WWALS and Suwannee-St Johns Group of Sierra Club Florida are cooperating on outings now, and Sierra Club Florida is holding a Rural Office opening in October.
Tag Archives: Aquifer
Federal permits inflame opposition to Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline boondoggle WWALS PR 2016-08-16
PDF FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hahira, Georgia, August 16th 2016 — There is no excuse for $3
billion down this rathole of a 20th century dying fossil fuel
industry now that there are more solar power jobs than in all of oil
and gas extraction. One federal permit Friday and another federal
go-ahead impending for the Sabal Trail invasion of private property
and wetlands in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama stiffens the resolve
of the rapidly expanding opposition. WWALS Watershed Coalition
(WWALS) has revealed
apparent wetlands violations and
federal rule violations by Spectra Energy, the Houston, Texas pipeline company
that wants
to gouge under our Withlacoochee and Suwannee Rivers,
risking our water supply for its profit. Sierra Club has vowed to
use
“all legal means necessary to stop this fracked gas
pipeline.” Opposition across Georgia continues as dozens of new
groups joined the fight
a week ago in Gainesville, Florida. News
Friday
of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) wetlands permit has
inflamed opposition across the country to this latest fossil fuel
land and water grab.
Last month WWALS reported to USACE and to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) that Sabal Trail already has Continue reading
USACE refuses Madison County’s request for a Sabal Trail SEIS 2016-07-29
They didn’t even bother to fill in the year on the date, and “File with original letter”. Here’s what the Corps wrote (PDF) in response to Madison County’s request for a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) about Sabal Trail.
File with
original letterDEPARTMENT or THE ARMY
JACKSONVILLE DISTRICT CORPS 0F ENGINEERS
POST OFFICE BOX 4970
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA 32232-0019July 29, 201
Reply to attention of
Regulatory Division
North Permits Branch
Jacksonville Permits Section
SAJ-2013-03030Madison Board of County Commissioners
Attn: Mr. Brian Kauffman, County Coordinator
Post Office Box 539
Madison, Florida 32341Dear Mr. Kauffman:
Please accept this correspondence as Continue reading
Madison County, FL asks USACE for a SEIS 2016-07-18
This request for a Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS), mentioning Madison Blue Spring in particular, was sent July 18th or 19th 2016, one copy to each of the Corps addresses. (PDF). That’s the fourth Florida county to make such a request, after Hamilton, Suwanee, and Marion Counties. The Corps already responded to Madison County.
Board of County Commissioners
Madison County, Florida
Jacksonville Permits Section
U.S.A.C.E. Regulatory Division
Attn: Mark R. Evans,
Senior Project Manager,
Post Office Box 4970
Jacksonville, Florida 32232Commander, U.S.A.C.E.,
Savannah District
Attn: Mr. Terry C. Kobs
1104 N. Westover Boulevard, Unit 9
Albany, GA 31707U.S.A.C.E.
Mobile District Reg. Div.
Montgomery Field Office
Attn: Mr. James S. Cherry II
605 Maple Street
Building 1429 Room 105
Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6017
Norman C. Bay, Chairman Continue reading
Videos: Many speakers against Sabal Trail @ SRWMD 2016-08-09
The Chair said they would send a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and everyone applauded,
in the middle of a record number of people speaking
Tuesday morning to the
board of the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD),
most against Sabal Trail, among other topics.
Please send names of the unidentified speakers to contact@wwals.com.
And you can still send your message to the SRWMD board via
Robin Lamm, Coordinator, rrl@srwmd.org; in the Subject say SRWMD Board Members; and remember to copy Noah Valenstein, Executive Director, NVD@srwmd.org NDV@srwmd.org.
(Thanks to Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson for the updated Coordinator name and address.)
Below are links to each of the videos, followed by a video playlist. These are the complete videos of everything before the lunch break, except for a camera failure at the beginning of one talk. See also the Agenda and board packet.
Continue readingSabal Trail Georgia Section 401 Water Quality Permit
Received today from GA-EPD, although they issued it three weeks ago.
Basically, they believed Sabal Trail, with a few requirements,
and issued the permit.
GA-EPD sent three documents, which are inline below with links to the PDF copies that were attached: Continue reading
SRWMD listens about Sabal Trail easements, chooses unfortunately, yet offers assistance 2016-07-12
Attached are my comments to the SRWMD Governing Board today (July 12th 2016) in regards to the Sabal Trail crossing site over the Falmouth Cathedral Cave System.
I was the first to speak at the public comment period followed by Jim Tatum then Merrillee. Jim and Merrillee echoed my concerns. The three of us set the tone for the meeting! The Board was interested and engaged asking questions to better understand what impacts Sabal Trail poses for the cave system and the District. About Time!
Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson of Sierra Club Florida speaking to SRWMD 2016-07-12
Photo credit:
Our Santa Fe River
Executive Director, Noah Valenstein offered to personally call the ACE to request Continue reading
Sabal Trail easements at SRWMD 2016-07-12 and SFWMD 2016-07-14
Tomorrow this morning (Thursday July 14th 2016) Sabal Trail is on the agenda
of the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD)
for permission to use conservation easements
Sierra Club facebook event
for its fracked methane pipeline.
How does this square with Sabal Trail’s assertions that it already has all the permits it needs?
The irony of meeting for this in West Palm Beach, a stone’s throw from
four already-approved LNG export operations at the end of the Sabal Trail pipeline chain in Martin County.
How does profit for a pipeline company from Houston and LNG export to Asia square with the mission of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection?
If you’re in the area, please write, call, or go, before or by 9AM tomorrow morning to oppose these easements and put a kink in Sabal Trail’s pipeline. Continue reading
Two new reasons for a SEIS: WWALS to USACE, GA-EPD, and FERC 2016-07-08
Filed Friday as FERC accession number 20160708-5096,
http://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/file_list.asp?document_id=14476452,
“Two new reasons for a USACE Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement and a halt to Sabal Trail permits; see also accession numbers 20160708-5089 and 20160708-5088, by WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. under CP15-17.” (PDF) Continue reading
New hydrology report exposes Sabal Trail pipeline risk to Floridan Aquifer
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jasper, Florida, July 1st 2016 — Another independent
professional geologist reveals more omissions and discrepancies in pipeline company reports and faults in federal oversight of the Sabal Trail pipeline:
groundflow actually goes the other way,
drilling under a river will change water
flow in the Floridan Aquifer, and there is very high risk of
sinkhole collapse. An indigenous Floridian commissioned this scientific report to protect his mother, the living earth.
This geological report provides compelling additional reasons for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
to open a new process to evaluate this and other new information.
Bobby C. Billie, one of the Clan Leaders and Spiritual Leader, Council of the Original Miccosukee Simanolee Nation Aboriginal Peoples, asked professional geologist and hydrologist Peter Schreuder, P.G. to conduct investigations at the proposed Sabal Trail crossing under the Suwannee River from Hamilton County and under U.S. 90 in close proximity to the Falmouth Cave System in Suwannee County.
This Schreuder report concludes about the Floridan Aquifer System (FAS): Continue reading