Tag Archives: south Georgia

Clean Little, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers 2023-04-13

Update 2023-04-21: Clean WIthlacoochee River 2023-04-20.

Update 2023-04-18: Naylor Beach and Boat Ramp in Swim Guide 2023-04-18.

Happy swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend!

[Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-04-13]
Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map 2023-04-13

All WWALS water quality test results for Thursday show clean from E. coli for the Little, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers. Crawford Branch at Skipper Bridge Road was a bit higher, but well within the 410 one-time test limit.

No new sewage spills have been reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida.

Rain is predicted for Sunday morning, but probably not enough to wash much contamination into the rivers. Continue reading →

Better Click ‘n’ Fix ticket handling and ordinance citations –Valdosta Acting City Manager Richard Hardy 2023-04-11

Acting Valdosta City Manager Richard Hardy called me yesterday. This is unusual, although he does usually answer his phone if I call him.

[Valdosta Acting City Manager Richard Hardy and City Engineer Ben O'Dowd 2023-03-25]
Valdosta Acting City Manager Richard Hardy and City Engineer Ben O’Dowd 2023-03-25

Even more unusual was his news: the city may be moving ahead on keeping trash out of creeks.

First some background.

Recent adventures in Click ‘n’ Fix include this one, Continue reading →

Valdosta liability insurance does not cover water 2021-05-01

Apparently Valdosta city employees can’t get wet. That includes the Stormwater Division.

[Policy, River]
Policy, River

So if you see any Valdosta City employee in a creek, river, pond, or swamp, whether in a boat or in mud boots, it seems they must be off the clock.

This could explain why Valdosta has a contractor clean out stormwater pond facility clusters.

In Valdosta’s GEORGIA INTERLOCAL RISK MANAGEMENT AGENCY COMBINED AUTOMOBILE, CRIME, LIABILITY AND PROPERTY COVERAGES MEMBER COVERAGE AGREEMENT, see especially under GENERAL EXCLUSIONS APPLICABLE TO THE PROPERTY COVERAGE SECTIONS on page 7: Continue reading →

Gopher Tortoise Day –FFWCC

Yesterday was actually Florida Gopher Tortoise Day, but as Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says, “you can celebrate gopher tortoises by making your yard tortoise friendly and participating in our new recognition program.”

Georgians, you won’t get a sign, but you can also make your yards gopher-friendly for Gopherus polyphemus.

Gopher Tortoise Friendly Yard Recognition Program

[Gopher tortoise in human habitat --FFWCC]
Gopher tortoise in human habitat –FFWCC

Continue reading →

Reissued Valdosta Stormwater Permit –GA-EPD 2022-12-06

Update 2023-05-19: Valdosta annual stormwater reports to GA-EPD 2023-02-14.

In December GA-EPD reissued Valdosta’s stormwater permit, which happens every five years.

[About, NOI, maps: Valdosta reissued Stormwater permit 2022-12-06]
About, NOI, maps: Valdosta reissued Stormwater permit 2022-12-06

However, if I understand the response by Valdosta City Engineer Ben O’Dowd in the documents received in response to an open records request, all there is right now is a generic boilerplate permit for cities of this size. That generic permit requires Valdosta to spell out best practices it will use, and to update its Stormwater Master Plan (SWMP), all by June 4, 2023.

Since the City Engineer has been quite receptive to public input lately, I hope this means Valdosta will be accepting input into rewriting the SWMP. About trash, for example. Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River 2023-04-06

Update 2023-04-15: Clean Little, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers 2023-04-13.

According to all the recent test results we have, the Withlacoochee River is pretty clean from E. coli. However, it’s raining upstream now, and predictions are for more rain tomorrow.

I’m still planning to paddle on Yet Another Cleanup Knights Ferry to Nankin, Withlacoochee River, 2023-04-08. If we’re quick, we may be finished before more than a drizzle falls.

If you want to paddle, swim, or fish this weekend, I’d recommend do it Saturday morning before the rain has much time to wash contamination out of creeks.

[Chart, River, Swim Guide Map 2023-04-06]
Chart, River, Swim Guide Map 2023-04-06

No new sewage spills have been reported in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida since the tiny inland High Springs spill Thursday a week ago.

