Category Archives: VWW

Valdosta attempts to come clean about sewage, and how you can help

People keep asking me what can be done to prevent this from happening again? Valdosta has already built an entirely new Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) uphill out of the flood plain, and a force main to reroute sewage around most of the manholes that previously were leaking: see their extensive writeups on those and other improvements. This recent event was due to equipment failure at the new WWTP, and they have the contractors out there redoing that under warranty.

What can you do? Continue reading →

SRWMD says FDEP has confirmed river contamination possibly from Valdosta sewage 2017-01-26

Enteric bacteria have been confirmed in the Withlacoochee River, and in the Suwannee River downstream of the confluence, USGS Streamer say SRWMD and FDEP, while there’s still no update on the City of Valdosta website about the 2.2 million gallons of sewage Valdosta leaked into the Withlacoochee River and didn’t tell the public about for two days.

Valdosta wasn’t the only city to spill into the Withlacoochee during the recent storms. Tifton did, too, but Valdosta’s spill was more than 230 times bigger than Tifton’s. And city sewage is not the only source of contamination in the rivers: wildlife, agricultural animals, and septic tanks add to it. Baseline monitoring would help disentangle which is which. But nobody is going to believe this contamination this time came from any place but Valdosta.

SRWMD, News Flash, 2017-01-26 (no time given), Health Officials Confirm Wastewater Contamination In The Withlacoochee And Suwannee Rivers,

Madison, Fla. — The Florida Department of Health in Hamilton, Madison and Suwannee today issued a joint health advisory extending the previous advisory for the Withlacoochee River to include a portion of the Suwannee River. The health advisory is now in effect for residents and visitors on the Withlachoochee River and on a portion of the Suwannee River from the point where the two rivers meet, downstream along the border of Madison and Suwannee County to the Lafayette County line just above Dowling Park. The river waters are not safe for contact during recreational use at this time.

Test results from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection water sampling in the area have confirmed high levels of enteric bacteria possibly due to a large spill of untreated sewage reported by the City of Valdosta, Georgia.

People are urged to avoid contact with water in the Withlacoochee River and the impacted areas of the Suwannee River. Water contaminated with wastewater overflow presents several health risks to humans. Untreated human sewage with microbes can cause gastrointestinal issues, disease, infections or rashes.

Anyone who comes in contact with the river water should wash thoroughly, especially hands, and before eating and drinking. Children and older adults, as well as people with weakened immune systems, are particularly vulnerable to disease so every precaution should be taken to avoid contact with river water.

Additional sampling will take place to determine when the river water is safe for recreational use.

Individuals with questions about the spillage should contact Valdosta Environmental Manager Scott Fowler at 229-259-3592 or by email at sfowler@valdostacity.com.

Individual with questions for Florida DEP should contact wastewater coordinator Jim Mayer at the NE District office in Jacksonville at 904-256-1700.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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

Tifton wastewater spill into the New River

Valdosta wasn’t the only city to spill sewage in the recent storms, but Tifton’s spill was tiny by comparison.

Downstream from Tifton Regional Wastewater Treatment Complex (TRE) Following up a rumor, I called the city of Tifton and eventually got to Tommy Coker, Wastewater Superintendent, Tifton Regional Waste Water Treatment Complex (TRE). You won’t find him listed on Tifton’s website, because he works for the private contractor that runs TRE: ESG Operations, Inc. That arrangement was announced in November 2012.

Anyway, Tommy Coker says they did have a spill, of 9,500 gallons, into a storm drain inside the TRE site, that goes into the New River. It started Sunday January 22nd and stopped about midnight Monday January 23rd, 2017.

The TRE is located at 80 Old Brookfield Rd W, Tifton, GA 31794, which is east of Tifton on US 82 towards Alapaha and Willacoochee, GA.

The New River flows into the Withlacoochee River east of Adel and south of Nashville, between Cook and Berrien Counties, GA. The Withlacoochee forms the rest of the border of those two counties, then flows through Lowndes County past Valdosta and its WWTP, then forms the border of Brooks and Lowndes County, Georgia, and Madison and Hamilton County, Florida, until it joins the Suwannee River, which runs on along Suwannee County and others down to the Gulf.

So Valdosta was not the only city to have a spill during the recent storms, but Valdosta’s 2.2 million gallon leak was more than 230 times bigger than Tifton’s spill.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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

Valdosta WWTP spilled millions of gallons and didn’t tell the public for days 2017-01-25

Update 2017-01-30:

Valdosta also didn’t tell the public all day after the spill stopped, and then posted something that’s flat not true.

