Tag Archives: Sierra Club

Legal filing about Pilgrim’s Pride effluent into Suwannee River

Environment Florida filed a lawsuit 9 March 2017 against Pilgrim’s Pride about “effluents” into the Suwannee River, alleging a violation of a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”) permit, which is also a violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA). Here is PDF of that legal complaint, sent to us by the plaintiff’s attorney.

Suwannee Riverkeeper is always glad to see legal action going on that we don’t have to do. Here are a few notes.

Pilgrim’s Pride goes to some trouble to treat and disinfect their wastewater at its plant on US 90 west of Live Oak in Suwannee County, and then:

The wastewater discharged into the Suwannee River is also called the Plant’s “effluent.”
Outfall D-001 is an 18-inch diameter steel pipe that extends approximately 20 feet from the shore and discharges into the Suwannee River.
During the Suwannee River’s low flow periods, the pipe is not always completely submerged.
During the Suwannee River’s low flow periods, the Plant’s effluent discharging from the pipe can be seen.

And the complaint alleges the effluent is not entirely clean.

What about the waste that is not liquid? Continue reading →

Solar Rocks for the Equinox @ SSJSCNFWG 2017-09-23

Suwannee Riverkeeper will be speaking at this event, about how Georgia moved ahead in solar power, what Florida has tried and still needs to do, and how solar power has already won the economic race, supplying more new solar power in 2016 than anything else (more than natural gas and more than wind), and employing more people than coal, oil, and gas combined. When even FPL is finally building solar power, including at showplaces such as Daytona International Speedway, the sun is starting to rise on the Sunshine State. There will be a WWALS table with information about all this.

Solar Rocks for the Equinox
March 7, 2017
Press Release: For Immediate Release
Solar Energy Expo
Save the Date
When: 9am-5pm Saturday, September 23, 2017
Where: Sierra Club North Florida Headquarters at
Rum 138 2070 SW County Road 138, Fort White, FL 32038 Continue reading →

Wide-ranging Sabal Trail opposition article by Molly Minta in The Fine Print

Molly Minta, The Fine Print, 5 February 2017, Rise Against the Machine: In 2013, Marion County residents began to receive letters from Sabal Trail Transmission. Now, they’ve made it their mission to save their land, and stop Sabal Trail.

Photo: Molly Minta.
An oak tree is felled by Sabal Trail construction workers.

…
Months before the town considered bankruptcy in 2013, residents of Dunnellon began to receive letters from a company called Sabal Trail Transmission. The letters were an introduction and explained why the company was coming to the area: to build a natural gas pipeline and compressor station. The letters were part of the first step in the process of getting a pipeline approved.

Only landowners within 600 feet of the pipeline received a letter, so not many people in Dunnellon are aware of it. But the ones who are fear it could completely disrupt their way of life.

The pipeline will pass within a mile of the Rainbow River; residents fear Continue reading →

Videos: Rivers against Sabal Trail in Live Oak —Suwannee RIVERKEEPER® 2017-01-12

Standing room only last night for two hours of how to oppose Sabal Trail and help the sun rise on Florida and the southeast, 7 PM, Thursday, January 12, 2017 at The Woman’s Club of Live Oak, called by Suwannee Riverkeeper.

Here are links to each of the videos, with a few notes, followed by a video playlist. Please share widely, and you can reuse any of these videos; just cite the source, WWALS Watershed Coalition. Continue reading →

Rivers against Sabal Trail in Live Oak 7PM Jan 12 2017 —Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

Update 2017-10-13: WWALS Videos of all the speakers.

(PDF flyer)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Live Oak, Florida, January 4, 2017 —Spectra Energy of Houston, Texas is drilling its 36-inch fracked methane pipeline under the Suwannee and Withlacoochee (south) Rivers in Florida right now. It already caused a frac-out of drilling mud into the Withlacoochee River in Georgia and a sinkhole, plus more sinkholes where it drilled under the Santa Fe River in Florida. How did this happen? What can we do to stop this unnecessary, destructive, and hazardous corporate boondoggle?
Suwannee Riverkeeper calls water protectors to rally in Live Oak against the Sabal Trail pipeline and for our property rights, rivers, and the Floridan Aquifer.

When: 7 PM, Thursday, January 12, 2017

Where: The Woman’s Club of Live Oak, 1308 11th Street SW, Live Oak, FL 32064

Event: facebook, meetup

Agenda: Continue reading →

WWALS becomes Suwannee RIVERKEEPER

Update 2023-03-31: Suwannee River Basin is bigger than several states, less populous than any: Suwannee Riverkeeper and WWALS work for fishable, swimmable, drinkable water in all 10,000 square miles of the Suwannee River Basin and Estuary.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WWALS becomes Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

Hahira, Georgia; December 30, 2016 — The Waterkeeper Alliance Board of Directors has approved its Affiliate WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. to become a Member. The newly appointed Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®, John S. Quarterman, will work to protect and preserve the Suwannee River Basin by combining his firsthand knowledge of the waterways with an unwavering commitment to the rights of the community and to the rule of law.

