Tag Archives: Scotti Jay

One Mile Branch Fish Kill 2022-09-23

Update 2022-09-25: High E. coli near One Mile Branch fish kill, and maybe fuel spill 2022-09-23.

Update 2022-09-24: Clean Withlacoochee River water quality test results then One Mile Branch fish kill 2022-09-22.

Scotti Jay says, “I’m glad my dog doesn’t like to get in the water.”

[Fish kill and equipment]
Fish kill and equipment

The One Mile Branch water full of dead fish from Oak Street at VSU down to West Gordon Street and Sugar Creek in Remerton. Sugar Creek goes on down to the Withlacoochee River.

A sewage bypass pipe starts just downstream (west) of Patterson Street and ends near the VSU practice football field west of Oak Street, near where the dead fish start. Such equipment could only have been put there by Valdosta Utilities or its contractors.

I saw such equipment at Patterson Street after Continue reading →

Valdosta Press Release about Gornto Road sewage spill 2022-07-01

Update 2022-07-01: Three reasons (including Valdosta) for Bad Water Quality, Withlacoochee River 2022-06-30.

Better late than never, Valdosta has announced its major Gornto Road Pump Station spill.

But the press release doesn’t say when the spill started or ended, doesn’t even say precisely where (“at the 2400 block of Gornto Road”) and apparently the city didn’t even discover this spill itself: “the City of Valdosta received notification”. Also no pictures, so I’ve used one of Scotti Jay’s.

[Gate.]
Gate.

Received via email at 9:19 AM, Friday, July 1, 2022.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE
DATE: Friday, July 1, 2022
CONTACT: Sharah Denton, Community Relations & Marketing Manager
Telephone: (229) 259-3548
sdenton@valdostacity.com
www.valdostacity.com

On Thursday, June 30th, 2022, the City of Valdosta received notification of a possible ruptured sewer line at the 2400 block of Gornto Road. It was determined after review that a seal from the discharge side of the lift station had ruptured, which caused the issue. City staff were able to isolate the damaged seal and repair it. An estimated 127,750 gallons of discharge was released. Utility crews worked into the evening and captured a portion of the discharge. Staff immediately began cleanup and disinfecting at this overflow location. All appropriate regulatory and public health agencies have been notified, and warning signs have been posted.

Continue reading →

Sewage spill decreased and stopped at Gornto Road Pump Station, Valdosta, GA 2022-06-30

Update 2022-07-01: Valdosta Press Release about Gornto Road sewage spill 2022-07-01.

The major sewage spill at the Gornto Road Pump Station slowed down around 6:18 PM and was stopped about 8:15 PM, according to witnesses at the site. It apparently started some time around 5 PM.

[Gate, sewage, people]
Gate, sewage, people

Following up on the previous report, Scotti Jay, observing from outside the fence:

6:13 PM. It’s actually shooting into the air. No pump trucks.

Continue reading →

Pictures: Five Holes Cleanup 2018-02-10

That was a fun cleanup, down at Five Holes, a chain of linked swallets on the Suwannee River. We walked up from Suwannee River Campsites.

[Swallets, Suwannee River]
Swallets, Suwannee River

Five Holes is in Suwannee River State Park. Back then we needed permission and got it (thanks, Craig Liney). We hear it’s now public access. Update 2022-05-28: Actually, Five Holes is closed for renovation. However, we have permission from the Park Manager for an outing there in August; stay tuned. Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River Thursday for WWALS Boomerang Saturday 2020-10-22

2020-11-02: Bad Knights Ferry water quality, Withlacoochee River 2020-10-30.

You couldn’t ask for better water or weather conditions than for the WWALS Boomerang tomorrow (Saturday), from Georgia into Florida and back from State Line Boat Ramp on the Withlacoochee River.
wwals.net/pictures/2020-10-24–boomerang/

And for the rest of the Withlacoochee and probably the Suwannee River, too. Even the report we got of a spill Monday in Valdosta appears to have been a false alarm. All water quality test results are advisory, since conditions can change rapidly. But no significant rain is expected, so happy boating, swimming, and fishing this weekend, especially at State Line Boat Ramp!

[Chart, State Line, Boomerang, FL-6]
Chart, State Line, Boomerang, FL-6

The weather prediction at Clyattville, GA, is for 70 degrees at 9AM, and 80 at noon, partly cloudy, with little chance of rain. There’s also been little rain for a week, so nothing much has washed into the rivers.

Those pesky shoals should be easier this year. The water level yesterday at the USGS Quitman Gauge was 2.3′ (85.81 feet NAVD88). The Thursday before last year’s Boomerang, October 24, 2019, it was 1.65″ (85.15 feet NAVD88). So the Withlacoochee River is about 2/3 of a foot or 8 inches higher than it was last year.

All that plus clean river water! Continue reading →

Cleanups, Testing, WWALS Boomerang on Steve Nichols radio show 2020-10-06

Steve Nichols and Suwannee Riverkeeper will ask again: does anybody want to drink dirty water? That’s 8:30 AM tomorrow, October 6, 2020, on 105.9 FM WVGA. In addition to water quality testing, we’ll also discuss the big cleanup coming up this Saturday on three rivers and many creeks, and the Third Annual WWALS Boomerang paddle race from Georgia into Florida and back. Plus some other outings.