I just called Valdosta WWTP Superintendent John Waite, as it says to do on the city’s PR posted Wednesday, January 25, 2017 5:09:00 PM, Withlacoochee Plant Warranty Repairs Underway, which says “The plant is under warranty and the repairs will be complete by end of day Jan. 25 at no cost to the city.” Meanwhile, the Valdosta Daily Times posted yesterday evening City sewage spill stopped.

I asked Superintendent Waite when the spill stopped.

Answer: Continue reading →

And also a Valdosta WWTP spill 2017-01-24

After I posted about the three manhole spills, I discovered Valdosta also announced a spill at the Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP).

I just called Scott Fowler at Valdosta Utilities, and he explained:

The leak is from the jet mix pipe that comes back from the influence and pushes back to the EQ [Equalization Tank]. When they put the pipe in with its industrial strength rubber seal, they pressure tested it, and it held. But the seal blew this weekend. They have cameras there to watch it.

Fowler said they also going to have a camera at Wainwright Drive, where one of the other three spills, the ones from manhole covers, happened.

I pointed out to Fowler that the Valdosta PR about the WWTP spill says they detected it Sunday January 22nd, yet it wasn’t published on the city’s website until Tuesday January 24th after 6PM. He said that’s due to Continue reading →

Small Valdosta sewer spills after big rains 2017-01-23

Update 2017-01-25: And also a spill at the WWTP.

Nobody likes sewer spills, but no, these are not the same as before Valdosta’s recent wastewater system improvements: Document-0001 nothing this time came from the Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant, and the amounts were small compared to previous years (10-62%) and in far fewer locations.

That didn’t stop WTXL from using this title: Amber Lewis, WTXL, 24 January 2017, Major Sewage Spill Reported in Valdosta,

The City of Valdosta has reported that a large amount of untreated sewage has spilled in the area.

The Florida Department of Health reports that Continue reading →

WWALS receives grant for water conservation outreach to farmers and community

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WWALS receives grant for water conservation outreach to farmers and community (PDF)

Hahira, Georgia; December 27, 2016 — Local water conservation group WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) has received a grant of Just enough water here, 31.0016918, -83.4573364 $6,000 from the Georgia Water Coalition (GWC) to help groups in towns, counties, and countryside to draw the big picture of watershed conservation, as well as to help organize at least one grant from a different source to assist at least one farmer in erosion control.

The award contract of November 11, 2016, says Continue reading →

WWALS at Suwannee River Roots Revival 2016-10-15

Music and advocacy on the banks of the iconic Suwannee River!

Gretchen Quarterman and Dave Hetzel by Leeann Drabenstott Culbreath WWALS outings, rivers, Valdosta wastewater, agricultural runoff, and the issue half the people wanted to talk about was the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline: nobody wants it.

Thanks to Leeann Drabenstott Culbreath for the great picture of WWALS Treasurer Gretchen Quarterman and Ambassador Dave Hetzel, who engages everybody who walks past. Thanks to WWALS member Bret Huntley for camping overnight last night and setting up this morning. Gretchen took the other pictures of Dave and Bret. WWALS president John S. Quarterman took the one of the Shook Twins on the Amphitheater Stage in Spirit of Suwannee Music Park at Suwannee River Roots Revival on the banks of the Suwannee River.

Come on down to these upcoming WWALS events and outings: Continue reading →

Chris Beckham broadcasting on emergency power 2016-09-02

We talked about outings at 7:30 as scheduled, although it’s not clear who could hear. The whole St Augustine Rd area is dark, including Black Crow’s online streaming. We’re scheduling another time for next week. And thanks to Chris and the crew who camped out in the station all night!

Chris Beckham asked if we would reschedule the Suwannee River outing. Yep, delayed until Monday due to weather.

Here are Continue reading →

WWALS Outings, Rivers, and Pipeline on Chris Beckham drive-time radio WVGA 105.9 FM 8:00 7:30 AM 2016-09-02

8AM Friday morning WWALS will be on Chris Beckham’s drive-time radio show. WWALS president John S. Quarterman will be talking about Saturday morning’s Suwannee River paddle outing and other outings upcoming on the Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers, along with other developments on the Alapaha River Water Trail and the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail, along with many other things WWALS does. Plus what you can do about the FERC rubberstamp of the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline drilling under the Withlacoochee and Suwannee Rivers.

When: 8:00 7:30AM Friday September 2nd 2016

Where: Continue reading →