Apparently we get dragged into a meeting of all regional councils with waters flowing into the Atlantic
because the Suwannee-Satilla RWPC includes much of the Satilla and
St Marys Rivers, even though most of the SSRWPC territory is in our Upper Suwannee watershed.
A tiny bit of our Little River Watershed is in Wilcox County,
which is in the Altamaha RWPC.
Received from GA-DNR May 25th 2016, NOTICE:
JOINT REGIONAL WATER PLANNING COUNCIL MEETING Continue reading
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).
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
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]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2016-05-23--lime-winners/fbmany.jpg)
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.
The Winners of the Serenity at Lime Run Spring photo contest have been selected by the judges!
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
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.
Social: 7PM Friday May 20th 2016 at 313 NW Commons Loop, Lake City, FL
Workshop: Continue reading
You are invited this Saturday morning to Reed Bingham State Park (between Adel and Moultrie)
for a morning of sun, fun, cypress, turtles, and don’t pet the alligator
at the fourth annual
BIG Little River Paddle Race.
You can register online (follow the link)
or at the site (also follow the link for details).
And Phil Hubbard’s special offer is still open: he will pay for two
free registrations.
If interested, send email wwalswatershed@gmail.com; first two received win.
Lots of prizes in numerous categories, including $100 for first prize. Plus Phil Hubbard also made and we have available the WWALS Fallers Plaque, which you may win if you inadvertently fall into the water. Thanks again to Bret Wagenhorst of Tifton for organizing the paddle race.
Here’s video of me talking about that on Chris Beckhams’s radio show, WVGA 105.9 FM the morning of May 16th: Continue reading
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
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
Another letter against Sabal Trail and for the rivers and the aquifer in the paper Suwannee Democrat, May 5th 2016.
In response to Jason Bashaw’s, Chairman of the Suwannee County Commission, article in the Suwannee Valley Times, I have this to say. Why is it that if people are concerned about the environment they live in, they are automatically placed into this environmental left category? Like many, many people in our surrounding counties, I hunt, fish, hike and paddle our local rivers. I use the environment as do we all.
So, for working and paying taxes all my life — as a Vietnam Veteran, as a person who chose to live in this rural part of Florida and raise his kid, as a person who is not now nor ever will be wealthy — I count our public lands, our woods and rivers as a reward for doing the right thing. I do not mind my tax dollars going towards public lands. Mr. Bashaw uses the environmental left in a derogatory manner as a means of denigrating them, and he is including me in it and I resent it. I resent it for my friend’s in WWALS and others who show concern for the pipeline route. I have not met an environmental lefty among them.
WWALS is, Continue reading
Update 2016-05-19: video of the radio interview, and don’t forget the paddle race is this Saturday!
Everybody listens to the radio in the car on the way to work,
and Monday morning 8:00 AM I’ll be talking about
the BIG Little River Paddle Race:
community, water, trees, birds, fish, sunshine, and fun! $50 cash prize for first place, plus awards in numerous categories, or just paddle leisurely.
It’s the fourth annual at Reed Bingham State Park, between Adel and Moultrie, on the border of Cook and Colquitt Counties, only 40 minutes from Valdosta.
The Paddle Race is weekend after next, Saturday, May 21st, and you can sign up online or at the event.
Before that, a radio show to talk about the paddle race.
When: 8:00AM Monday May 16th 2016
Where: 105.9 FM WVGA, Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia
What: Continue reading
Sabal Trail proposes a metering and regulation (M&R) station
about 10 miles from Ichetucknee Springs State Park or the Santa Fe River,
to connect with
Florida Gas Transmission and FGT’s proposed
Jacksonville Expansion Project.
The permit notification says “in Suwannee County near the intersection of State Road 247 South and County Road 49 South in Lake City, Florida.”
That’s at
30.031970, -82.852732,
which according to the Suwannee County Property Appraiser is
Parcel Number 19-05S-15E-0110100.0020,
Owner’s Name: SABAL TRAIL TRANSMISSION, LLC
Mailing Address: 5400 WESTHEIMER CT, HOUSTON TX 77056
Which is about 15 miles by road across from Fort White, FL.
Suwannee Democrat, 4 May 2016, PUBLIC NOTICE OF INTENT TO ISSUE AIR PERMIT, Continue reading