Category Archives: River

Suwannee River HDD, Sabal Trail, SRSP, Withlacoochee River, Pilgrim’s Pride

Suwannee River HDD Sabal Trail, 30.4137540, -83.1615120 Sabal Trall will soon start drilling under the Suwannee River, and under Suwannee River State Park and the Falmouth Cathedral Cavern System next to Pilgrim’s Pride on US 90. According to Trail’s November 4th 2016 biweekly report, clearing and pad completion should be done by about now, so they’re about to start horizontal directional drilling (HDD), like they’re already doing under the Santa Fe River in Florida and the Withlacoochee River in Georgia. At both of those rivers they’ve been seen in apparent violations. What will they do under the Suwannee River?

Pilgrims Pride, Sabal Trail, US 90, SRSP, Withlacoochee, Suwannee Rivers, 30.3872170, -83.1392640

Pilgrims Pride, Sabal Trail, US 90, SRSP, Withlacoochee, Suwannee Rivers,

These pictures show how close Sabal Trail and the HDD sites are to the river, the park, the springs, and US 90. Continue reading →

Withlacoochee River with water @ GA 122, 2016-09-07

It does rain some times. Back in September at Hagan Bridge on GA 122 over the Withlacoochee River in Lowndes County, Georgia on the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail. The USGS gage at Skipper Bridge read 8 feet (128.5 NAVD).

-jsq

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

Upstream 31.0135720, -83.3016070

Upstream

Downstream 31.0132885, -83.3015747

Continue reading →

What is Sabal Trail sending into the WIthlacoochee River between Quitman and Valdosta, GA? WWALS PR 2016-11-09

Update 2016-11-14: GWC Dirty Dozen Press Conference at US 84 Bridge with tour of Sabal Trail HDD 2016-11-16

Update 2016-11-13:Sabal Trail still leaking drilling mud into the Withlacoochee River at US 84 in GA 2016-11-12

Update 2016-11-11: Sabal Trail leaked drilling mud up into the Withlacoochee River.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Hahira, GA, November 9th 2016 — Sabal Trail appears to have contradicted itself in its recent responses to WWALS, perhaps admitting it may be dumping drilling mud into the Withlacoochee River, which would explain the picture below of a black pipe coming from Sabal Trail’s Brooks County HDD site into the river. WWALS had to wait two weeks just to get those non-answers, so WWALS now asks for a written response by email tomorrow. In addition, at least two Sabal Trail yards (a contractor yard in Moultrie, GA and a pipe yard near Lake City, FL) appear never to have been approved by FERC.

Dumping
About 2000 feet upstream (north) of the US 84 bridge. Many more pictures here.

“FERC granted permission in less than a week for Continue reading →

Non-answers in Sabal Trail Biweekly Status Report 2016-11-04

If drilling mud may be released, how can this also be? “No wastewater has been or will be dumped into the Withlacoochee River.” Sabal Trail seems to have contradicted itself. Sabal Trail responses to WWALS questions And didn’t answer the permit questions from WWALS. Nonetheless all their responses are marked “Resolution Date: 10/30/2016”. Nope, not resolved, Sabal Trail. See new questions.

Sabal Trail also said (see the PDF) it was completing drilling under the Flint River, was drilling under the Ochlockonee and Withlacoochee Rivers in Georgia, had just started under the Santa Fe River, was doing clearing and pad preparation for the Chattahoochee and Suwannee Rivers, and hadn’t yet started anything at the Withlacoochee (south) River in Florida. Plus quite a few complaints and questions, including some from FERC, and some archaeological discoveries which Sabal Trail and FERC hid under “Privileged and Confidential information”.

The Sabal Trail responses labeled Continue reading →

WWALS at Alapaha Station Celebration 2016-11-12

WWALS be talking about how Alapaha RIver Water Trail, which starts at Sheboggy Landing on US 82 just east of Alapaha, GA, at the Alapaha Station Celebration. This the third year for WWALS at this festival located in the upper middle section of our watershed near the Willacoochee and Alapaha Rivers.

When: 9AM-5PM Saturday November 12th 2016

Where: 245 NE Railroad St, Alapaha, GA 31622

Events: facebook, meetup.

Some people wonder: what’s the station? It’s Continue reading →

CY3-6 full less than a day after FERC approval: Sabal Trail Moultrie contractor yard 2016-10-22

Less than a day after FERC rubberstamped (or did it?) Sabal Trail’s request for a new contractor yard on the east side of Moultrie, Georgia, WWALS saw that yard already full of materials. Did Sabal Trail really move everything in that fast, or were those things already there, like the notorious Lake City, Florida pipe yard that never has gotten any formal FERC approval that we’ve seen?

Here’s what we saw from the Southwings flight for WWALS on Saturday October 22nd 2016:

CY3-6 area of Sabal Trail overview map

Compare with the overview map Sabal Trail filed with its request to FERC of Monday October 17th 2016: Continue reading →

Cancer in Waycross and the upper Suwannee River watershed

At least the Waycross cancer problem is finally getting some news media attention. Brenda Goodman and Andy Miller, Georgia Health News, October 20, 2016, Why are kids in Waycross getting cancer? (Part One of Special Report),

Fourteen-year-old Lexi Crawford was attacked by lower back pain so sharp that she couldn’t even sit up to eat. Her mother had to bring her food while she was lying flat on her back. Doctors in Waycross, GA, the town where she lives, thought it was a kidney infection. But after months of antibiotics didn’t clear it up, a visiting doctor in the local ER suggested an X-ray.

What he saw on the scan was terrifying.

Continue reading →

Aerials: Suwannee, Ocholockonee, Withlacoochee, Santa Fe Rivers, Okapilco Creek, Sabal Trail Moultrie CY3-6 @ WWALS Southwings 2016-10-22

Update 2016-11-07: You can put your own pictures on a related google map.

Digging under I-10 with traffic on it, 30.3512070, -83.1606820 From the air what you can’t see from the ground: Sabal Trail through north Florida and south Georgia.

Driving down I-10, you wouldn’t know Sabal Trail was digging underneath you,g for example.

Digging under I-10 with traffic on it,

On Saturday October 22nd 2016, Southwings flew WWALS over more than 100 miles of the Sabal Trail route: Continue reading →

WWALS and children at Trunk or Treat at Reed Bingham State Park 2016-10-29

Girl Scouts helping Girl Scouts were a big part of our success today! Boy Scouts wanted to know if we had Eagle Scout projects: yes, we do! Thank you to our new friends.

People wanted to know about outings, advocacy, pipeline, and since Reed Bingham is on the Little River, I gave out all the pamphlets for the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail I had printed. An excellent time was had by WWALS and all at the Reed Bingham Trunk or Treat Fall Festival.

Gretchen

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

Continue reading →

WWALS at Reed Bingham Fall Festival 2016-10-29

The wizard is in

Update 2016-10-30: Pictures and scouts.

WWALS will have a bean bag game at Reed Bingham State Park this Saturday. You may not be too old to win some candy! Come join us on the banks of the Little River, between Adel and Moultrie, Georgia.

When: 1-5PM Saturday October 29th 2016

Where: Reed Bingham State Park, 542 Reed Bingham Rd, Adel, GA 31620

Handshake Facebook: event

Moultrie Observer, 26 October 2016, Reed Bingham to host Fall Festival, Halloween events,

All participants should give out individually wrapped candies or promotional items appropriate to families. Friends of Reed Bingham will give a prize for the best decorated “Trunk”

For more information or Continue reading →