The winner of Within These WWALS number 4 is: Deanna Mericle.
She gets a packet of WWALS picture notecards from the WWALS online store.
The underwater plant is:
Eel grass, Zostera marina.
Nope, not wild rice, Zizania aquatica, which usually sticks up above water.
Florida State Parks does say both occur in the subject stream.
The bird is: Continue reading
Update 2020-05-26: the winner.
Please identify (by scientific or common name) each of the items highlighted in a set of photos and then come up with the name of the WWALS waterway where all the photos were taken. The first correct set of answers wins a packet of WWALS photo cards from that watershed.
Here’s the quiz form where you can enter your answers:
https://forms.gle/T65TdgVLPsu6Gxn58
Please answer by midnight at the end of Saturday, May 2, 2020.
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
Update 2022-11-29: Get your z-fold water trail brochures at any WWALS outing or event, and see the at-water and road signs. This post updated with current images from the WLRWT map and Access web page.
Lately I’ve seen a lot of posts such as “how many miles from Knights Ferry Boat Ramp to Nankin?” That’s 6.65 river miles, or about 3.3 paddle hours, and here’s how you can find out, for the Little and Withlacoochee Rivers, for the Alapaha River, and for the Suwannee, Ichetucknee, and Santa Fe Rivers, plus interactive maps.
The Access Points web page for the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT) lists all the public boat ramps and landings on the Little and Withlacoochee Rivers, with river miles downstream to the next one. Also an estimate of paddling hours, GPS coordinates, icons for amenities, and a link to the most relevant river gauge.
How can you find that web page? Go to Continue reading
Does this look anywhere near completion to you?
Yet on March 26, 2020, Sabal Trail asked FERC to extend the May 1st deadline for its Phase II construction of the Dunnellon and Albany Compressor Stations because of the virus pandemic, after FERC already extended way past the original February 2, 2018, deadline for completion of all phases.
FERC surprisingly did not immediately rubberstamp that request, instead opening a comment period until April 13, 2020. WWALS today filed a Motion to Intervene in that comment process on that request.
Your organization, if it was a party to the underlying Sabal Trail proceeding in FERC Docket CP15-17, can also move to intervene.
https://ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp
Anyone can comment, without needing to intervene:
https://ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp
See also the PDF filed with FERC as Accession Number 20200406-5070 today, April 6, 2020. Continue reading
WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman had a great idea of setting up the WWALS booth in the woods (with gnats and mosquitos), since we can’t take it to festivals right now.
She says, “Welcome to the booth. Unfortunately because we are quarantined, we can’t have the booth out anywhere, and y’all can’t come to visit us even if we were out somewhere, but we thought we could give some information and have our educational information available for you for however long you are at home.” Stay tuned for more episodes!
How does Nestlé appeal a decision that hasn’t been made yet? I guess we’re about to find out.
Meanwhile, I plan to go speak anyway, 9AM Tuesday 10 March 2020 at SRWMD HQ in Live Oak. How about you?
For inspiration, see the WWALS videos of the 32 speakers from December.
![[Nestle denial pulled from agenda]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-03-10--srwmd-agenda-no-nestle/2020-03-09--srwmd-notice-no-nestle-agenda-0001.jpg)
Nestle denial pulled from agenda
PDF
Received via email about 4PM today, Monday, March 9, 2020:
March 9, 2020
NOTICE OF AMENDMENT OF AGENDA
NOTICE IS GIVEN that Agenda Item No. 20—BCS Page 61—Authorization to Deny Water Use Permit Renewal Application 2-041-218202-3, Seven Springs Water Company Project, Gilchrist County has been pulled from the agenda.
The Applicant has filed a petition for administrative hearing on this denial and the District has forwarded the petition to the Division of Administrative Hearings (“DOAH”) for consideration by an Administrative Law Judge as required by law.
The District does not have jurisdiction to act on the petition until the administrative process is completed before DOAH and the Administrative Law Judge issues a recommended order. Upon issuance of the recommended order, the Governing Board will re-agenda this item for final agency action.
Suwannee River Water Management District |
www.MySuwanneeRiver.com
A few minutes before, the revised agenda arrived via email. Continue reading
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.
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
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
Update 2020-03-09: Nestlé pulled from the agenda.
Update 2020-03-09: Citizens about Nestle at SRWMD 2019-12-10.
9 AM, Tuesday, March 10, 2020, at SRWMD HQ in Live Oak, Florida is the Nestlé decision day.
![[Map: Active and Proposed Withdrawal Points]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-03-10--srwmd-nestle/2020-03-10--srwmd-board-packet-0077.jpg)
Map: Active and Proposed Withdrawal Points
PDF
- Consideration of Agenda Item No. 20 – BCS Page 61 – Authorization to Deny Water Use Permit Renewal Application 2-041-218202-3, Seven Springs Water Company Project, Gilchrist County
(Public comment on this item will be allowed at this time)
That agenda item says Seven Springs, but it’s for Nestlé Waters North America (NWNA).
