Tag Archives: creeks

Three Clean Rivers 2024-01-17

Update 2024-01-26: Five clean rivers and a clean creek 2024-01-25.

Update 2024-01-24: More about the Valdosta Knob Hill or Williamsburg Drive sewage spill 2024-01-10.

Update 2024-01-20: Plus clean Alapaha River, for four clean rivers.

We got good results for Wednesday for three rivers: Withlacoochee, Ichetucknee, and Santa Fe. Valdosta’s Wednesday upstream Withlacoochee River results concur.

After the light drizzle today, no rain is predicted for the weekend.

So if you like cold weather and high water, happy fishing, paddling, and maybe even swimming this weekend.

Due to high water levels, we have rescheduled this Sunday’s chainsaw cleanup to be a week later. See Try again: Langdale Park to Sugar Creek Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River, 2024-01-27.

So the next WWALS paddle is the Banks Lake Full Wolf Moon Paddle, 2024-01-25.

[Chart, Four Clean Rivers, Map 2024-01-17]
Chart, Four Clean Rivers, Map 2024-01-17

Sewage Spills

No sewage spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida since the last week.

Ashburn, Georgia, had yet another sewage spill into Ashburn Branch from its MLK Lift Station. It showed up in GA-EPD’s Sewage Spills Report for Thursday, January 18, 2024, as happening that same day. This spill 1,500 gallons for Spill Primary Cause “Other”. Ashburn Branch joins the Little River upstream of the Coverdale Highway Bridge, and far upstream of Reed Bingham State Park.

Valdosta’s 100,000 gallon sewage spill into Three Mile Branch to the Withlacoochee River showed up in GA-EPD’s Sewage Spills Report for Wednesday, January 16, 2024. It shows the spill location as “213 Knob Dr/1020 Williamsburg Dr.”

I talked to Valdosta Acting Utilities Director Jason Barnes about this spill Wednesday in Atlanta. He says the sewage came up out of a manhole at 213 Knob Hill Drive, which he considers the “backside of Williamsburg Drive.” Also, it turns out it was not a collapsed sewer line. Utilities found rocks and some sort of lid in the pipe. They don’t know how that stuff got in there. I’m beginning to wonder whether it was vandalism. Continue reading →

Ockolocoochee, Little River 1889-01-29

Who knows the Ockolocoochee River? No, not the Ochlockonee River; that’s a bit to the west.

[Withlacoochee River labeled Suwanee R. in 1823 Irwin and 1834 Lowndes County maps; current WWALS Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail map]
Withlacoochee River labeled Suwanee R. in 1823 Irwin and 1834 Lowndes County maps; current WWALS Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail map

You do know the Ockolocoochee River as the Little River, of the Withlacoochee, of the Suwannee.

Here is news from 1889 that also includes the boat that didn’t survive from Troupville to Ellaville, which was apparently not a paddlewheel steamer. Continue reading →

Probably clean rivers 2023-12-06

Update 2023-12-15: Three Clean Rivers 2023-12-14.

We got clean results for the Santa Fe River for Wednesday. WWALS testers are mostly off this week for the holidays. We may post some more results later.

Valdosta saw far too much E. coli in the Withlacoochee River for Mondayafter 2-4 inches of rain, but much cleaner for Wednesday.

The rest of this week had little or no rain. The next rain is predicted for Sunday.

So you’ll probably be pretty safe from E. coli this weekend.

[Chart, Clean Santa Fe River, Map 2023-12-06]
Chart, Clean Santa Fe River, Map 2023-12-06

In the last week, no pollution spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida.

In Valdosta, Georgia, a chunk of asphalt in a sewer line in a flood plain spilled 6,300 gallons of raw sewage into some houses and One Mile Branch. That spill is unlikely to have affected Sugar Creek or the Withlacoochee River much, considering the river tested way too high upstream at US 41 Monday as well as downstream at GA 133 and US 84. See separate report. Curiously, that spill has not yet shown up in the GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report.

Joanne Tremblay tested the Santa Fe River Tuesday, and got good results at the US 27 bridge and at US 41.

Russ Tatum tested the Withlacoochee River Wednesday at Holly Point, between Allen Ramp and the Suwannee River, and got excellent results.

WWALS Testing Committee Chair Suzy Hall reviewed all the results and some were recalibrated in the ensuing discussion.

WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman delivered testing supplies to several testers.

