Tag Archives: Gornto Road

Bad Sugar Creek, clean Withlacoochee River 2024-11-26

Update 2024-12-02: Nasty Sugar Creek, Withlacoochee River; questionable Sheboggy, Alapaha River 2024-11-30.

I’d avoid Sugar Creek, but the Withlacoochee River otherwise is probably OK, as well as other rivers in the Suwannee River Basin.

So happy fishing, paddling, boating, and, if you like cold, swimming this weekend.

Remember, many parks and put-ins remain closed after Hurricane Helene. So check before you go.

[Bad Sugar Creek; Clean Withlacoochee River 2024-11-26 No new known sewage spills; No rain]
Bad Sugar Creek; Clean Withlacoochee River 2024-11-26 No new known sewage spills; No rain

No new sewage spills have been reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida. And there has been very little rain this week to wash any new contamination into waterways.

But something must have been causing the extremely high E. coli results by Valdosta Utilities Gornto Road on Sugar Creek. The result for Tuesday of 3,755 cfu/100 mL is more than three times the 1,000 alert limit.

Valdosta’s 605 upstream for Tuesday at St. Augustine Road on Hightower Creek was way down from previous results, although still higher than the 410 one-time test limit. So maybe Valdosta Utilities found and fixed the leak. We don’t know, because they have not returned our calls about that, and the City of Valdosta has not made any announcement.

WWALS tester Suzy Hall tested Sugar Creek downstream of Gornto Road last Saturday. Continue reading →

Valdosta sewage spills contained after flash flood 2024-11-11

Update 2024-12-13: Valdosta sewage spill reports to GA-EPD from November 7 through December 3, 2024 2024-12-03.

Update 2024-11-14: DOH-Madison Issues Health Advisory Near Withlacoochee River 2024-11-13

Received yesterday at 5:02 PM, November 11, 2024.

Thanks, Valdosta, for the update, and for mentioning the waterbodies affected for the WWTP and Wainwright Drive.

Regarding repairs, WWALS and many others have been asking for the Wainwright Drive manhole to be fixed for many years.

[Valdosta sewage spills contained 2024-11-11, after flash flood 2024-11-06, 7.2 millions gallons from WWTP, 272,500-276,500 from 6 others]
Valdosta sewage spills contained 2024-11-11, after flash flood 2024-11-06, 7.2 millions gallons from WWTP, 272,500-276,500 from 6 others

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE
DATE: Monday, November 11, 2024
CONTACT: Sharah Denton, Community Relations & Marketing Manager
Telephone: (229) 259-3548

City of Valdosta Update: Sanitary Overflow at Withlacoochee WWTP and Wainwright Drive Contained Following Historic Rainfall

UPDATE: 11/11/2024: At this time both the Withlacoochee WWTP and Wainwright Sanitary Overflows have stopped. Withlacoochee WWTP has an estimated overflow of 7.2 million Gallons from its secondary EQ Basin which enters a tributary before entering the Withlacoochee River. Wainwright Drive’s estimated overflow is 250,000 gallons. This overflow entered one mile branch, Sugar Creek and will enter the Withlacoochee River. Notifications have been sent to all required parties. Utilities Central Lines, Plant and Central Maintenance Crews have been dispatched to these locations for damage assessments, repairs and clean up. Environmental Services have actively placed Spill notification signs at access points and have begun required monitoring, sampling and testing of all required locations.

On November 7, 2024, the City of Valdosta and surrounding South Georgia region experienced a significant rain event, Continue reading →

Valdosta reports seven sewage spills, two ongoing 2024-11-08

Update 2024-11-12: Valdosta sewage spills contained after flash flood 2024-11-11.

Update 2024-11-08: Manholes spewing sewage into One Mile Branch at Wainwright Drive, Valdosta, GA 2024-11-08.

Received via email at 11:11 AM this morning: “Although most of the discharge is primarily stormwater, residents are urged to avoid contact with rivers, creeks, streams, or tributaries until further notice.”

[Seven sewage spills, two ongoing, Valdosta, GA, including the Withlacoochee WWTP 2024-11-08]
Seven sewage spills, two ongoing, Valdosta, GA, including the Withlacoochee WWTP 2024-11-08

WWALS has some evidence that there is substantial E. coli in the water. Stay tuned for that.

Meanwhile, it looks like adding another catch basin at Valdosta’s Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) would have been a good idea after all.

And I’d like to know, why did the City of Valdosta only inform the public about these spills more than a day after they started?

This is not a criticism of the Valdosta Utilities Department or its Director, who I continue to maintain is doing much more than his predecessors.

This is a question for the City Manager, Mayor, and Council.

