Tag Archives: Madison Blue Spring

Sunday and Monday creek and river water quality results 2020-06-01

Update 2020-06-09: Filthy Withlacoochee River Monday after Sunday rain 2020-06-08

Conn and Trudy Cole also tested for WWALS Sunday, except at Crooked Creek, which was almost dry under the Devane Road bridge, so it can’t be sending any contamination downstream. At US 84 they got 66 cfu/100 mL E. coli for Okapilco Creek and 33 for the Withlacoochee River. WWALS continues testing, and you can help.

[Dry Crooked Creek @ Devane Road]
Dry Crooked Creek @ Devane Road

On the Little River at GA 76 (Cook County Boat Ramp) they got 33, similar to the 0 (zero) I got there that same day.

[Rock Bridge]
Photo: John S. Quarterman, Rock Bridge on the Little River @ GA 76, 2020-05-31.

Plus we have Valdosta data for Monday and last Wednesday and Friday, all showing pretty clean at US 84 on the Withlacoochee River and upstream. So it was a good weekend for boating, swimming, and fishing on the Withlacoochee and Little Rivers.

[Clean weekend]
Clean weekend
For context, including the entire WWALS composite water quality table of results from both Georgia and Florida, see wwals.net/issues/testing/.

Valdosta results upstream Friday, May 29, 2020, at GA 133 and US 41 on the Withlacoochee River were oddly higher than downstream, with 265 E. coli. That’s higher than the 126 long-term average limit, but still well below the 410 single-test limit. For Wednesday at Knights Ferry, Valdosta got a weirdly very high Fecal coliform result, 1,400, but a pretty normal 140 E. coli. See Continue reading →

Clean Little and Withlacoochee Rivers 2020-05-31

Update 2020-06-04: Sunday and Monday creek and river water quality results.

I’ve posted green for “Meets water quality standards” on Swim Guide all the way from Cook County Boat Ramp (GA 76) on the Little River for last weekend, and the same past State Line Boat Ramp into Florida for late last week. With little rain lately and none forecast, this clean trend should continue.

[Folsom Bridge (GA 122) in Swim Guide]
Folsom Bridge (GA 122) in Swim Guide

These water samples look clean. And this time that water was clean. Continue reading →

Withlacoochee River still clean 2020-05-25

Update 2020-06-02: Clean Little and Withlacoochee Rivers 2020-05-31.

Still more good water quality results from Madison Health and Valdosta for last Thursday and Friday, and from WWALS tester Suzy Hall Saturday and Monday, so all the Withlacoochee River “beaches” on Swim Guide remain green for “Meets water quality standards”.

Because there still hasn’t been hardly any rain, nothing much has washed into our waterways. Yes, now we’re really taking down our WWALS yellow diamond Caution signs.

WWALS will continue testing and consolidating results. You can help.

[Nankin Boat Ramp in Swim Guide]
Nankin Boat Ramp in Swim Guide

Suzy Hall for WWALS got 200 cfu/100 mL E. coli for Knights Ferry Boat Ramp on Saturday, May 23, 2020. While that’s higher than the long-term average limit of 126, it’s well lower than the one-time limit of 410.

Monday at Nankin, she got Continue reading →

Clean weekend 2020-05-17

Update 2020-05-22: Good Withlacoochee River water quality 2020-05-20.

Update 2020-05-21: Three Little River Landings in Swim Guide 2020-05-21.

As clean as we’ve ever seen, this last weekend, on the Little and Withlacoochee Rivers.

This is from WWALS water quality testing. You can help.

Also note it is raining now in Georgia, and Tifton already got an inch of rain. So something will be coming down the rivers in the next few days. We shall see what.

[Russell Allen McBride recognizing Frank Gay, 10:08:19]
Russell Allen McBride recognizing Frank Gay, at Cook County Boat Ramp, Little River @ GA 76, 2020-05-16

We also have data from Madison Health for last Thursday, May 14, 2020, with 10 cfu/100 mL E. coli at the state line, and zero (0) at CR 150 (Sullivan Launch) and at FL 6 (just above Madison Blue Spring). Continue reading →

High, fast, and dirty: Withlacoochee River, Okapilco and Crooked Creeks 2020-04-25

WWALS testers Conn and Trudy Cole noted for these four Saturday test stations: “All of these were high and flowing fast.” Also dirty. You can help WWALS buy supplies for water quality testing.