If you want to get trained to be a WWALS water quality tester, please fill out the form:
https://wwals.net/?p=47084

As previously noted, Valdosta’s last downstream tests were September 1, 2023. Continue reading →

Asphalt-caused sewage spill in flooding on One Mile Branch in Valdosta 2023-12-03

Update 2023-12-19: Valdosta reports to GA-EPD about two recent sewage spills 2023-12-02.

Update 2023-12-15: This spill finally showed up in the GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report of 2023-12-12; see Yet another Valdosta E. Park Ave. sewage spill near Knights Creek 2023-12-11.

Update 2023-12-04: Added Valdosta Press Release.

After the recent rains, at least two houses on Pin Oak Circle at Lakeland Ave in Valdosta flooded again, attributed to a sewer leak by residents.

[One Mile Branch crossing Pin Oak Circle in a floodplain and location maps]
One Mile Branch crossing Pin Oak Circle in a floodplain and location maps

Valdosta Acting Utilities Director Jason Barnes just now on the telephone said it was caused by a piece of asphalt stuck in the sewer line. It took Utilities about an hour and 15 minutes Saturday to get it out. He did not know how it got there; maybe from previous street resurfacing. They will be doing further work today. He alerted GA-EPD Saturday, and is working on a press release this morning. It will be a spill, but probably not a major spill.

WWALS member Suzy Hall found this spill in a WALB TV story (see below). I located it by looking up the names from the story in the Lowndes County Tax Assessors Map.

One Mile Branch runs through their back yards, and we’ve seen flooding problems there before. Continue reading →

Mostly clean rivers 2023-11-30

Update 2023-12-02: Sewage spills: Ashburn, GA, Live Oak, FL 2023-12-01.

We got clean results for the Alapaha and Santa Fe Rivers, and mostly for the Withlacoochee River, except for Langdale Park, where somebody dumped a dead deer.

There was some rain in the past few days, but not much. More rain is predicted for Sunday. However, most of the first flush is probably over from the previous rains. So if you like drizzly paddling or fishing or swimming in low water, you’ll probably be pretty safe from E. coli. this weekend, except downstream from Langdale Park.

In the last two weeks, two new sewage spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin: Ashburn, Georgia, spilled 2,000 gallons on November 19, reported on November 28, into Ashburn Branch, which ends up in the Little River far upstream from Tifton, and Live Oak, Florida, spilled 10,000 gallons at its WWTP Headworks, “confined to wastewater plant site lawn and garden lime is being applied to the affected areas.” See separate report for those spills. Neither are likely to have affected the Little River or the Suwannee River.

[Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-11-30]
Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-11-30

Heather Brasell tested the Alapaha River Friday a week ago at the City of Alapaha WWTP outflow and just upstream from Sheboggy Boat Ramp and go acceptable results, below the 410 cfu/100 mL one-time test limit.

Joanne Tremblay tested the Santa Fe River Tuesday, and got good results at the US 27 bridge and at US 41.

Cindy Vedas tested the Withlacoochee River Thursday at Franklinville Landing, Crawford Branch, Staten Road, and Langdale Park. All got acceptable results, except Langdale Park, where somebody had discarded a deer carcass. Why do people like that call themselves hunters?

Russ Tatum tested the Withlacoochee River Wednesday at Holly Point, between Allen Ramp and the Suwannee River, and got excellent results.

WWALS Testing Committee Chair Suzy Hall reviewed all the results and some were recalibrated in the ensuing discussion.

WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman delivered testing supplies to several testers.

If you want to get trained to be a WWALS water quality tester, please fill out the form:
https://wwals.net/?p=47084

The most recent Valdosta results we have are for Wednesday last week and this Monday, both bad for US 41 and GA 133, but OK for US 84.

So our prediction last week that the Withlacoochee would probably be OK proved incorrect for near US 41 or GA 133.

Due to the holidays, we have no WWALS results for Thursday last week. Apparently Valdosta took both Monday and Friday off last week, since they report no results for those days.

As previously noted, Valdosta’s last downstream tests were September 1, 2023. Continue reading →

Scotti and Sara Jay discovered One Mile Branch fish kill, leading to GA-EPD Consent Order 2023-09-23

Update 2024-02-22: Slight update on this Consent Order in Valdosta Boone Drive and Knob Hill small sewage spills 2024-02-20.

Thanks to Scotti Jay Jones for discovering and photographing a fish kill on One Mile Branch a year ago, and for taking water quality samples. Thanks to Sara Jay Jones for plating those samples. Suwannee Riverkeeper reported all that to GA-EPD.