[Water Quality Testing]
Water Quality Testing 2020-08-18

WVGA FM says:

The top rated morning talk show in south Georgia, Steve Nichols offers both sides of every story from Berrien County to the Beltway, and everywhere in between.

You can listen at 105.9 FM, on the WVGA Live apps, through ValdostaToday.com (link on front page), on Alexa devices, or you can stream in-studio video at the official Morning Drive Facebook page.

When: 8:30 AM, Tuesday, October 6, 2020

Where: 105.9 FM WVGA (see above for how to listen)

Event: facebook

Thanks to Steve Nichols for helping promote the Third Annual Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, which went very well.

On Saturday, October 10, 2020, in conjunction with Lowndes County, WWALS will be doing a three-location cleanup at Troupville Boat Ramp on the Little River, on Sugar Creek down to the Withlacoochee River, and at Naylor Boat Ramp on the Alapaha River, plus Valdosta is organizing several creek cleanups.
https://wwals.net/?p=53557

[Flyer: Cleanup on three rivers, many creeks]
Flyer: Cleanup on three rivers, many creeks

On Saturday, October 24, 2020, there’s the Third Annual WWALS Boomerang paddle race from Georgia into Florida and back.

Tickets to the WWALS Boomerang are $20 online through Ocotber 15, then $30 at the event.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wwals-boomerang-paddle-race-2020-tickets-118844038719?aff=efbeventtix

For much more, follow this link: wwals.net/pictures/2020-10-24–boomerang/ Continue reading →

Pictures: Twomile Branch Cleanup 2020-08-29

It was fun and productive: cleaning up Twomile Branch and Sugar Creek, plus a bit of the Withlacoochee River.

And we got a statewide award while we were there!

[Bucket, need boat, Withlacoochee River, spider, bottle, handoff, Great Blue Heron, trash, Volunteer of the Year --GA AAS]
Bucket, need boat, Withlacoochee River, spider, bottle, handoff, Great Blue Heron, trash, Volunteer of the Year –GA AAS

The award was the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Volunteer of the Year Award, for all the WWALS water quality testing volunteers, many of whom were at this cleanup. Thanks again to Georgia Power for the grant for testing equipment. WWALS is doing an AAS testing training this Saturday.

Join us for another cleanup at Sugar Creek on Saturday, October 10, 2020, or any of several other river and creek locations that same day, in conjunction with Lowndes County and the City of Valdosta. Or help us clean up this Saturday, September 12, 2020, at Berrien Beach Boat Ramp, northeast of Nashville, Georgia, on the Alapaha River.

Thanks to Nic Llinas and Sean of Current Problems for coming up from Gainesville, Florida, to bucket fish in Twomile Branch. Continue reading →

WWALS Honored at Georgia DNR Confluence Conference as Volunteers of the Year 2020-08-29

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Hahira, GA, August 31, 2020 — WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman zoomed into the annual Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Confluence conference on Saturday, August 29, 2020, so WWALS could receive the statewide Volunteer of the Year award while we were finishing the Twomile Branch Cleanup.

[Award and Cleanup]
Award and Cleanup

The award is for “Individual has gone beyond the call of duty to improve water quality and meet AAS goals.” We emphasized it was not just one volunteer, but many, in our one-minute award acceptance video. We also thanked Georgia Power again for a grant. We didn’t have time to mention we’re getting testing kits to WWALS testers in Florida, upcoming WWALS water quality testing training, and branching out to the Santa Fe River, but all that is in this post.

Testers shown in the video include Sara Jay, Scotti Jay, Suzy Hall, Alex Chesna, Bobby McKenzie, Jacob Bachrach, and Trudy Cole. Continue reading →

Creek Cleanup or Bike and Paddle 2020-08-29

Tomorrow (Saturday) you can choose between a cleanup on two creeks in Valdosta, GA, or a bike and paddle outing on the Suwannee River in Lafayette and Suwannee Counties, FL. There’s no shuttle on either of them, and plenty of room to maintain physical distance.

OK, just one, because the bike and paddle is canceled due to “the Weather Channel reporting 80% chance of severe weather.” We look forward to seeing you on future outings.

Follow the links below for the details of each event.

[Cleanup or Paddle]
Cleanup or Paddle

I’d like to do both, but my teleporter is broken. So I’ll be at the cleanup.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!

Winners: Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2020-08-22

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Winners and excellent music from the judges and headliner, too, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest

Hahira, GA, August 24, 2020 — Everyone went away happy. The finalists got prizes, and the audience was impressed with the song each judge played, and with the headliner. The audience was impressed that one contestant, who couldn’t come due to the virus pandemic, was projected on the bandstand via zoom anyway.

[Winners*: Brian Barker* via zoom, accepting for, Scott Perkins*, Laura D'Alisera, Kathy Lou Gilman*, John S. Quarterman, Billy Ennis*, Ronni Dillon (not present)]
Winners*: Brian Barker via zoom*, accepting for him, Scott Perkins*, Laura D’Alisera, Kathy Lou Gilman*, John S. Quarterman, Sweet William Billy Ennis*, Ronni Dillon (not present)

The winners are: Continue reading →