Valdosta City Schools informed the public quickly about road closures. (Nevermind why Schools and not Public Works or the City’s Public Information Officer.)

Why did the City not inform the public as quickly about sewage getting into the waterways?

Everybody knows there are spills. WWALS already posted pictures and video of the Knob Hill Road spill. But we didn’t know about all of them.

So, tell us, top of the Valdosta City government, why didn’t you inform everyone?

If it’s appropriate today to warn people to stay away from the waterways, why wasn’t that appropriate yesterday?

Will you inform the public next time?

There will be a next time. Sure, this flash flood as a side effect of Hurricane Rafael is unusual. But so was Cat 2 Hurricane Helene. And Hurricane Debby before that. And Hurricane Idalia before that.

None of us can pretend any of that won’t happen again, or worse. The City of Valdosta can keep us all better informed.

City of Valdosta Experiences Significant Rain Event and Flooding, Resulting in Overwhelmed Sanitary Sewer and Stormwater Systems

Continue reading →

Valdosta announces four minor sewage spills due to Hurricane Debby 2024-08-06

Update 2024-11-07: More Knob Hill Road sewage spills, Three Mile Branch, Valdosta 2024-11-07.

Update 2024-08-09: Clean Alapaha, Withlacoochee, Santa Fe, and Ichetucknee Rivers 2024-08-08.

This Valdosta press release came in at 12:58 PM, while my power was down.

Running off a generator, I got the previous posts out about the Quitman spills https://wwals.net/?p=65559 and the Valdosta Knob Hill spill. https://wwals.net/?p=65562

This Valdosta PR lists that 300 Knob Hill Drive [aka Road] spill as 8,000 gallons.

The 1020 Wainwright Williamsburg Drive spill with 7,000 gallons is just across the drainage ditch from Knob Hill Road, very near Three Mile Branch, which runs into the Withlacoochee River at the bottom of Langdale Park.

All four sites are at sites of previous spills.

All are also less than 10,000 gallons, so not major spills, which means GA-EPD does not require any followup water quality testing.

The 817 Gornto Rd spill with 6,000 gallons is uphill from Two Mile Branch, which runs into Sugar Creek.

The 1212 Wainwright Dr spill with 9,000 gallons is next to One Mile Branch, which also runs into Sugar Creek, which runs into the Withlacoochee River.

I don’t why the Valdosta press release does not mention any of those creeks nor the Withlacoochee River.

I commend Valdosta for including specific street addresses, and for getting this press release out in a timely manner. Maybe tomorrow these spills will show up in the GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report, like the Quitman spills already did.

I agree with the City of Valdosta about this, at least for the above-named creeks and nearby stretches of the Withlacoochee River: “Citizens are urged to avoid contact with rivers, creeks, streams, or tributaries.”

[Valdosta PR: 4 minor sewage spills 2024-08-06: Infiltration & Inflow, Hurricane Debby]
Valdosta PR: 4 minor sewage spills 2024-08-06: Infiltration & Inflow, Hurricane Debby
The spill sites are among the yellow diamonds on this WWALS map of the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).
The Wainwright Drive manhole spill site is highlighted towards the bottom.
The 817 Gornto Rd spill site is near the center.
300 Knob Hill Drive is towards the top.

Tropical Storm Debby Results in Minor Spills

Continue reading →

Reroute: Sugar Creek and Troupville Withlacoochee River on-land cleanup 2023-07-22

Update 2023-07-22:Pictures: Sugar Creek Withlacoochee River on-land cleanup 2023-07-22.

Due to bad water quality reports for Sugar Creek heard from the City of Valdosta, we are revising the cleanup from a paddle to an on-land cleanup. Please come to Sugar Creek at 9AM to hear where we will go from there.

When: Gather 9 AM, launch 9:30 AM, end 1 PM, Saturday, July 22, 2023

Where: Meet at the back of the Salty Snapper parking lot, 1405 Gornto Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602 and we’ll go to appropriate locations from there.

GPS: 30.861764, -83.318854

[At Langdale Park Boat Ramp: Caution Sewage Spill City of Valdosta --Bobby McKenzie 2023-07-21]
At Langdale Park Boat Ramp: Caution Sewage Spill City of Valdosta –Bobby McKenzie 2023-07-21

Bring: Cleanup materials will be provided, but if you’ve got a trash picker, bring it along. Bring sturdy shoes and clothes, drinking water, and snacks.

There is no need to bring a boat. Continue reading →

Rescheduled: Withlacoochee River Chainsaw Cleanup 2023-06-24

We are rescheduling this Saturday’s chainsaw cleanup, due to water level too high and more rainfall predicted all week causing the Withlacoochee River to stay high.

