Tag Archives: Suwannee River Basin

Phil Hubbard fixed the WWALS Husqvarna 24-inch chainsaw 2025-12-21a

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Thanks, Phil.

[Phil Hubbard fixed the Husqvarna 24-inch chainsaw 2025-12-21, Thanks for the grant to WWALS from Wild Green Future]
Phil Hubbard fixed the Husqvarna 24-inch chainsaw 2025-12-21, Thanks for the grant to WWALS from Wild Green Future

Here’s a video:

https://www.facebook.com/Wwalswatershed/videos/2205168176559427

https://youtube.com/shorts/KQ_mqQSzUEE?feature=share

What was wrong with it? It ran fine, if you didn’t mind gasoline leaking down your leg, and it running for only a couple of minutes.

Maybe I shouldn’t have set it on top of my running tractor. It fell five feet down onto a concrete floor. Turns out that’s bad for the gas tank.

No kind of glue would fix it. And you can’t just replace the gas tank: it’s integralto the chassis.

So I bought a new crank case. And Phil swapped the guts of the saw into it.

Runs fine now, and does not leak.

Thanks again to Wild Green Future for the generous grant that bought this Husqvarna 460 Rancher 24-inch chainsaw, as well as two outboard motors, a trolling motor, some LIFEPO2 batteries, and related items.

After the holidays, we’ll be back to doing chainsaw cleanups. Continue reading →

The Floridan Aquifer in North Carolina 1996-01-01

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Is Columbia, South Carolina, in the Floridan Aquifer?

Doesn’t look like it. But thanks for the question.

[Does the Floridan Aquifer include Columbia, SC? Apparently not. Nor the Tertiary sand aquifer.]
Does the Floridan Aquifer include Columbia, SC? Apparently not. Nor the Tertiary sand aquifer.

A WWALS member shared a post from Congaree Riverkeeper, asking,

“the Floridan Aquifer source, or terminus? Anyway, in S.C….”

The Congaree Riverkeeper post said:

We got out and did river patrol on the Broad River the other day.

We were able to check on a few projects happening along the river, including the construction of the City of Columbia’s new drinking water intake….

The Broad River comes down south into Columbia, SC, where it joins the Congaree River. Lake Murray just to the west of Columbia is easy to recognize on many of the other maps below. Continue reading →

Environmental groups urge GA-EPD to finalize forever chemical limits at least as stringent as 2024 federal limits 2025-12-17

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We urge GA-EPD to set real limits on forever chemicals:

In sum, why should Georgia residents be left with no choice but to drink contaminated water just because their drinking water did not have the “correct” type of PFAS contamination? We don’t believe they should. Accordingly, we urge EPD to promulgate MCLs for all six of the federally regulated PFAS compounds that are at least as stringent as the April 10, 2024 federal regulations.

Since this letter is replete with footnotes, I’m only quoting the beginning and end here. You can find the entire letter on the WWALS website in PDF, and images of each page are appended below.

[Environmental groups urge GA-EPD to limit forever chemicals 2025-12-17, at least as stringent as 2024 federal limits]
Environmental groups urge GA-EPD to limit forever chemicals 2025-12-17, at least as stringent as 2024 federal limits

You can also write to EPDComments@dnr.ga.gov.

And you can also try EWG’s action page for U.S. EPA.

For what’s in your drinking water, see:
https://www.ewg.org/tapwater/

Here’s the beginning of the letter we sent to GA-EPD yesterday: Continue reading →

Drought Workshop Presentation –SRWMD 2025-12-09

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Update 2025-12-18: Water First North Florida wetland locations: unknown –SRWMD 2025-12-17.

In their Drought Conditions Workshop on December 9, 2025, SRWMD talked about starting an outreach campaign, “highlighting the water deficit that we are in, and our drought, and the need for efficiency, and here are some possible measures that you could implement, from a voluntary standpoint.”

But they are not yet willing to declare even the statutory Water Shortage Warning or Advisory, which has only voluntary measures.

