Tag Archives: Suwannee County

Chicken hatchery coming to Quitman, GA

Update 2017-05-06: More on ownership of Aviagen.

In Brooks County south of Quitman, draining into Piscola Creek and the Withlacoochee River, in the same industrial park where WWALS caught Sabal Trail illegally burning, a poultry breeder will be setting up shop.

News Desk, Area Development, 9 March 2017, Aviagen Plans $18 Million Hatchery In Quitman, Georgia,

Aviagen, a leading broiler breeding company, will create 100 jobs and invest approximately $18 million in a new parent stock hatchery at Brooks County Industrial Park, 17 miles west of Valdosta, in Quitman, Georgia.

The Quitman facility will be Aviagen’s eighth Continue reading →

Charges dropped against Sabal Trail protestors in Suwannee County, FL

How about the state of Florida drop the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline and get on with solar power in the Sunshine State?

Thomas Lynn, Suwannee Democrat, 30 April 2017, Charges against pipeline protesters dropped,

LIVE OAK — Charges against three Sabal Trail pipeline protesters who were scheduled to be tried in court this week were dropped by the state attorney’s office.

Jeff Siegmeister, state attorney for Florida’s third judicial circuit, said the decision was made for a couple of reasons.

“We made a decision to not give the protesters a platform and not waste the taxpayers money,” Siegmeister said.

How about the waste of taxpayer money on arrests and going this far in those cases? How about the state providing dozens Continue reading →

FL Sen. Nelson to EPA about Valdosta sewage and response

Here is a letter from Florida Senator Bill Nelson to the EPA about the Valdosta wastewater situation, and the EPA’s response, which was underwhelming.

A suggestion: say what it is you’d like the EPA, GA-EPD, FDEP, etc. to actually do. And what I’d suggest is get them all to fund and implement regular, frequent, closely spaced, water quality monitoring along all the rivers in the Suwannee River Basin. That way we’d know where pollution is coming from, we’d be able to calibrate what cities including Valdosta say from their own monitoring, and we’d have baselines to compare to.

Sen. Bill Nelson to EPA

Continue reading →

Suwannee Riverkeeper at Sparkleberry Florida Native Plant Society in Branford 2017-05-09

Water, Agriculture, Forestry, and WWALS, by WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman, and recent advocacy (BMAPs, Bill Gates, Pilgrim’s Pride, phosphate mines, Wanee, Sabal Trail, and solar power) by Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman, at the Florida Native Plant Society Sparkleberry Chapter in Branford, Suwannee County, Florida, on the Suwannee River.

When: 6:30 PM 9 May 2017: 30-45 minutes plus Q & A

Where: Hatch Park, 403 SE Craven St., Branford, FL 32008

Host: Sparkleberry Chapter, Florida Native Plant Society
“Serving Suwannee, Dixie, Gilchrist, Lafayette and Taylor Counties.”

Event: facebook

Vaccinium arboreum
Vaccineum Arboreum, tree huckleberry, sparkleberry

Hatch Park is easy walking distance from Continue reading →

Suwannee BOCC approves Duke solar plant 2017-04-18

Duke to build solar farm in Suwannee County instead of new natural gas turbines. How about more solar farms to help reduce fertilizer nitrogen runoff and solve the BMAP problem?

Parcel 25-01S-11E-1090700.0000
Parcel 25-01S-11E-1090700.0000, Suwannee County Property Appraiser.

Thomas Lynn, Suwannee Democrat, 23 April 2017, Suwannee County BOCC approves 62 acres worth of solar panels,

LIVE OAK — The county commissioners approved a special permit to allow Duke Energy to install 62 acres worth of solar panels that will provide electricity to 1,700 homes.

During a county commissioners meeting on Tuesday, the county held a Continue reading →

Morgan Murray, Collier County Waterkeeper Harrison Langley, WWALS Science Committee Chair Tom Potter, Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman

Update 2017-10-04: Pictures from all four days of Wanee.

At Wanee
Morgan Murray, Collier County Waterkeeper Harrison Langley, WWALS Science Committee Chair Tom Potter, Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman

We’ll be at Wanee through Saturday.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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

WWALS at Wanee Wednesday through Saturday 2017-04-19-22

Wanee snuck in an extra afternoon this starting 2:30 PM Wednesday April 19th for Remembering Butch Trucks, and yes, WWALS will be there tomorrow through Saturday, so look for the WWALS and Suwannee Riverkeeper banners.

For more about the music festival that started them all, see the previous post.

If you want to help at the WWALS table, send email to wwalswatershed@gmail.com or call 229-242-0102 or come by the Suwannee Riverkeeper table.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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

Lower and Middle Suwannee River Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP) Meeting 2017-04-13

Today in Live Oak: what FDEP is doing about water quality and quantity in the Suwannee Basin below the Withlacoochee Confluence. Agenda

See the PDF or the transcription below.

Lower and Middle Suwannee River Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP) Meeting

DATE: Thursday, April 13, 2017
TIME: 6:00 PM
PLACE: Suwannee River Water Management District
Board Room
9225 CR 49
Live Oak, FL 32060

THIS MEETING IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

AGENDA Continue reading →

White Springs to Swift Creek, Suwannee River, 2017-05-20

Because SRWMD tells us Blue Sink Launch is closed, our May Suwannee River outing will take out slightly downstream at Swift Creek Lunch, which should be easy to recognize from the river because American Canoe Adventures has put up these nice triangular flags:

Flags by ACA
Photo: Jesse Wilkes, November 23, 2016

The put in at White Springs Wayside Park and everything else is the same; see the updated outing announcement for all the details.

We’re bringing bon-bons. See you there in May!

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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

Ft Macomb to Ivey Memorial Park, Suwannee River, 2017-06-10

A medium length summer paddle on the Middle Suwannee River: Fort Macomb Ramp to Ivey Memorial Park June 10, 2017, past springs, shoals, and Branford. This one will probably take about 5 hours paddling, or 6 hours including shuttle. With lunch, swim stops, and bon-bons, of course.

Bring the usual personal flotation device, boat paddles, food, drinking water, warm clothes, and first aid kit.

When: 9AM Saturday 10 June 2017

Put In: Ft. Macomb Ramp, river mile 86.6
From Mayo, travel east on US 27 to CR 410; turn left on CR 410; follow to boat ramp.

GPS: 30.0097911,-83.0168023

Take Out: Ivey Memorial Park Ramp, river mile 76.0
Boat ramp is located in Branford on the south side of US 27 at the Bridge in Ivey Memorial Park.
29.9538379,-82.9303607

Event: facebook, meetup

River mile 86.6 to 76.0
This map detail and all landing directions are from Continue reading →