Suwannee River Basin and Estuary including Santa Fe River HUC, added 2019-09-26.

“Waterkeeper Alliance is thrilled to have Suwannee RIVERKEEPER® to be the eyes, ears, and voice for this vital watershed and community,” said Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., President of Waterkeeper Alliance. “Every community deserves to have swimmable, drinkable and fishable water, and John S. Quarterman is the right leader to fight for clean water in the region.”

The Suwannee RIVERKEEPER® will be a full-time advocate for the Suwannee River and its tributaries, including the Withlacoochee, Willacoochee, Alapaha, Little, and Suwannee Rivers in Georgia and Florida, protecting and restoring water quality through community action and enforcement. Quarterman stated, “Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®’s aim is to provide strong advocacy that will result in an improved quality of life for all citizens, whether they rely on it for drinking water or recreation or whether they simply value the Suwannee River Basin’s continued well-being.” Continue reading →

Chris and Deanna Mericle win Sierra Club Cypress Award

WWALS members Deanna and Chris Mericle won an award for their activism against the Sabal Trail pipeline at the December 1st 2016 meeting of the Suwannee-St Johns Sierra Club Group.

Photo: Maryvonne Devensky, Vice Chair/Outings/ICO, Suwannee-St Johns Group Sierra Club

The Pelican, Sierra Club Florida, Fall 2016, Chapter Announces 2016 Award Recipients,

Congratulations to the following individuals who are being recognized with Chapter awards:
Cypress Award, Chris and Deanna Mericle, Suwannee St. Johns Group The couple is being honored for their diligent work to expose the faulty documentation of the Sabal Trail Pipeline LLC. Through their efforts, much information on the dangerous pipeline was brought to the attention of elected officials and the public.

The Mericles were the prime movers in getting Sabal Trail to move off the Withlacoochee River in Florida. In August 2014 Chris Mericle told the Hamilton BOCC he was trying not to be emotional. Continue reading →

National coverage of Sabal Trail as Florida’s DAPL: #NoDAPL, #NoSabalTrail, #WaterIsLife

Some national coverage! Now that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has backed off letting the Dakota Access Pipeline drill under the Missouri River in North Dakota because of concerns of local water users, the Corps, FERC, and FDEP should do the same: stop Sabal Trail from drilling under the Suwannee River.

Larry Buhl, DeSmogBlog, 4 December 2016, Critics Call $3 Billion Sabal Trail Pipeline Florida’s Dakota Access Pipeline,

As opposition to the Dakota Access pipeline swells at home and abroad, another pipeline project at the other end of the U.S. is quietly being installed as fast as possible, critics say, displacing residents, threatening water supplies, and racking up alleged construction violations.

And most people in the region — even those in the pipeline’s path — haven’t even heard about it.

Sabal Trail Transmission, LLC, known as Sabal Trail, is using $3 billion of Florida Power and Light (FPL) ratepayer money to build a 515-mile pipeline to transport natural gas obtained via fracking from eastern Alabama to central Florida.

…

Activists Document Construction Violations
Continue reading →

GWC Dirty Dozen and Sabal Trail pipeline drilling mud leak on WALB 2016-11-16

People and news media turned out from Florida and Georgia at the Withlacoochee River US 84 bridge in cross-state-line solidarity about the Sabal Trail pipeline and its recent drilling mud leak. They heard the Georgia Water Coalition announce that Sabal Trail is, for the third year running, on the Dirty Dozen 2016.

Ashlyn Becton, WALB, 16 November 2016, Environmentalist raise awareness about Sabal Trail Pipeline,

Folks from North Florida and South Georgia held a protest at the Withlacoochee River Wednesday and listened to a news conference announcing the Georgia Water Coalition’s Dirty Dozen.

The report highlights the worst offenses and greatest threats to Georgia’s bodies of water.

And the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline is on the GWC Dirty Dozen 2016, as Chattahoochee, Flint, Withlacoochee Rivers and Floridan Aquifer: Gas pipeline company, federal agency run roughshod over state, local residents property rights, with this What Must Be Done: Continue reading →

Rush Hour Rally at FPL HQ to Stop Sabal Trail Pipeline 2016-10-14

Taking it to the source: the headquarters of FPL, whose ratepayers are on the hook for $3 billion for the Transco → Sabal Trail → FSC fracked methane pipeline boondoggle through Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, Sierra Club and Indian Riverkeeper are holding a Rush Hour Rally this Friday, October 14th 2016 in Juno Beach, Florida; see press release for details. If you can’t get there, there are other events all over Florida and beyond. Remember, FPL admits no need for new electricity until 2024, so there’s no more excuse for Sabal Trail.

The facebook page Protect Florida Against Sabal Trail attempts to keep track of upcoming rallies against Sabal Trail or its ugly stepsisters, which are popping up practically daily. Here are some events scheduled starting this weekend: Continue reading →

WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

A healthy watershed with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable water.