[Drought Workshop Presentation --SRWMD 2025-12-09, No water withdrawal limits yet, Maybe an outreach campaign soon]
Drought Workshop Presentation –SRWMD 2025-12-09, No water withdrawal limits yet, Maybe an outreach campaign soon

If the current drought is not severe enough to warrant even a statutory Warning, why are SRWMD and SJRWMD forging ahead with their billion-dollar Water First North Florida project to pipe treated Jacksonville wastewater into the Suwannee River Basin to recharge the Floridan Aquifer here? And what is being done to remove the PFAS, drugs, and articifical sweeteners that typically pass right through wastewater treatment?

Thanks to SRWMD Board members Charles Keith, Larry Sessions, and William Lloyd, they did talk about possibly instituing limits on water withdrawals, considering that the past 10 years have been the hottest on record.

The presenter, Amy Brown, Deputy Executive Director, Water Resources, was clear that they have not even advised voluntary limits for the biggest group of users, which are in agriculture.

Her slides, received from SRWMD in response to a WWALS public records request, are on the WWALS website, with images below in this post.

SRWMD Executive Director Hugh Thomas did note that the water withdrawal permits SRWMD issues have standard conditions that can require limits on water withdrawals. But “it’s never fun to engage with the permittee and say, hey, you’re going to have to cut back because we’re in a water shortage period.”

You can see Amy Brown, Deputy Executive Director, Water Resources, present these slides to the SRWMD Board in their own video of their December 9, 2025, Workshop, at 1:45:58:

https://www.youtube.com/live/6LDIIdFqxaY?si=LnRZUqNL0imphDJz&t=6358

What about reducing water withdrawals?

At 2:14:10, you can hear Charles Keith asking about increasing drought. Continue reading →

Hydrologic Conditions Report –SRWMD 2025-11-30

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Update 2025-12-17: Drought Workshop Presentation –SRWMD 2025-12-09.

Every county in the Suwannee River Basin is in drought, according to SRWMD’s own Hydrologic Conditions Report for November 30, 2025 presented in their Board meeting of December 9, 2025.

But not droughty enough for SRWMD to declare even a voluntary Drought Warning, according to the Drought Workshop after the Board meeting. I have sent in a FOIA request for the Workshop slides. Both meetings are in the SRWMD YouTube post for 2025-12-09.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LDIIdFqxaY

Meanwhile, here is the SRWMD Hydrologic Conditions Report for November 2025, plus some related information.

Such as SRWMD actually does have “Year-Round Lawn & Landscape Irrigation Measures,” but nobody seems to know about them. And that page does not seem to include agricultural, mining, or water bottling water use. Continue reading →

Clean Rivers and Creeks, except Hightower Creek 2025-12-11

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Update 2025-12-19: Clean Withlacoochee River and most creeks; Dirty Hightower Creek 2025-12-17.

The Withlacoochee River tested pretty clean this week, as did the Santa Fe River, and the Ichetucknee River for Friday last week.

Even Valdosta’s problem Sugar Creek and One Mile Branch tested OK.

But Hightower Creek was bad in Valdosta Utilities’ result, although the WWALS result the same day at the same site was OK.

It appears there is still some other source of sewage upstream of St. Augustine Road into Hightower Creek.

No new sewage spills have been reported in the past week for the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida, although FDEP’s Pollution Notice reporting is half broken: see below.

No rain is predicted for the next ten days.

So if you can find a river with enough water, and you don’t mind cold and rain, happy paddling, motoring, swimming, and fishing this weekend.

This image is an overview. Scroll down for the details.

[Clean Withlacoochee, Santa Fe Rivers, Mostly Good 2025-12-11, OK One Mile Branch and Sugar Creek, But not Hightower Creek]
Clean Withlacoochee, Santa Fe Rivers, Mostly Good 2025-12-11, OK One Mile Branch and Sugar Creek, But not Hightower Creek

Sugar Creek and its feeder creeks

For Thursday at St. Augustine Road on Hightower Creek, Valdosta Utilities got Continue reading →

Packet: SRWMD Board plus Workshop on Drought Conditions 2025-12-09

Update 2025-12-17: Drought Workshop Presentation –SRWMD 2025-12-09.