[All four dirty]
All four dirty

You don’t even have to be a trained tester to tell none of those Petrifilms looks good, and that bottom row is by far the worst.

cfu/100 mL
E. coli		Where
444 Little River @ GA 76 (Cook County Boat Ramp)
1,200 Withlacoochee River @ US 84
900 Okapilco Creek @ US 84
TNTC Crooked Creek @ Devane Road

All four locations were above the 410 single-sample limit, and two were above the 1,000 alert limit.

As expected, every location tested was filthy. Crooked Creek at Devane Road was so much higher that it could only be recorded as Too Many To Count (TNTC). That’s in the left middle of this map, where Continue reading →

Cleaner Withlacoochee, horrid Crooked Creek 2020-04-16

Update 2020-04-20: Better Saturday at Knights Ferry, Nankin, Withlacoochee River, but rain 2020-04-18.

I put back up a WWALS Caution sign at Knights Ferry Boat Ramp yesterday because of recent bacterial results on the Withlacoochee River; our signs are still up at Nankin and State Line. Thanks to WWALS testers and Madison Health, we have a pretty good picture of creeks and Withlacoochee River health yesterday, to add to what Valdosta got Wednesday. More WWALS testing this weekend. You can help.

And you can watch the livestream Saturday morning (probably today when you read this), April 18, 2020, starting at 8AM, as we demonstrate cleaning up and posting water trail signs at Knights Ferry Boat Ramp. Look for the livestream on the facebook event.

[Caution sign]
Caution sign

You can’t see E. coli, but you can see trash, such as this at Knights Ferry Boat Ramp, Thursday, April 16, 2020. That location had much less E. coli, 233 cfu/100 mL, than only two days before, as did State Line Boat Ramp and CR 150 (Sullivan Launch), but Nankin Boat Ramp had 800 and Florida 6 had 538, just above Madison Blue Spring. Okapilco Creek was OK at US 84, with 166, but Crooked Creek at Devane Road was horrid with TNTC, Too Numerous to Count. See also What do these numbers mean? Continue reading →

Zero E. coli at Nankin and State Line, Withlacoochee River 2020-03-29

Update 2020-04-06: Rain and dirty Withlacoochee River again 2020-04-02

A clean river is what we like to see, and the most recent bacterial tests show the Withlacoochee River clean. You can help us keep determining when it is clean.

[Downstream]
Photo: Suzy Hall, Nankin Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River, Downstream, Sunday, March 29, 2020.

We haven’t seen this in more than three months: zero (0) cfu/100 mL E. coli at multiple landings on the Withlacoochee River:

[Zero E. coli, Nankin, State Line]
Zero E. coli, Nankin, State Line
For context and the entire WWALS composite spreadsheet of Georgia and Florida data, see wwals.net/issues/testing/.

Madison Florida Health Department get zero at CR 150 (near Sullivan Launch) last Thursday, and only Continue reading →

Much better water quality: Withlacoochee River, Okapilco Creek 2020-03-11

Update 2020-03-16: More testing needed to track river pollution –Suwannee Riverkeeper in Gainesville Sun 2020-03-16.

No rain for a week (since March 5th) meant not much E. coli washed into creeks and rivers.

WWALS is testing upstream this weekend. You can help.

[Composite table]
WWALS Composite table
For context and the entire WWALS composite spreadsheet of data from Georgia and Florida sources, see https://wwals.net/issues/testing/.

Apparently the high numbers WWALS saw on Crooked Creek Saturday a week ago (March 7th) washed on down through Okapilco Creek and Brooks County to the Withlacoochee River by Monday. Apparently that contamination got diluted pretty quickly by all that rainwater coming down from as far north as Tifton.

The most recent numbers we have are Valdosta’s for Wednesday, March 11, 2020, with Knights Ferry, Nankin, and State Line Boat Ramps only slightly above the longterm desired limit of 126 cfu/100 mL E. coli, and below that upstream.