One year later, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA-EPD), levied a Consent Order on the City of Valdosta for that fish kill and various sewage spills.

[IG: Sara and Scotti Jay Jones, the GA-EPD Consent Order, location map, and fish kill]
IG: Sara and Scotti Jay Jones, the GA-EPD Consent Order, location map, and fish kill

Maybe that Consent Order and its requirements for Standard Operating Procedures will help prevent sewage spills from getting into One Mile Branch, Hightower Creek, and Sugar Creek and the Withlacoochee River, as well as into Knights Creek into Mud Swamp Creek, the Alapahoochee River, and the Alapaha River. There have also been many personnel changes in the Valdosta City government, and the current Acting Utilities Director so far seems like a big improvement.

And you can join Scotti and Sara and WWALS at Iche Nippy Dip Day Swim and Paddle, Ichetucknee River, Ichetucknee Headspring, 2024-01-06.

Below are links and snippets for previous WWALS blog posts during that year. Continue reading →

Clean Rivers 2023-11-09

Update 2023-11-17: Mostly clean Withlacoochee River 2023-11-16.

The rivers were still clean, in yet another week with no rain: the Withlacoochee, Alapaha, and Suwannee Rivers. Even famously filthy Crawford Branch was clean. However, notoriously dirty Sugar Creek was dirty, but it did not seem to affect the Withlacoochee River much.

No rain is predicted for this weekend.

In the last week, no new sewage spills were reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida.

So happy swimming, boating, and fishing this weekend!

[Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-11-09]
Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-11-09

Heather Brasell got good results for Continue reading →

Sewage inside Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Valdosta 2023-10-16

Numerous reports say Ollie’s has been closed since Monday morning, and apparently T.J. Maxx, apparently due to sewage backing up into the building, at 1200 N St Augustine Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602. This is concerning, since that building is at the top of the creek that runs into Lake Sheri, and then into the Withlacoochee River.

[Sheri Run, Lake Sheri, Withlacoochee River in WLRWT]
Sheri Run, Lake Sheri, Withlacoochee River in the WWALS map of the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT)

However, Valdosta City Marshall Josh Hunt says the issue has been fixed and the stores reopened this morning.

I also checked with Valdosta Acting Utilities Director Jason Barnes, and he says the problem was entirely on private property, and did not escape the building. He also confirmed that Valdosta did not have any sewage spills during last week’s rains. Continue reading →

Videos: Suwannee-Satilla Regional Water Planning Council in Valdosta 2023-09-27

Yesterday I presented slides about the draft VSU & WWALS GA-EPD Seed Grant application to the Suwannee-Satilla Regional Water Planning Council at their meeting in Valdosta. The slides for that presentation are on the WWALS website.

[Collage @ SSRWPC 27 September 2023]
Collage @ SSRWPC 27 September 2023

The longest item in the agenda was about the Lake Beatrice project. For more about that, see Videos: Lake Beatrice, Alapaha River, GA-EPD Seed Grants @ SSRWPC 2023-03-14.

Also, Cliff Lewis of GA-EPD talked about gradual relaxation of the moratorium on water withdrawals in the Flint River Basin and its effect on mussels.

Here is the agenda: Continue reading →

Please keep Quarterman Road in agriculture and forestry –WWALS to Greater Lowndes Planning Commission 2023-08-28

Update 2023-09-17: Videos: Quarterman Road rezoning unanimously denied @ LCC 2023-09-12.

Update 2023-09-09: Packet: Board of Health appointment, two rezonings, 4 water, mosquitoes @ LCC 2023-09-11.

Thanks to the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) for voting 7:1 to recommend denial of a proposed rezoning on Quarterman Road that would have injected 2.5-acre lots into a 5-acre minimum agricultural and forestry area.

[WWALS Letter, maps, speakers 2023-08-28]
WWALS Letter, maps, speakers 2023-08-28

Thanks to all the neighbors and others who helped get that done, with a petition, by speaking in the Public Hearing, and by calling and writing their Commissioners.

GLPC only recommends. The actual decision will be by the Lowndes County Commission at 5:30 PM, Tuesday, September 12, 2023, in Commission Chambers, second floor, 327 North Ashley Street, Valdosta, GA 31601. You can speak in that Public Hearing, as well as call and write your County Commissioners, and sign the petition.

Meanwhile, thanks to WWALS President Sara Jay for sending the letter below to GLPC. Continue reading →