 2016-03-26

Update 2016-10-27: A Picture from the event.

Family fun with boats, birds, and fishing at the Little River Fest at Reed Bingham March 28th, where WWALS will talk about the BIG Little River Paddle Race in May (also at Reed Bingham), the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (with three access points at Reed Bingham), and the many other upcoming WWALS outings and events, as well as watershed issues.

When: 10 AM to 4PM Saturday 26 March 2016

Turtle Where: Reed Bingham State Park
542 Reed Bingham Road
Adel, GA 31620
Off of GA 37 between Adel and Moultrie
I-75 exit 39 (Adel)

Volunteer: WWALS members can help at the table!

What: According to Reed Bingham’s announcement:

The festival will include live bird of prey shows, Easter Egg hunt, bounce houses, pontoon boat tours, fishing, fire trucks, animal adoption event, an imagination station for kids, food vendors, arts and crafts, and music.

The first Little River Fest was in 2014, according to Continue reading →

WWALS at Azalea Festival, Valdosta, GA 2016-03-12-13

Celebrating spring with 25,000 of our Valdosta-area friends, WWALS will have a table at the Azalea Festival, Saturday and Sunday 12 and 13 March 2016.

Top Logo 10AM-6PM Saturday 12 March 2016
10AM-5PM Sunday 13 March 2016 (facebook event)

Where: Drexel Park
30.846771, -83.285066
Patterson at W. Brookwood Drive
Valdosta, GA
(across Patterson from VSU)
That’s on One Mile Branch, so we can watch it for fish, turtles, or any grease-caused spills

Volunteer: WWALS members can help at the table!

What: The Festival announcement says:

The 16th Annual Azalea Festival is quickly approaching! This year’s festival is set to be the biggest and best yet! Approximately 25,000 attendees from all over the Southeast will converge in Valdosta and Lowndes County on March 12 & 13 to enjoy two full days of vendors and entertainment. Guests can expect to see approximately 160 arts & crafts vendors, a food court, six stage areas (the most ever!) of entertainment, a 5k race, a 1 mile fun walk/run, and a huge KidZone full of fun and activities. Special thanks to Continue reading →

WWALS at Rhythm & Ribs, Tifton, GA 2016-03-05

Until 5PM today, WWALS has a table at the Rhythm & Ribs BBQ Festival, at Fulwood Park, in downtown Tifton, Georgia. From points south, get off I-75 at exit 63B, and follow W 8th Street to Prince Ave. If you’re coming up GA 125 from Nashville, turn right at W 8th Street. If you’re coming west on US 82, turn right at Main Street (GA 125), etc. WWALS Ambassador Dave Hetzel is there with board member Bret Wagenhorst, talking about the BIG Little River Paddle Race May 21st at Reed Bingham State Park and all the outings before then, along the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail and the Alapaha River Water Trail. Plus how you can become involved!.

And we hope to see you at some of the other upcoming WWALS outings and events

-jsq

You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!

Video: WWALS outings on Chris Beckham drive-time radio WVGA 105.9 FM 7:30 AM 2016-01-15

Here’s WWALS video of the radio interview this morning on WVGA 105.9 FM. It’s an invitation to tomorrow morning’s events, both at 10AM:

Chris also got me to say a few words about why WWALS formed in the first place, and why you should all join WWALS; it has to do with the 700-year flood in 2009.

Plus some plugs for Valdosta’s wastewater fixes and their recent LiDAR flight.

The one thing I realized on the way out I forgot to mention, the one item that caused me to schedule this interview, was the workshop at VSU February 27th about the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail, featuring the visual beauty of all WWALS’ rivers in an art exhibit and silent auction, the geology on display by Dennis Price, and the remains of past people and cultures still visible along the river by Tom Baird.

Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow morning on the Little River, or other WWALS members look forward to seeing you tomorrow morning on the Suwannee River. If not tomorrow, there’s plenty more to do on our beautiful south Georgia and north Florida blackwater rivers!

Here’s the video:

Continue reading →

WWALS outings on Chris Beckham drive-time radio WVGA 105.9 FM 7:30 AM 2016-01-15

Everybody listens to the radio in the car on the way to work, and Friday morning 8:30 AM I’ll be talking about paddling this Saturday morning 10AM on the Little River from GA 122 between Hahira and Barney to Lawson Millpond Road; it’s a nice brief 2.5 hour paddle along the Brooks-Lowndes County river border: you can do it!

When: 7:30AM Friday January 15th 2016

Where: 105.9 FM WVGA, Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia

What: John S. Quarterman, president of WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc., on Chris Beckham drive-time radio show

How: Continue reading →

EPA stepped back, while opposition ramps up against Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

EPA stepped back, while opposition ramps up against Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline

Hahira and Albany, Georgia, December 18, 2015— (PDF) Mysteriously contradicting a substantive October letter from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4 in Atlanta, a different EPA branch last Friday sent a brief and sketchy letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers uncritically accepting what Sabal Trail’s attorney’s told it, even as multiple environmental and landowner organizations filed objections with the Corps and multiple state agencies against that invading natural gas pipeline.

“I smell a skunk,” said Frank Jackalone, senior organizing manager, Sierra Club of Florida.

Tim Carroll, Valdosta City Council member, said, “I don’t understand how EPA and FERC can say there will not be a negative impact on our environment, aquifer, streams and rivers. A number of experts testified and spoke up saying the likelihood is very high that there could be damage to the aquifer and the environment. Why would we want to allow this to happen, to run the risk of seriously degrading one of the best water resources in the world.,” Valdosta, Moultrie, and Albany, the three biggest cities along the pipeline path in Georgia, all passed resolutions against Sabal Trail, as did the counties of Terrell, Dougherty, Colquitt, Brooks, and Lowndes, in Georgia, and Hamilton and Suwannee Counties in Florida.

“The one government agency actually defending our drinking in the Floridan Aquifer and the many rivers in Georgia and Florida just stifled itself,” Continue reading →

Sabal Trail pipeline challenged by recommended order, plus Suwannee County resolution tonight

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sabal Trail pipeline challenged by recommended order, plus Suwannee County resolution tonight

Jasper, Florida, November 17, 2015 — The day after WWALS filed its Proposed Recommended Order (PRO) in WWALS v. Sabal Trail & FDEP saying FDEP didn’t do proper due diligence on what Sabal Trail’s application, especially for the Outstanding Florida Waters of the Suwannee River and the Santa Fe River, the Suwannee County Commission is considering tonight a resolution against Sabal Trail’s proposed Hildreth Compressor Station.

Suwannee County resident Debra Johnson remarked,

“How about nowhere in our county. It’s like who wants this dangerous compressor station in Suwannee County ANYWHERE?”

David Shields testified at the hearing in Jasper that he had purchased land in Suwannee County because: Continue reading →