Tired of cleaning up plastic bottles from our springs and rivers?
Want to end a Swiss company profiting by depleting our waters while paying almost nothing?
Want to remind SRWMD they have statutory authority to revoke this permit?
Come on down to 9225 CR 49. Live Oak, FL 32060. That’s east going out of town on US 90, turn right at the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) sign.
You don’t even have to wait for Tuesday. You can go ahead and file your own comment against.
Feel free to recommend they revisit the Nestlé permit for Madison Blue Spring, as well, especially now that we know there are waves of fecal bacteria contamination coming down the Withlacoochee and Suwannee Rivers.
SRWMD staff recommend denial of this Ginnie Springs renewal water withdrawal permit. But staff recommended denial that back in 1995, when this permit was originally decided, and the SRWMD board approved it anyway.
In a memo obtained by the St. Petersburg Times dated Nov. 15, 2002, “the water management district staff recommended reducing the amount of water Nestlé could draw under the permit it would obtain from 1.47-million gallons a day to 400,000 a day.” The spring’s flow had been reduced from 55-million gallons day to just 34 million gallons a day. The St. Petersburg Times reported: “ The current drought has reduced the flow of Madison Blue Springs to record lows,’ Jon Dinges, director of resource management, wrote to the water management district’s governing board. “The drought has become severe since the permit was issued, thus requiring a reduction of the (average daily withdrawal) to ensure resource protection.”
But in January 2003 when it came before the regulators — all appointed by Jeb Bush — they refused to follow water staff recommendations after Nestlé threatened to reduce the size of the plant it would build in Madison if their water allotment was reduced from the Bruic allotment.
Enterprise Florida, the governor’s politically appointed business development agency supported Nestlé’s argument at the meeting….
So come make your voice heard, or send a comment in advance.
Details start on Continue reading
Something is still getting into Okapilco Creek, and even more into its tributary Crooked Creek. For last week, we could follow it downstream way into Florida, using data from WWALS, Valdosta, and Florida Departments of Health. Fortunately, Friday the Withlacoochee and Suwannee Rivers were within health limits from US 41 above Valdosta down past Branford. You can help.
![[State Line Boat Ramp]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-02-22--wwals-fl-vld-wq/83882068_2826755770695292_8539727536706289664_n.jpg)
State Line Boat Ramp
Photo: Suzy Hall. Somebody stole all our signs from Knights Ferry Boat Ramp, but we will reprint and replant. If you want a sign to hang on your wall, you can just buy it from WWALS; prices are reasonable.
Possible sources of contamination getting into Okapilco Creek and then into the Withlacoochee River from Knights Ferry Boat Ramp on down include (but are not limited to) the Quitman Land Application Site (LAS), a sewage settling pond and another sewage pond, and lots of cows. We continue testing to find out.
![[Quitman Land Application Site]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-02-22--wwals-fl-vld-wq/map-quitman-las.jpg)
Quitman Land Application Site
in WWALS map of Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).
Whatever it was, it went way down the Suwannee mid-week last week, maybe even as far as Rock Bluff Ramp at CR 340 below Branford. Yet what I detected on Crooked Creek Friday didn’t even make much of a mark on Continue reading
The two days John Moran spent writing his talk paid off, along with the years of photographing what was and what is left of the waters of Florida. If you watch none of the rest of these videos from the Florida Bill of Rights for Nature, the three with John Moran’s talk are well worth your time.
Below are links to each WWALS video. I didn’t video everything; mostly a few speakers whom I had told in advance.
Doug Shields explains how he got the Pittsburgh, PA, City Council to be the first in the U.S. to ban fracking, and how it spread from there, and what that has to do with Rights of Nature.
Chuck O’Neal of WEBOR explains the three ways you can get a Bill of Rights for Nature passed in a Florida County, and how he did it in, Orange County
As already posted, David Moritz explains the one that may have started it all in Florida, Santa Fe Bill of Rights (SaFEBoR).
You should be able to follow the demonstration of Tools not working for Florida’s environment even if you don’t know FDEP from a WMD, or if you’re familiar with a different state or country. The problems are the same everywhere: laws, agencies, and rules rigged against nature. That’s why we need a Bill of Rights for Nature, in each county, state, and country. Continue reading
![[1 Plant]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-04-27--quiz4/1-plant.jpg)
![[Plant, Bird, Spring, Flower]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-04-27--quiz4/square.jpg)
![[Map: Knights Ferry Boat Ramp]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-04-15--water-trails-online/knights-ferry-map.jpg)
![[Facing north (bare dirt)]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2020-03-30--wwals-motion-intervene-ferc-sabal-trail-extension-phase-ii/20200325-5216-34031970-0013.jpg)
![[Welcome to the booth]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/gretchen/2020-03-21--wwals-booth/welcome-to-the-booth.jpg)
![[No to Nestle!]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2019-12-10--srwmd-videos/notonestle.jpg)