Madison Health tested Tuesday, and got actually slightly lower (135.4) at State Line, and below 126 at CR 150 (Sullivan Launch) and FL 6 (upstream from Madison Blue Spring).

Nobody tested downstream from there in the past week. Nobody knows whether any of the most recent contamination reached the Suwannee River.

[Quitman and Valdosta to Suwannee River]
Quitman and Valdosta to Suwannee River
In the WWALS map of the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail.

The USGS gauges upstream from US 84 peaked days ago, and the US 84 (Quitman) gauge is coming down now, soon to be Continue reading →

Citizens about Nestle at SRWMD 2019-12-10

Update 2021-02-09: Back to Live Oak and online: SRWMD Nestle Special Meeting 2021-02-23.

Update 2020-03-09: Nestlé pulled from the agenda.

See in these videos 32 people speak to the SRWMD board, against Nestlé’s Ginnie Springs permit, and not a single one for, after a rally outside, in December 2019. Plus 384,000 signatures delivered by Allison Guy of SumofUs.

That permit is on the agenda for tomorrow morning, 9AM, Tuesday, March 10, 2020, at SRWMD HQ in Live Oak.

SRWMD staff recommend denial, but they did back in 2003 when the Madison Blue Spring permit was originally granted, and the SRWMD Board approved it anyway.

So come speak your mind. Come early: SRWMD is expecting so many people they’re setting up expansion space inside, and their parking will fill up quickly. Facebook event.


[No to Nestle!]
No to Nestle!

The Suwannee River Water Management District Board may never have heard from a mermaid before. Many other speakers were new to this venue, such as 14-year-old Isaac Augspurg.

Others were old hands, such as Our Santa Fe River (OSFR) president Mike Roth, past president Pam Smith, Historian Jim Tatum, and of course Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson.

Several WWALS members spoke, including several of the above, and Chris Mericle, Garth Brewster, and Maxine Connor.

Valdosta spill; No Nestle permit --Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman
Valdosta spill; No Nestle permit –Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman

The only speaker to cause an audible gasp from the audience was me, when I revealed that Valdosta had spilled again, 7.5 million gallons of raw sewage, upstream from Madison Blue Spring. Much more about that on the WWALS website.

I hand-delivered to SRWMD board and staff copies of the WWALS letter against Nestlé permits.

Below are links to each WWALS video of each speaker, followed by Continue reading →

Still bad Saturday: Withlacoochee and Suwannee River to Mayo and Luraville 2020-02-29

Update 2020-03-02: Suwannee River contamination running downstream to the Gulf 2020-03-01.

Still bad water quality all the way to Luraville and Mayo, according to FDOH Friday for the Withlacoochee River and SRWMD Saturday for the Suwannee River.

A catalog of WWALS, Valdosta, Lowndes County, FDEP, FDOH, and SRWMD results is at wwals.net/issues/testing/. You can help.

[2020-02-29--excerpt-WWALS-composite-wq-results]
2020-02-29–excerpt-WWALS-composite-wq-results
Extract from WWALS composite water quality test results from Georgia and Florida.

A couple days ago I remarked that nobody knew the water quality of the Suwannee River downstream from Dowling Park, because nobody had tested that. Saturday SRWMD did test down at the Hal W. Adams Bridge on FL 51, between Mayo and Luraville, and the result was above the alert level of 1,000, while at Dowling Park it was back below the too-high level of 410. Apparently something was moving down the Suwannee River.

We still don’t know what’s going on downstream of FL 51, for example at US 27 (Branford) or CR 340 (Rock Bluff Ramp). This is more evidence that we need regular, frequent, testing at all these locations, not just after a spill or other upstream alert.

Thanks to Katelyn Potter of the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) for forwarding the Florida updates late Sunday evening. Thanks to SRWMD and Madison Health for testing on a weekend, and to Florida Department of Health (FDOH) for helping. Thanks to Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and Julie Espy for posting results on an FDEP web page. No update on Valdosta’s results website for Friday yet.

WWALS testers Conn and Trudy Cole got Continue reading →