Withlacoochee River 2026-07-13 and Sugar Creek and Santa Fe River 2026-07-15

The Withlacoochee River, Sugar Creek, and the Santa Fe River tested clean in the results we have for this week.

So did Poe Springs for Wednesday, even though Alachua County closed its swimming area Thursday due to “due to poor water clarity.”

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida or Georgia.

According to the results we have, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating, before the rains starting tomorrow afternoon.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

Clean Withlacoochee 2026-07-13, OK Sugar Creek 2026-07-15, Clean Santa Fe 2026-07-15, Happy paddling, swimming, etc.

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Datacenter Moratorium Proposed –Madison County BOCC 2026-07-08

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Update 2026-07-18: fixed name of county in title.

On July 22, 2026, a datacenter moratorium comes up for second reading at the Madison County, Florida, Board of County Commissioners, when they can also vote to pass it.

They already read it once on July 8, after working on it for some time before that.

Datacenter Moratorium Proposed, Hamilton County BOCC, First Reading 2026-07-08, Second Reading & Vote 2026-07-22

The agenda and board packet for their Regular Meeting, July 8, 2026, contains a public notice, a recently-passed state datacenter law with highlights on parts applicable to local ordinances, a Business Impact Estimate for the proposed ordinance, a redline version of the ordinance showing changes since its previous draft, and the nine-page datacenter moratorium ordinance itself.

Every county should be as diligent and transparent, no matter in which state.

The east border of Madison County is the Withlacoochee River downstream from Georgia and upstream from the Suwannee River, with first-magnitue Madison Blue Spring in between. Madison County, like all counties in the Suwannee River Basin, is on top of the Floridan Aquifer from which we all drink for every purpose.

The ordinance does not explicitly name any of the rivers or springs or the aquifer, but it does include these sections, which are relevant. Continue reading →

Poe Springs Swimming Area Closed 2026-07-16

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The drought has ~~browned out~~ stopped another spring.

Alachua County, July 15, 2026, Poe Springs Swimming Area Temporarily Closed,

Effective Thursday, July 16, 2026, the designated swimming area at Poe Springs Park will be temporarily closed due to poor water clarity.

Poe Springs Swimming Area Closed 2026-07-16, Due to poor water clarity, The Park remains open

Recent conditions have reduced underwater visibility to the point that the county has determined the swimming area is no longer safe for public use.

The remainder of Poe Springs Park will remain open, including the picnic areas, trails, and boat ramp. Visitors may continue to enjoy these amenities, including launching kayaks and canoes.

County staff will monitor water clarity on a weekly basis, and the swimming area will reopen as soon as visibility returns to a safe level.

The county appreciates the public’s patience and cooperation as we prioritize visitor safety.

For more information, Continue reading →

Darsey Mill Branch Deadfall, Alapaha River 2026-07-15

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There’s a deadfall in the Alapaha River immediately below Darsey Mill Branch, which is about 2/3 of a mile downstream from Burnt Church Landing.

We’re calling it the Darsey Mill Branch Deadfall.

Darsey Mill Branch Deadfall, Alapaha River 2026-07-15, 2/3 mile below Burnt Church Landing

Charles Sparks wrote that it is at about 31.018782, -83.040657, “At least there was when the water was low back in mid April-early May.”

You can see it in the above detail from the WWALS map of the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT). According to google-earth-pro, those underlying googlemaps satellite images were taken April 29, 2026.

Here’s a context map. Continue reading →

Lanier EMA marker 21, Alapaha River –Shirley Kokidko 2026-07-06

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Update 2026-07-15: Darsey Mill Branch Deadfall, Alapaha River 2026-07-15.

Shirley Kokidko says her picture is of, “Shawn replanting EMA 21 marker. Many of them are down or missing.”

Shawn O’Connor replanting Lanier EMA marker 21, Alapaha River down from Berrien Beach, –Shirley Kokidko 2026-07-06

That’s Shawn O’Connor on the Alapaha River, July 8, 2026.

https://wwals.net/?p=70657

The sign is supposed to say 21 and the telephone number for Lanier County EMA, but half of it is broken off.

Here’s a video Shirley took:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1287225203487543

https://www.instagram.com/p/Da0n2ECoyII/

https://youtu.be/E6N4g-Wfeso Continue reading →

Nominating Portal, Regional Water Planning Council –GA-DNR 2026-07-15

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Received today.

