Category Archives: Springs

Public Comment Period for Madison Blue Springs until 2016-06-24

A public hearing already happened last week, but you can still send comments until next Friday, June 24th 2016, about Madison Blue Spring State Park. Maybe you’d like to comment on the specific improvements they plan, or maybe something about Nestle or maybe how close Sabal Trail wants to come with its fracked methane pipeline.

That’s the deadline in the Green Publishing notice, but the Public Comment Form says Thursday June 23rd, so to be safe, get your comments in by next Thursday. Continue reading →

Dye test in Dead River Sink on Alapaha River

Update 2016-06-22: Dye test into the Dead River Sink: it came back up several days later and eighteen river miles south, in the Alapaha River Rise and Holton Bluff Spring, both on the Suwannee River.

The Alapaha River disappears underground in dry seasons, and nobody has ever known where it comes back up. Soon, we will know.

Green Publishing, 16 June 2016, Dye test held for river basins,

The Florida Geological Survey will be conducing a dye test for the Suwannee River Water Management District in the Upper Suwannee/Alapaha River basins later this month. They will introduce dye into the Dead River Swallet (swallets are sinkholes that capture flow) and a swallet that is located on privately owned land. They will also have sampling devices setup at Continue reading →

4610 foot explored cave at McIntyre Spring, Withlacoochee River, Georgia

Did you know there’s an almost mile-long cave system under the Withlacoochee River between Lowndes and Brooks Counties, Georgia? Valdosta cave-diver Guy Bryant wrote a fascinating in-depth blog about McIntyre Spring, including this map he drew, and the picture below of him in this cave system that starts in the river bottom.

There’s no land access, so don’t trespass. And don’t try to go in the cave even from boats unless you really know what you’re doing. It’s been visited by some of the most famous cave divers in the world, a couple of whom are no longer with us due to accidents in other underground caverns.

But do please go read Guy Bryant’s blog post. Continue reading →

Pictures of high school student photography contest winners, Serenity at Lime Run Spring

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Live Oak, June 4rd 2016 — The photographers of these inspirational pictures were themselves photographed by a local photographer.

“It’s so important to engage young people in respecting and appreciating nature. Hopefully they will want to protect it.” said Deanna Mericle, WWALS member from Hamilton County, who organized this contest along with Eileen Box of Suwannee County and the Live Oak Woman’s Club, two weeks ago in Live Oak, Florida. Continue reading →

Sanford Bishop GA-02 requests Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement for Sabal Trail from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016-05-27

Rep. Sanford Bishop GA-02 just stood up again against the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline invader, for the Flint River, the Floridan Aquifer, and his constituents in Albany, and Dougherty and Terrell Counties, pointing out FERC shouldn’t have issued a certificate before all the state Clean Water Act Section 401 permits were in, and asking for a Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS).

Many counties and county seats have passed resolutions against Sabal Trail I’m sure we’re all looking forward to similar requests from Austin Scott GA-07, in whose Congressional district Sabal Trail would cross Okapilco Creek and the Withlacoochee River, and in which Moultrie, Valdosta, and the counties of Colquitt, Brooks, and Lowndes passed resolutions against the pipeline. And especially from Ted Yoho FL-03, in whose district Sabal Trail would cross the Suwannee and Santa Fe Rivers through the most vulnerable recharge area of the Floridan Aquifer in the Florida Springs Heartland, and in which the counties of Hamilton, Suwannee, and Marion have already sent letters to the Corps, like Rep. Bishop just asked for a Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS).

We know the Corps did a SEIS for Keystone XL. The Corps should do a SEIS for Sabal Trail, so Continue reading →

Prizes awarded to high school students, Serenity at Lime Run Spring photo contest 2016-05-23

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Live Oak, May 24th 2016 — A Hamilton High student took $100 home for first place, and Branford High took the rest of the prizes, at the Serenity at Lime Run Spring photo contest, last night in Live Oak, Florida, organized by the Live Oak Woman’s Club and WWALS Watershed Coalition. Boys and girls were equally represented in the four prizes awarded, and grades ranged from 10 to 12.

