Tag Archives: Alapaha River

GA-EPD Consent Order on Lowndes County for the Alapaha Plantation Subdivision Water System 2025-01-06

This long-troubled water system, run by Lowndes County to serve the Lake Alapaha Plantation subdivision next to the Alapaha River, in January 2025 got a Consent Order for the county to move along and fix it.

[GA-EPD Consent Order on Lowndes County, January 2025, for the Alapaha Plantation Subdivision Water System]
GA-EPD Consent Order on Lowndes County, January 2025, for the Alapaha Plantation Subdivision Water System

This drinking water plant has been getting notices of violation from GA-EPD since 2004.

In 2013 and 2014, Lowndes County spent at least $35,500 to fix it.

In 2018 the county spent another $16,915 to upgrade a water line for a private developer there.

In 2021, another proposal was for $173,000 to fix the same plant.

In 2024, Lowndes County tried a pilot of a potential solution, which failed. See The never-ending Lake Alapaha Water Treatment Plant saga @ LCC 2021-08-10.

Remember this ongoing expenditure of tax funds next time you see a subdivision rezoning on an agenda for zero BUDGET IMPACT.

In 2025, apparently some time in January, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA-EPD) issued a Consent Order.

That Order was mentioned in the board packet for the April 7, 2025, Lowndes County Commission meeting, and discussed briefly in their April 8, 2025, Regular Session.

The bulk of the Consent Order is about Maximum Contaminant Levels being exceeded on many dates for Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM) and Haloacetic Acids (HAA5). These contaminants form when river water is chlorinated for drinking use.

The Consent Order, received in response to a WWALS open records request to Lowndes County, is on the WWALS website.

The gist of the Order is on Page 14:

Conditions

Continue reading →

Clean Rivers and most creeks; dirty Sugar Creek 2025-04-16

Update 2025-04-25: Clean Alapaha River 2025-04-20, Filthy Sugar Creek 2025-04-22, Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-04-23.

Sugar Creek was not as clean this week.

But two Tifton Creeks and Franks Creek were clean.

As were the Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers.

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

No rain is predicted for the next ten days.

The rivers are all down to boatable levels, even Santa Fe River.

So happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend!

[Clean Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-04-16, Clean Tifton & Franks Creeks, Dirty Sugar Creek]
Clean Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-04-16, Clean Tifton & Franks Creeks, Dirty Sugar Creek

Join us tomorrow for the Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle on the Withlacoochee River, with a surprise route change.
https://wwals.net/?p=67456

For these and other WWALS outings and events, see: https://wwals.net/outings/

Little River

WWALS Tester Samantha Carr tested two Tifton Creeks that run into the Little River and got clean results. Continue reading →

River water and groundwater interchange interacts with drinking water treatment 2025-03-26

We all drink with straws from the groundwater here in the U.S. southeast coastal plain.

[River water and groundwater interchange interacts with drinking water treatment in Georgia and Florida]
River water and groundwater interchange interacts with drinking water treatment in Georgia and Florida

So surface water interchange with groundwater produces problems for city and county drinking water treatment, and for E. coli contamination of private water wells. Continue reading →

A Day in the Woods, Alapaha River, Gaskins Forest Education Center, 2025-04-12

Come see the WWALS Booth at this festival near Alapaha, Georgia. WWALS Members can volunteer to help with this education opportunity.

When: Gather 12 PM, festival 1 PM, end 5 PM, Saturday, April 12, 2025

Put In: Gaskins Forest Education Center, 3359 Moore Sawmill Rd., Alapaha, Georgia 31622

GPS: 31.345454, -83.178356

[A Day in the Woods, Gaskins Forest Education Center, Alapaha River, Alapaha, GA 2025-04-12]
A Day in the Woods, Gaskins Forest Education Center, Alapaha River, Alapaha, GA 2025-04-12

According to the Gaskins Forest Education Center (GFEC), A Day in the Woods “is a non-commercial community event for people of all ages and backgrounds. Over 40 presenters with hands-on activities and interactive demonstrations related to natural resources. Varied fire demonstrations.” Continue reading →

Mayday Landing ARWT Signs 2025-02-26

Update 2025-04-01: Installed: Troupville Boat Ramp water trail signs 2025-04-01.

Thanks again to Echols County Manager Alan Levesque and Road Crew, the signs are planted for Mayday Landing on the Alapaha River.

[Mayday Landing, Alapaha River, ARWT Signs Planted 2025-02-26, At-Water and Road: Thanks, Alan Levesque & Echols County Road Crew]
Mayday Landing, Alapaha River, ARWT Signs Planted 2025-02-26, At-Water and Road: Thanks, Alan Levesque & Echols County Road Crew

Both the road signs and the at-water signs were paid for (80%) by a generous grant from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (GA-DNR). The signs were made by the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT), but the state could not plant the signs, because Howell Road is not a state or federal road. But the county could, and Echols County did.

Like the Statenville Boat Ramp signs, I delivered the Mayday signs to Echols County at a Comprehensive Plan Five-Year Update meeting the day before.

Mayday Landing is at 749 Howell Road, Stockton, GA 31649. It is on the left bank, the east side of the Alapaha River, south of Howell Road, north of the railroad bridge, in Echols County.

It is towards the middle of the WWALS Alapaha River Water Trail.
https://wwals.net/maps/alapaha-water-trail/ Continue reading →

ARWT signs planted at Statenville Boat Ramp 2025-02-26

Update 2025-03-12: Mayday Landing ARWT Signs 2025-02-26.

