Through November 24, 2017, public comment is open about lead in our Georgia watersheds, in a new proposed Total Maximum Daily Load Evaluation.
Georgia EPD, Proposed TMDLs, 29 September 2017, NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF REVISED TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOADS FOR WATERS AND POLLUTANTS OF CONCERN IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA, Continue reading
Due to too many events this weekend, the WWALS board has rescheduled its quarterly meeting to a week later:
When: 2PM, Sunday, October 22, 2017
Where: Wooden Nickel Pub, 3269 Inner Perimeter Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602
Who: The public is invited for discussions of everything WWALS and Suwannee Riverkeeper do.
Stay tuned for an agenda.
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
Now also a Rivers Alive cleanup in conjunction with Keep Lowndes-Valdosta Beautiful (KLVB). You can clean up, or clean up and paddle! Best to bring a rope for your boat: the Withlacoochee River is low, and there may be a few spots of dragging over shoals.
Through KLVB: Call (229)671-3698 to be assigned to Nankin Landing or another location.
Through WWALS: Come on down to Nankin Boat Ramp 9AM Saturday October 14, 2017!
Where: 6899 Clyattville-Nankin Rd, Valdosta, GA 31601, in Lowndes County, 30.675192, -83.394143
Details: See Continue reading
Suwannee Riverkeeper is among the signatories on the comments Waterkeeper Alliance sent in the rulemaking on redefining Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS). Protecting feeder streams and wetlands is important also to prevent floods such as we had in 2009 and 2013, which caused massive sewage overflows.
Waterkeeper Alliance, PR, 28 September 2017, Proposed Revisions to WOTUS Reduce Clean Water Protections: EPA and the Corps’ attempts to revoke Clean Water Act protections from waters is an illegal effort that puts drinking water and public health at risk
Waterkeeper Alliance, Center for Biological Diversity, Center for Food Safety, Turtle Island Restoration Network, and 115 Waterkeeper Organizations and Affiliates submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) urging Continue reading
Update 2017-12-12: And the winner is…
Update 2017-12-11: We already drew for the kayak: stay tuned for the winner.
Update 2017-10-26: Thanks to John Phillip Ramsey and Malibu Kayaks for donating the raffle kayak!
Back by popular demand: another raffle kayak! This MalibuKayaks Trio-11 can be used for fishing, standing, or with a family of three. See below for tickets, drawing, and specifications.
Tickets are $5 each or five for $20. You can get them online (see sidebar on every page of the WWALS website), or get your paper tickets at the WWALS booth at any of the festivals, outings, or other events this fall.
See the WWALS calendar or list of events for when and where, or get tickets online at any time.
The lucky winner will be chosen Continue reading
See three sinks, a waterfall, and a distributary in these videos from the
WWALS Outing to Turket Creek Waterfall, the Alapahoochee River,
the Alapaha River Sink, and the Dead River Sink, June 14, 2015.
A WWALS video playlist
follows the links to each video below. Continue reading
Received 28 September 2017 from Lowndes County Utilities Director Steve Stalvey:
John,
This is the information I sent to the State concerning the spills related to Irma on Tuesday 9-12-17. Continue reading
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(See also PDF and previous blog post.)
Live Oak, FL, October 5, 2017 — Sabal Trail, operating without a permit, is at risk from a new sinkhole within 60 feet of its 36-inch diameter, high-pressure, fracked methane pipe under Suwannee River State Park (SRSP), between the Suwannee River and the drill site in Hamilton County. Such sinkholes are among the geological risks WWALS warned about that have happened in the fragile karst limestone containing our drinking water in the Floridan Aquifer. We were assured in October 2015 by Sabal Trail and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) that sinkholes and frac-outs would not happen or would be detected and fixed. They keep happening, and Sabal Trail has done nothing about this one. Sabal Trail should not even be continuing operations after the DC Circuit Court vacated its permit six weeks ago.
Suwannee
Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman at new sinkhole in Suwannee River
State Park, 2017-10-03.
Photo:
Christopher J. Mericle, Chair, N. Florida Working Group,
Suwannee-St. Johns Group, Sierra Club Florida.
In WWALS vs. Sabal Trail & FDEP (October 2015), FDEP’s one witness, Lisa Prather, said under oath (see https://wwals.net/blog/?p=27799):
“Well, the Suwannee River crossing doesn’t, in fact, have any impacts to an outstanding Florida water, because the directional drill commences in uplands and terminates in uplands. So there are no surface water impacts at that crossing that would affect the outstanding Florida water.”
“Well, any work within, or could have adverse effects on OFW, is considered.In this case, we determine that there would be no impacts to the OFW.”
Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman says:
“Email to Ms. Prather’s address now comes back with an error message, while the rest of us are left Continue reading
Update 2017-10-20: Hulaween has expanded into starting noonish Thursday, October 26, 2017. WWALS will set up Wednesday and the WWALS booth will be open Thursday.
What’s twice the size of Wanee and in the fall? Suwannee Hulaween!
When: Friday, Saturday, Sunday, October 27,28,29, 2017
Where: Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park, Live Oak, Florida
We will have another kayak raffle, and come talk to us about paddling, outings, spills, sinkholes, water trails, song contest, and anything else that affects our rivers or our aquifer. If you want to help at the WWALS booth, any of October 27, 28, or 29, please contact us.
Thanks to Debbie Lee for helping arrange this.
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
Spring at the music park with a few tens of thousands of friends: Wanee 2017, Wednesday through Sunday. Lots of people bought kayak raffle tickets.