To all interested parties,

With the recent changes to the State Water Plan, the Regional Water Planning Council membership was reduced from 30 to 15 members per Council. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) will open an online portal starting July 15 to collect nominations to the Regional Water Planning Councils. After 45 days, EPD will collect the names submitted and provide them to the appointing officials. To help further explain these changes and outline the nomination process, EPD will host a public meeting via Zoom on Tuesday, July 21^st, from 12:00—1:00 p.m. at the link below.
Join Zoom Meeting https://gaepd.zoom.us/j/97748033778?pwd=H0sm1Nt7mZTtbGWSP8qQrQaN66m9bE.1
Meeting ID: 977 4803 3778
Passcode: 273513

Nominating Portal, Regional Water Planning Council, –GA-DNR, 2026-07-15

To visit the nomination portal, which will go live on July 15, please see the link below:

https://waterplanning.georgia.gov/water-planning/council-nominations
If you are unable to attend, or have any questions, please email water.planning@dnr.ga.gov for additional information.

Continue reading →

VLPRA at Langdale Park 2026-07-13

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Had a nice chat yesterday morning with Chad Dyson, the new Executive Director of Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA), and Paul Batts, our longtime contact at VLPRA.

Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman, VLPRA E.D. Chad Dyson, Paul Batts, 2026-07-13 –jsq for WWALS

He’s holding some WWALS water trail rack cards and z-fold brochures I gave him. You can see a map on the kiosk behind him, for the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).

Down at Langdale Park Boat Ramp, I suggested if VLPRA wanted to move the sandbar away from the bottom of the boat ramp, nobody would miss it.

We talked about the origins of WWALS, chainsaw cleanups, outings including the Mayor and Chairmans Paddle, trash and how to stop it before distribution, sewage spills, water quality testing, land trails, grants, datacenters, WFNF, and yes, the proposed Verizon communications tower in Langdale Park that the Lowndes County Commission will vote on this evening at 5:30 PM.

Chad Dyson said he came here for the climate. Well, less snow than Iowa. And south Georgia gnats still don’t know what to make of him.

I promised Chad and Paul that on our next meeting, down at Troupville Boat Ramp, I will show them beautyberry, the native plant that repels insects.

Staff Reports, The Valdosta Daily Times, May 26, 2026, VLPRA names Chad Dyson as new executive director,

VALDOSTA — The Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) Board of Directors has announced the selection of Chad Dyson as the organization’s next executive director. Dyson will officially begin his role with VLPRA on June 15.
Continue reading →

Pictures: Langdale Park Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River 2026-07-11

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We got about half a Withlacoochee River mile downstream from Langdale Park Boat Ramp. We cleared passage through six deadfalls or other obstructions.

Plus a Little Blue Heron, Egretta caerulea, and we didn’t get pictures but saw a Great Blue Heron, some hawks, a few buzzards, and other birds we couldn’t identify.

We clear passage for kayaks, canoes, and jon boats, leaving plenty of habitat for wildlife.

https://wwals.net/?p=69810

Thanks to Phil Hubbard for leading this expedition, and Andrew Reinlieb for helping.

Pictures: Langdale Park, Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River, 2026-06-11

There will be Public Hearing about a proposed communications tower in Langdale Park, at 5:30 PM, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, after which the Lowndes County Commission will decide.

http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/?p=25896

The Valdosta @ US 41 read 4.12 feet (114.42 feet NAVD88), which is lower than our lowest boatable recommendation of 5.7 feet, 116′ NAVD. We picked a day with the lowest recent water level so we could get deadfalls that other wise would be underwater. Continue reading →

Water Quality Testing Training 2026-07-10

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Update 2026-07-17: Withlacoochee River 2026-07-13 and Sugar Creek and Santa Fe River 2026-07-15.

Here’s Heather Brasell’s account of this training:

Gretchen Quarterman trains everyone who tests water quality for the WWALS Watershed Coalition. She just retrained me — an annual requirement to ensure data quality. I test water quality at two sites — the outflow from the Alapaha Wastewater Treatment and at Sheboggy bridge where Highway 82 crosses the Alapaha River. I test for pH dissolved oxygen, conductivity and E.coli (biological). WWALS make the biological data available to the public so they know that their rivers are fishable and swimmable. I’ve been testing for several years and have never had water quality problems.

Water Quality Testing Training, AAS Chemical and Biological Monitoring, Trainer: Gretchen Quarterman, Trainee: Heather Brasell 2026-07-10

Photo 2: To test for E.coli (bacterial health concern), we add 1 ml of water onto a petrifilm and incubate it for 24 hours. The blue fuzzy colonies indicate E.coli bacteria (marked on the edge). The red colonies indicate other kinds of coliform bacteria, including ones that are not a health concern. To maintain data quality, we share photos like this with the group so someone else can confirm our counts.