[Prizes awarded to high school students, Serenity at Lime Run Spring photo contest 2016-05-23]
Prizes awarded to high school students, Serenity at Lime Run Spring photo contest 2016-05-23

Anyone of any age or gender or county can enjoy the beauty of the Florida Springs Heartland. We hope recognizing these students and their photographs will help bring awareness to the fragile beauty of Lime Run Spring, located in Suwannee River State Park, and will help preserve this spring in accordance with the Florida Springs and Aquifer Protection Act.

Honorable Mention, Mallory Stevens, Branford High School, 11th grade

Continue reading →

Winners of Lime Run Spring Photography Contest at Live Oak Womans Club 2016-05-23

The Winners of the Serenity at Lime Run Spring photo contest have been selected by the judges! Lime Sink Run from the foot bridge, looking out over the Suwannee River We will be having the award ceremony as planned on Monday May 23, 2016 at 6:00 pm. at the Woman’s Club of Live Oak, 1308 11th St. SW, Live Oak, FL 32064.

Anyone who can join us, please do come out and support the winners!

-Deanna Mericle

Preserving and Protecting Pristine Areas of Our Earth for Future Generations.

Why: In order to bring awareness to the fragile beauty of Lime Run Spring, located in Suwannee River State Park, and to help preserve this spring in accordance with the Florida Springs and Aquifer Protection Act.

Organizers: the Woman’s Club of Live Oak and WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. are organizing a photo contest for high school students to capture the beauty and serenity at Lime Run Spring.

Who can participate? Any Continue reading →

Cave Diving Workshop, Lake City, 2016-05-21

If you can’t get to the BIG Little River Paddle Race Saturday at Reed Bingham State Park Saturday morning between Adel and Moultrie, GA, there’s a cave diving workshop in Lake City, FL. And yes, the Paddle Race is still on unless there’s actually lightning, hail, or torrential rain tomorrow morning, and so far that seems unlikely. But you can still paddle at Reed Bingham and go to the social in Lake City tonight, the afternoon part of the Workshop tomorrow, and the rebreather demonstration or spring tours Sunday.

What’s NCS-CDS? National Speleological Society, Cave Diving Section.

Social: 7PM Friday May 20th 2016 at 313 NW Commons Loop, Lake City, FL

Workshop: Continue reading →

Sinkholes and Sabal Trail: Elected Officials Hike, Suwannee River State Park 2016-05-15

Sunday morning May 15th 2016, nine and more environmental organizations showed U.S. Congress member Ted Yoho FL-03 and a representative from Sen. Bill Nelson Chris Mericle showing Ted Yoho two geology reports 30.3861389, -83.1693420 saw sinkholes much closer to Sabal Trail’s proposed drill path under the Suwannee River than the pipeline company told FERC, along with two reports by local practicing geologists explaining how fissures and caverns underground extend the problem far past the artificial distance of effects Sabal Trail claimed.

Update 2016-05-17: Thomas Lynn reported in the Suwannee Democrat and Valdosta Daily Times.

Both Rep. Yoho and Suwannee River Water Management District Executive Director Noah Valenstein said at the end of the expedition that Continue reading →

Leadership is supporting the county’s own people against the Sabal Trail invader –WWALS in Suwannee Democrat

In the paper Suwannee Democrat, May 5th, 2016.

A company from Houston, Texas wants to fill our earth, water, and air with violence. WWALS Watershed Coalition showed Suwannee County Commissioners sinkholes in the middle of the pipeline path that Sabal Trail didn’t mention to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). All of them, except Jason Bashaw, studied a report by a local geologist and showed leadership by voting to tell that “truth that exists in the middle” to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The quotation above is a reference to Continue reading →