Commissioners from counties on both sides of the Suwannee River saw the sinkholes and big oaks and pines directly above and near where
Sabal Trail proposes to bore under Suwannee River State Park and the River,
led by WWALS board member and Hamilton County resident Chris Mericle,
assisted by Debra Johnson of SpectraBusters, Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson of Our Santa Fe River (OSFR), and others from as far away as south Florida.
All but one of the Suwannee County Commissioners were there, and he had a good excuse.
They also saw Falmouth Spring, which is part of a cave system which Sabal Trail claims is 100 feet deep. Both county commissions meet Tuesday March 1st; see below for details.
WWALS videos to come now posted.
You can see Continue reading
Category Archives: Quality
Sinkhole 60″ from Sabal Trail path
On the hike to the Sabal Trail pipeline path on the Suwannee River.
More pictures and video to come. Meanwhile, see previous expeditions to that site,
Sewage into Two Mile Branch towards the Withlacoochee River 2016-02-15
I wonder what this “debris” was? And the rags? Anyway, Valdosta has fixed another sanitary sewage spill. Probably if you stay out of the water around 2500 Bemiss Road (south of Northside Drive) you’ll be OK. But you may also want to know where Two Mile Branch goes downstream, and as usual Valdosta didn’t tell us.
As we recall from Valdosta’s last episode of multiple wastewater spills earlier this month,
Two Mile Branch runs into Sugar Creek which goes into the Withlacoochee River,
and eventually into the Suwannee River and the Gulf of Mexico.
Don’t be surprised if you see a Florida Department of Health advisory
like the one earlier this month. Continue reading
Yet more Valdosta wastewater spills
Maybe soon this February baker’s dozen of wastewater spills will be a thing of the past, but for now it’s deja vu similar to but worse than last February.
It looks like Valdosta has updated,
as repeatedly asked,
its
schedule for wastewater project completion,
with the force main project now aimed at July 2016 and relocation of the
Withlacoochee WasteWater Treatment Plant (WWTP) for August 2017.
See also Valdosta PR 22 January 2016,
Withlacoochee Aerial Sewer Mains Replacement Project.
Those schedule changes are mentioned in the most recent Valdosta News. It does not, however, say which watersheds the various spills affect. I have added * for Alapaha River watershed and ** for Withlacoochee River watershed. It’s not that hard, and Valdosta has a water management plan that spells this all out, with maps. One Mile Branch** and Two Mile Branch** flow into Sugar Creek**, which goes into the Withlacoochee River**. Knights Creek* goes into Mud Creek* which goes into the Alapahoochee* River and then the Alapaha River*, eventually joining the Suwannee River in Florida, as does the Withlacoochee. Valdosta Utilities and Public Relations know all that. But why should every citizen, Continue reading
Noah Valenstein, SRWMD E.D. @ Columbia County, FL Commission
He answered a few questions about Falling Creek Aquifer Recharge.
See Questions to SRWMD Director for context. More detail to come.
-jsq
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
Reject Sabal Trail easement payment tonight –WWALS to Lowndes County Commission 2016-01-26
The Lowndes County Commission is voting tonight on an easement for the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline through a mercury-contaminated closed landfill.
They only gave one day’s notice, and they didn’t mention the landfill.
Here is the letter (PDF) I just sent them asking them to reject that easement,
to support their own previous unanimous resolution against Sabal Trail,
and to contact state and federal elected and appointed officials and ask them
also to reject Sabal Trail.
You can write them, too, to commissioner@lowndescounty.com.
To: Lowndes County Board of County Commissioners, Continue reading
Florida Petition against Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline
Update 2016-02-02: Dropoff locations and other updates.
It’s time to get local, state, and federal elected officials to put a stop
to the Sabal Trail boondoggle that risks our property rights, rivers, aquifer, and air.
You can sign a petition to Florida (or Georgia or Alabama) elected officials by
printing out the
PDF
for you and your neighbors.
See below for where to send them.
Or, to sign online, Gulf Restoration Network has put up a handy online form that will send your signature and personalized message directly to your members of Congress.
Here’s the text of the PDF: Continue reading
Water Resources of the upper Suwannee River Watershed
Even the trend of sinking groundwater levels hasn’t changed a lot in the Georgia
parts of WWALS’ watersheds of the Withlacoochee, Alapaha, and upper Suwannee Rivers.
Thanks to Tom Potter for the pointer, and we’re inviting someone to talk about this subject at the
Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail Workshop at VSU February 27th, 2016.
WATER RESOURCES OF THE UPPER SUWANNEE RIVER WATERSHED, by Mary M. Davis1 and David W. Hicks2,
1 Ecologist, Continue reading
HAAs in Valdosta drinking water 2015-12-21
Valdosta has a water treatment byproduct over the recommended limit in its drinking water. Janet McMahan supplied the image below of part of a notice, which says there’s no cause for alarm at the moment:
There is nothing you need do at this time. These violations do not pose Continue reading
Deadlines for Sabal Trail comments: Army Corps, FERC, Suwannee County
Due to widespread opposition to Sabal Trail’s invading fracked methane pipeline,
the Corps extended its deadline 60 days, and FERC slipped a month.
Deadlines coming up this week and next.
This Friday, December 11, 2015:
Deadline to comment to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
The Corps wants comments on cumulative effects, including from local governments and other organizations, as well as individuals.
No Corps permit, no pipeline.
- Handy comment form Continue reading