There is the matter of Valdosta’s followup testing after their February sewage spills, but the only bad results from that were Wednesday and Thursday a week ago, and that was in the Alapaha River basin. Continue reading →

Waterkeepers Florida in Gainesville 2023-02-03

Once a year, the Waterkeepers of Florida gather in Gainesville to attend the Public Interest Environmental Conference (PIEC) at the University of Florida Levin College of Law.

[Waterkeepers Florida at PIEC 2023-02-03]
Waterkeepers Florida at PIEC 2023-02-03

Eight out of fifteen ain’t bad. A few more attended the actual Waterkeepers Florida (WKFL) meeting via teleconference.

Waterkeepers Florida asks you to ask Georgia officials to stop a proposed strip mine too near the Okefenokee Swamp, which is the headwaters of the Suwannee and St. Marys Rivers, and sits above the Floridan Aquifer from which we all drink in south Georgia and most of Florida:
https://wwals.net/?p=61437

For more about Waterkeepers Florida, see:
https://www.waterkeepersflorida.org/

I drove Continue reading →

Pictures: Bats, Venus, Jupiter, Banks Lake Full Worm Moon 2023-03-07

Sun, moon, bats, and planets, on a balmy night, last full moon at Banks Lake.

Come on out tonight at 6:45 PM and see for yourself!

[Sunset, Bats, Planets, Moonrise @ Banks Lake 2023-03-07]
Sunset, Bats, Planets, Moonrise @ Banks Lake 2023-03-07

Continue reading →

Maps: Valdosta Stormwater Pond Facility Clusters 2023-03-01

These maps show the locations of Valdosta’s Stormwater Pond Facility Clusters previously posted. They provide clues to where trash may be accumulating.

Most of the major creeks in Valdosta are represented, plus some that I didn’t know had names, such as Bunche Street Canal and Knob Hill Canal, as well as some that apparently do not have names.

Most (Sugar Creek, Hightower Creek, Dow Street Canal, One Mile Branch, Two Mile Branch, Three Mile Branch, Knob Hill Canal, Cherry Creek, and Browns Canal) are in the Withlacoochee River Basin.

Others (Knights Creek, Dukes Bay Canal, Bunche Street Canal) are in the Alapaha River Basin.

Several of the maps straddles several watersheds.

[Example Cluster maps]
Example Cluster maps

Below there is a pair of maps for each of the clusters: a map received from Valdosta in response to an open records request, and a map excerpt from one of the WWALS water trail maps.

The rest of the text below is from the document previously posted. Continue reading →

BIG Little River Paddle Event, Red Roberts Landing, 2023-04-29

Update 2023-04-20: Ten days until BIG Little River Paddle Event, 2023-04-29.

WWALS charter board member Bret Wagenhorst will guide a tour of the Little River from Red Roberts Landing to Reed Bingham State Park Lake.

Paddlers will learn about natural history of the river, from flora and fauna to aspects of rivers and black water: oxbows, tannic acid, river foam, hairpin curves and breakthroughs, sloughs, silt deposition sides, etc. If more than 8 boats sign up, we will add another tour guide.

The tour will make stops at various locations for short learning experiences. The tour will last at least 1.5 hours, and possibly up to 2.5-3 hours depending on water level, paddle speed, and number of questions. There will be a briefing before and after on land.

Registration is online in advance:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wwals-members-only-paddle-with-an-expert-big-little-river-paddle-event-tickets-605920995007

This is a WWALS members-only event. If you are not a WWALS member, you can become one at the event, or online:
https://wwals.net/donations

There is no charge for this paddle, other than a $5 park entrance fee and any boat rental fees to the park. Please contact the park in advance about any boat rentals.
https://gadnr.org/ReedBingham/Paddling

Paddlers are encouraged to donate to this WWALS fundraiser. Sponsors will be listed on a sign at the event and in social media and other postings.

When: Gather 8 AM, launch 9:30 AM, end 3 PM, Saturday, April 29, 2023

Put In: Red Roberts Landing, 4727 Rountree Bridge Rd., Adel, GA 31620. Take I-75 exit 41, head west onto Roundtree Bridge Road, then right to stay on Roundtree Bridge Road (CR 251). After 4.7 miles, turn left just before the Little River, into the park entrance at Red Roberts Landing, in Cook County, Georgia.

GPS: 31.192222, -83.520333

[Bret Wagenhorst, paddlers on the Little River, 2022]
Bret Wagenhorst, paddlers on the Little River, 2022 Continue reading →