We are merging it with the other cleanup on the same stretch of the river: Sugar Creek to Troupville, Withlacoochee River Cleanup 2023-07-22. Russell Allen McBride will lead the regular cleanup, and Phil Hubbard will lead the chainsaw cleanup. The groups of paddlers will probably proceed at different speeds. See:
https://wwals.net/?p=62071

Facebook event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/614883607025723

Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/withlacoochee-alapaha-suwannee-rivers-wwals-outings/events/293624535/

[Gauges, target deadfall]
Gauges, target deadfall

The Skipper Bridge gauge has predictions of water levels. Which show Continue reading →

Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River, 2023-06-24

Update 2023-06-20: Rescheduled: Withlacoochee River Chainsaw Cleanup 2023-06-24 to merge with Sugar Creek to Troupville, Withlacoochee River Cleanup 2023-07-22.

We need volunteers to pick up trash while a few people chainsaw some deadfalls.

Our main target this time is one remaining big deadfall between I-75 and GA 133.

Yes, this stretch from Sugar Creek to Troupville is the same as for the plain old cleanup a month later.

When: 9 AM, Saturday, June 24, 2023

Put In: Meet at the back of the Salty Snapper parking lot, 1405 Gornto Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602 and we’ll put in at the railroad tracks.

GPS: 30.861764, -83.318854

[A deadfall between I-75 and GA 133, and a previous deadfall]
A deadfall between I-75 and GA 133, and a previous deadfall

Continue reading →

Pictures: Chainsaw Cleanup Withlacoochee River 2022-10-16

Update 2023-05-19: Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River, 2023-06-24.

There must be a better way to order pizza.

[Start, chainsaws, pizza, sandbars]
Start, chainsaws, pizza, sandbars

The good news: we did get pizza delivered on the river during the Chainsaw Cleanup, Withlacoochee River 2022-10-16. We cleared many logjams. Some of them we had sawed at higher water levels several times before. It seemed like we were a relix rock band doing a greatest hit tour. And at twelve hours we beat our record of taking longer than expected.

Our advice if you want to try paddling this stretch with the water this low (3.6′ or 113.8′ NAVD88) on the US 41 (North Valdosta Road) USGS Gauge?

Don’t.

Not unless you want to drag your boat much of the way. Also, stock up on magnesium and vitamin C for the muscle cramps. Continue reading →

Rescheduled: Chainsaw Cleanup Withlacoochee River, 2022-10-16

Rescheduled due to fish kill.

We need volunteers to pick up trash while a few people chainsaw some deadfalls.

We aim to collect the trashjams we didn’t have room for last time, and to chainsaw the remaining Withlacoochee River deadfalls between Sugar Creek and the Little River Confluence. Then we’ll paddle up the Little River to take out at Troupville Boat Ramp.

Unlike last time, we’re scheduling seven hours for the shuttle, for chainsawing and trash collecting, and for the four-mile paddle. With luck, nobody will get stuck this time.

All dependent on the weather, of course. Could be hurricane season finally by then, or could be plenty low to make this easy.

When: 9 AM to 4 PM, Sunday, October 16, 2022

Put In: Meet at the back of the Salty Snapper parking lot, 1405 Gornto Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602.

GPS: 30.861764, -83.318854

[Trashjam, deadfall, chainsaws]
Trashjam, deadfall, chainsaws, 2022-07-30; Photos: John S. Quarterman.

Continue reading →

Valdosta sewer spill, Meadowbrook Drive at Gornto Road 2022-08-14

Valdosta had a sewage spill on Meadowbrook Drive at Gornto Road this weekend, which this morning they said they fixed that same weekend. We don’t know how many gallons, but we’re guessing not many. Maybe we’ll know more about that once Valdosta reports to GA-EPD. If it was small, it probably did not get into Sugar Creek and the Withlacoochee River, although we hope Valdosta is testing to find out.

Congratulations to Valdosta for fixing this problem quickly. Room for improvement on internal handoffs on Valdosta’s Click ‘n’ Fix smartphone app, and on completeness of reporting. Also, we would like to know the cause, considering there was no rain.

[Map, Manhole]
Map, Manhole

That’s the fourth small Valdosta sewage spill and one major one since June. So far as we can tell by later testing, none of them had any noticeable effect on the Withlacoochee River.

Plus there was a spill from Quitman, Georgia, that very likely did affect Okapilco Creek and the Withlacoochee River, although more than a week later nobody yet knows how many gallons. And there was a spill from High Springs, Florida, which probably did not affect the Santa Fe River.

WWALS member Suzy Hall noticed yesterday (Sunday) afternoon Continue reading →