Expedition leader Bret Wagenhorst’s always-excellent pictures of the
18 April 2015 WWALS Outing
on the
Alapaha River Water Trail.
And don’t forget coming up May 16th theThird annual BIG Little River Paddle Race at Reed Bingham State Park on the Little River. Continue reading
Rainfall can be quite different in Statenville on the Alapaha River as shown here than in Valdosta on the Withlacoochee River.
But remember half of Valdosta drains into the Alapaha River watershed.
Here are rainfall and water level graphs from the three USGS Alapaha River gauges in Georgia. The Florida gauge is shown separately, because it use a different base level, and precipitation doesn’t seem to be available from Florida gauges. See also always-current graphs of all the levels. Continue reading
Plus early March rains really were directly on Valdosta,
even more than in Valdosta’s third wastewater spill of February,
yet river levels rose most downstream.
Here are 90-day graphs of precipitation (in inches) and river levels (in feet) at the three Georgia Withlacoochee River gauges, from USGS. Also note river levels can continue dropping even while some new rain falls. Continue reading
There is potential for “a high impact basin-wide flood event this spring should heavier than normal rainfall occur” in the Withlacoochee Basin.
National Weather Service Tallahasee, FL 240 PM EST THU MAR 5 2015,
Spring Flood Potential Outlook for Southeast Alabama, Southwest
and South Central Georgia, and the Florida Panhandle and Big Bend,
Above normal potential for river flooding this Spring,
Existing Conditions.
In the Withlacoochee, Suwannee Basin…
Continue reading
Chris Mericle reported yesterday:
The Hamilton Co. BOCC voted today to pass Resolution 2015-2, a resolution to support SB-166 and HB-169 to ban Fracking in the State of Florida.
For background, see previous post. Here is the text of the resolution:
RESOLUTION 2015-02
A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF HAMILTON COUNTY, FLORIDA, SUPPORTING PROPOSED LEGISLATION (SB 166 and HB 169) PROVIDING A STATEWIDE BAN ON HYDRAULIC FRACTURING, ACID FRACTURING, AND WELL STIMULATION PERFORMED FOR THE PURPOSES OF EXPLORATION OR PRODUCTION OF OIL OR NATURAL GAS IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, well stimulation treatments may involve the use of hundreds of chemicals, some of which are known to be carcinogenic or could otherwise be harmful to human health; and Continue reading
Chris Mericle reports an anti-fracking resolution is on the agenda for the the Hamilton County, Florida Board of Commissioners Tuesday 3 March 2015.
The agenda for the March 3rd Hamilton Co BOCC meeting is published in the Jasper News this week. Listed Item #6 reads:
RESOLUTION — SUPPORTING SB-166/HB-169-BILLS IN OPPOSITION TO FRACKING IN FLORIDAThe meeting starts at 9am, Room 112, Courthouse, 207 Northeast First Street, Jasper, FL 32052.
It is unclear whether Continue reading
Someone referred to the mid-February Old Statenville Road spill in asking:
What’s happening in your watershed? This is the most recent of several sewage overflow issues I’ve been reading about.
Brief answer: this flooding issue is one of many reasons WWALS Watershed Coalition was formed; we’ve been on it since then; the City of Valdosta is being fixed the immediate problem; however there’s a much bigger problem throughout the entire Suwannee River Basin that the Army Corps of Engineers is studying.
Long answer:
This has been going on for years, especially starting with the
700-year flood in 2009, which overflowed the City of Valdosta’s
Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) and backed up sewage
out of manholes, in addition to rivers and streams running over
roads and bridges; see this
USGS two-pager on that.
Larry Hanson, Valdosta City Manager, presented to Continue reading
A surprising number of the Board’s nine goals for 2014 have been accomplished, and some new ones have already been added. What goals should WWALS have for 2015?
Goals accomplished include
becoming an
IRS 501(c)(3)
and raising money for and purchasing
insurance.
Some we’ve been doing right along:
cleanups, including Rivers Alive.
Some are so much the core of what WWALS does that we
didn’t even list them as goals, but we’ve been doing them anyway:
monthly outings
and
indoor events.
The later-added goal of the Alapaha River Water Trail is Continue reading
The Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline route went through
this area, and the new route is only slightly to the north.
There are springs all over this area.
The same karst limestone underlies the Withlacoochee River
in Georgia, where the river already leaks into the aquifer north
of Valdosta.
A pipeline anywhere in the karst limestone containing the
Floridan Aquifer is a very bad idea.
Profit for Sabal Trail, FPL, or Spectra Energy is no excuse for
risking our drinking water.
SRWMD PR 4 December 2014, Falmouth dye trace reveals unknown connectivity,
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LIVE OAK, FL, December 4, 2014 — The District and Florida Geological Survey introduced dye into Falmouth Spring On September 4th, in hopes of learning which other springs were connected to the known Falmouth Cathedral Cave System. Two days after the dye was release the dye appeared in two springs previously not known to be connected, Ellaville and Suwannacoochee.
Continue reading
The
Expert paddle on the Alapaha River from US 82,
found the water level just right and encountered no obstacles
it couldn’t float over in
the 17 January 2015 WWALS Outing.
Paddlers were
Heather Brasell, Jack Hartley, Chris and Deanna Mericle, John
S. Quarterman, and Bret Wagenhorst.
For more information, see the
report by outing organizer Bret Wagenhorst.
Here are some pictures and videos taken by John S. Quarterman.
Here’s a video playlist, followed by some still pictures: Continue reading