Update 2025-12-14: Hydrologic Conditions Report –SRWMD 2025-11-30.

Maybe you’d like to come to the Workshop on “Drought Conditions and Review of the District’s Water Shortage Process” that the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) is holding. That’s this Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at 9 AM in Live Oak, after the SRWMD Board meeting.

If I’m not mistaken, a drought declaration by the Suwannee River Water Management District would mean numerous water withdrawal permit holders would have to reduce their withdrawals.

[Packet: SRWMD Board, Live Oak, FL 2025-12-09, plus Workshop on Drought Conditions]
Packet: SRWMD Board, Live Oak, FL 2025-12-09, plus Workshop on Drought Conditions

Also, Board agenda item 26. Water Resources Division Updates, will probably include an update on the Water First North Florida billion-dollar aquifer recharge project. It would pipe treated wastewater from Jacksonville to wetlands in the Suwannee River Basin, and from there into sinks to recharge Ichetucknee Headspring and maybe others. Limiting water withdrawals would be less expensive and more effective, without risking contaminating our springs and aquifers with PFAS and other chemicals that wastewater treatment does not remove.

Two weeks ago I asked, Why hasn’t SRWMD declared a drought yet?

Already then, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the entire Suwannee River Basin in both Georgia and Florida was in drought.
https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?Southeast

Conditions have only gotten worse since then. Continue reading →

Volunteering with WWALS 2025-11-21

Why would you volunteer with WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS)? How can you help the Suwannee Riverkeeper keep the waters clean in the 10,000 square miles of the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida?

[Wide]
Suwannee River Basin

Volunteering isn’t just about giving your time. It’s about making a meaningful impact on your local environment. WWALS is dedicated to preserving the waters of the Suwannee River Basin, advocating for clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable water. See wwals.net

By stepping up as a volunteer, you become part of this collective effort: be it paddling an outreach event, testing water quality, writing a grant, or promoting awareness. You’re helping safeguard our local rivers, aquifers, and wetlands — a cause that aligns well with your love for kayaking, chasing waterfalls and sunsets.

How to Get Involved

WWALS offers a variety of committees that handle many of the organization’s activities. These committees are the heart of volunteering and most are open to non-board members.

Here’s how you can get started:

Continue reading →

WWALS Day of Giving #GAGIVES 2025

This is a nonprofit fundraiser supporting WWALS Watershed Coalition Inc.

It’s for the whole month of November 2025.

You can donate here:
https://www.gagives.org/story/WWALS-GAGIVES-2025

[WWALS Day of Giving, #GAGIVES 2025, All Month, November 2025]

WWALS Mission

WWALS advocates for conservation and stewardship of the surface waters and groundwater of the Suwannee River Basin and Estuary, in south Georgia and north Florida, among them the Withlacoochee, Willacoochee, Alapaha, Little, Santa Fe, and Suwannee River watersheds, through education, awareness, environmental monitoring, and citizen activities.

Advocacy

Many other organizations already promote paddling, swimming, fishing, birding, and other water-related activities hereabouts, as does WWALS for fun and education. WWALS exists to assist positive changes and to resist invasive problems, using strategies such as environmental monitoring and tactics such as outings and events in that advocacy.

Conservation

Continue reading →

Packet: North Central Florida Regional Planning Council 2025-10-23

The North Central Florida Regional Planning Council (NCFRPC) meets next Thursday, in person and online.

Copies of the meeting notice, directions, agenda, and board packet is on the WWALS website, with images below, plus an illustrative picture of a previous NCFRPC meeting at the same location.

[North Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Agenda and Packet, Thursday, October 23, 2025]
North Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Agenda and Packet, Thursday, October 23, 2025

There’s not a lot about water, except the very last item, Regional Joint Mitigation Resiliency Project, on page 71 of the packet. It includes:

The scope of work includes the following activities.

  • Future Extreme Rainfall Modeling;
  • Mitigation Needs Assessment, Template and Mitigation Priority Areas and Project List;
  • Small Area Mitigation Plans;
  • Regional Resilience Exposure Tool;
  • Interactive Best Practice Application; and
  • Stakeholder Engagement.

Continue reading →