Thanks to Echols County Manager Alan Levesque and the Echols County Road Crew for planting the Statenville Boat Ramp signs next to the ramp.

[ARWT signs planted, Statenville Boat Ramp 2025-02-26, Thanks, Alan Levesque, Echols County Manager]
ARWT signs planted, Statenville Boat Ramp 2025-02-26, Thanks, Alan Levesque, Echols County Manager

I delivered them the previous day at an Echols County Comprehensive Plan Five-Year Update meeting. Continue reading →

Ashburn spill locations and causes in GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report 2025-02-26

Update 2025-03-07: Clean Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-03-06.

After GA-EPD forgot to list sewage spill locations or causes for several days, we can finally see where and why Ashburn had its late-January and mid-February spills into Hat Creek, which runs to the Alapaha River.

Plus an amusing update on Pinehurst, which is outside the Suwannee River Basin.

[Ashburn spill locations and causes, in GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report 2025-02-26]
Ashburn spill locations and causes

The locations are listed as different: “Rockhouse Rd. Lift Station” for the 2025-01-31 spill and “Rockhouse Rd and Sylvia Dr.” for the 2025-02-14 spill. But from time to time GA-EPD lists the latitude and longitude of spills, and these two have the same latlong: 31.691673, -83.632582.

That’s at this manhole at the corner of Rockhouse Road and Silvia Drive: Continue reading →

Clean Franks Creek 2025-02-26 and Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-02-27

Update 2025-03-07: Clean Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-03-06.

Update 2025-03-01: Ashburn spill locations and causes in GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report 2025-02-26.

We have no new water quality test results for Sugar Creek. However, since there has been no rain, chances are it’s not bad.

Meanwhile, Valdosta Utilities got good results for the Withlacoochee River at GA 133 and US 84.

And WWALS got excellent results for the Withlacoochee River at Holly Point, down near the Suwannee, for Franks Creek at GA 122 west of Hahira, and for the Alapaha River at Lakeland Boat Ramp and Naylor Park Beach.

No new sewage spills were reported in Florida or Georgia, although GA-EPD did post some clarification about the most recent Ashburn spills; stay tuned for a separate post about that.

Saturday and Sunday are supposed to be sunny. The Withlacoochee River is still a bit high, but not if you know what you’re doing.

So happy fishing, swimming, paddling, and boating this weekend!

[Clean Franks Creek, 2025-02-26, Clean Alapaha & Withlacoochee, Rivers 2025-02-27]
Clean Franks Creek, 2025-02-26, Clean Alapaha & Withlacoochee, Rivers 2025-02-27

Continue reading →

Statenville Boat Ramp, Alapaha River 2025-02-25

The Alapaha River is moving fast at Statenville Boat Ramp, just upstream of the GA 94 bridge and west across the river from Statenville, Georgia, on the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT).
https://wwals.net/maps/arwt

[Statenville Boat Ramp, Alapaha River 2025-02-25, GA 94 Bridge, Sky Dog]
Statenville Boat Ramp, Alapaha River 2025-02-25, GA 94 Bridge, Sky Dog

The Statenville Gauge read 9.61 feet (85.71 feet NAVD88), with 1580 cubic feet per second of discharge (2.04 kcfs).

Sky the Suwannee Riverkeeper Dog came along to sniff out the situation.

More pictures and videos below. Continue reading →

Ashburn Spill 2025-02-14, Chemours Mine Spill 2025-02-16, Bad Little River 2025-02-17, Bad Withlacoochee River 2025-02-19

Update 2025-02-28: Clean Franks Creek 2025-02-26 and Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-02-27.

We do not have any updates on Sugar Creek, but the recent rains probably washed more contamination into it.

Valdosta Utilities got too high E. coli downstream on the Withlacoochee River at GA 133 for Wednesday. But OK results farther down at US 84.

Upstream on the Little River at US 82 west of Tifton, WWALS got too high for Monday.

Ashburn had yet another small sewage spill Friday a week ago, at the usual location of Rockhouse Road and Sylvia Drive, into Hat Creek, which goes to the Alapaha River.

“On Sunday, February 16, 2025 at approximately 6 PM,” Chemours spilled approximately 230,000 gallons of process water from its Trail Ridge South Mine east of Starke, Florida, upstream of the Santa Fe River. Stay tuned for a separate report.

The Withlacoochee River is in Action Stage at and above Valdosta and at Pinetta.

If you’ve got a power boat and stay below the Little River Confluence, the volume of rainwater probably makes the Withlacoochee River relatively clean. I wouldn’t recommend kayaks or canoes unless there’s more than one of you and you really know what you’re doing.

Paddling or fishing or swimming (if you like cold) would be better on other rivers this weekend. At least the weather prediction is sunny and warmer than it has been recently.

[Bad Little River 2025-02-17, Bad Withlacoochee River 2025-02-19, Ashburn Spill 2025-02-14, Chemours Mine Spill 2025-02-16]
Bad Little River 2025-02-17, Bad Withlacoochee River 2025-02-19, Ashburn Spill 2025-02-14, Chemours Mine Spill 2025-02-16

Little River

WWALS Internet and Tester Samantha Carr sampled the Little River at US 82 west of Tifton on Monday. We’re going with Suzy Hall’s interpretation of Samantha’s slides: 8+7+13 * 100 / 3 = 933 cfu/100 mL. That’s higher than the 410 one-time test limit. Continue reading →