Tag Archives: Suwannee River Basin

Withlacoochee filthy upstream; Santa Fe River clean 2026-05-14

Update 2026-05-22: Withlacoochee River dirty upstream 2026-05-18 clean downstream and Santa Fe River clean 2026-05-20.

More results have come in since Friday’s report.

WWALS got even worse results upstream on the Withlacoochee River for Thursday at Franklinville Road, which is upstream from Cat Creek and Valdosta.

That looks even more like first flush, when a big rain washes the woods wildlife have been using as a latrine.

Meanwhile, WWALS got clean results for Thursday on the Santa Fe River.

I’d avoid the Withlacoochee River upstream of the Little River Confluence.

And considering Colquitt and Brooks Counties, Georgia, got a lot of rain that could wash contamination into Okapilco Creek, I’d avoid the Withlacoochee River in Georgia.

So at your own risk, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating, where-ever you can find enough water, and if you can avoid the rains predicted for Sunday.

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

[Withlacoochee filthy upstream, Above Valdosta & Cat Creek, Santa Fe River clean, 2026-05-14]
Withlacoochee filthy upstream, Above Valdosta & Cat Creek, Santa Fe River clean, 2026-05-14

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Floridan Aquifer Groundwater Pumping –Dr. Bob Knight 2026-05-09

Published with permission, here is what Dr. Bob Knight ferreted out from USGS and the WMDs about groundwater pumping.

You’d think they would publish this information, but since they didn’t, WWALS is.

These slides (PowerPoint or PDF) don’t say anything about Water First North Florida (WFNF), the WMD and JEA plan to pipe treated wastewater from Jacksonville into the Suwannee Basin, but this is the groundwater background to WFNF.

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

[Floridan Aquifer Groundwater Pumping Is Getting Worse --Dr. Bob Knight 2026-05-09]
Floridan Aquifer Groundwater Pumping Is Getting Worse –Dr. Bob Knight 2026-05-09

He sent these slides to various environmentalists on May 9, 2026, with this note. I asked him later in person if he minded WWALS publishing. He said go ahead.

All

Attached is an updated summary of Florida groundwater wells, permits, and reported extraction quantities from the Floridan aquifer. All data were provided by the water management districts and the USGS. But the summaries of those reams of data are my work and may not be complete and accurate in all cases. Surprisingly, the WMDs have differing data bases and few detailed summaries of these data. For now, I believe these may be the best data summaries out there. Historically (up to 2015) Richard Marella formerly with USGS reported a lot of Floridan aquifer detailed/summary data every five years. That important contribution ended in 2015 and there is no sign that it will be picked back up by the state or the USGS.

The inconvenient truth is that all groundwater extractions reduce spring flows and that data analysis indicates that the ratio is almost one to one. Measured spring flow reductions closely mirror these reported pumping totals and differ widely from groundwater flow model estimates.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Best wishes,

Bob

Continue reading →

Smoke at Lakeland Boat Ramp 2026-05-06

Yesterday morning the smoke was thick at Lakeland Boat Ramp on the Alapaha River, and smokey haze continued all the way past Waycross to Okefenokee Swamp Park.

Rain a few days ago helped, but it was only a few inches, and fires can smolder for many days.

More rain is predicted for four days starting today: maybe that will finally put that fire out, and the many others.

Meanwhile, don’t burn outdoors, eh?

[Smoke at Lakeland Boat Ramp, Pineland Road Fire 2026-05-06, Suwannoochee Creek, Suwannee River Basin]
Smoke at Lakeland Boat Ramp, Pineland Road Fire 2026-05-06, Suwannoochee Creek, Suwannee River Basin

The smoke was probably mostly from the Pineland Road Fire in Clinch and Echols Counties. The creek in its middle is Suwannoochee Creek, which is the county line and runs into the Suwannee River downstream from Fargo.

Here’s the big picture. Continue reading →

Agenda: No WFNF but watch Outreach and Water Resources @ SRWMD 2026-05-12

There’s nothing about Water First North Florida (WFNF), the plan to pipe treated wastewater from Jacksonville into the Suwannee River Basin, on the agenda for the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) Governing Board next week.

But watch “28. Water Resources Division Updates”; that’s where I first heard about WFNF back in July 2025.

And maybe we’ll hear how poorly their attempts to sell WFNF are going in “20. Outreach and Communications Activity Summary”.

Also, “7. A. Hydrologic Conditions Report” is always interesting. That one will appear on the SRWMD website later.

[Agenda: No WFNF, but watch Outreach and Water Resources, Plus Hydrologic Conditions @ SRWMD 2026-05-12]
Agenda: No WFNF, but watch Outreach and Water Resources, Plus Hydrologic Conditions @ SRWMD 2026-05-12

Get there on time at 9 AM, Tuesday, May 12, 2026, for “4. Public Comment”. That’s at SRWMD HQ, 9225 CR 49, Live Oak, FL 32060.

Livestreamed on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SRWMD

For more about WFNF, including other upcoming meetings, who you can contact, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf Continue reading →

The AI Layoff Trap –Brett Hemenway Falk, Gerry Tsoukalas 2026-03-02

After years of labor unions advocating for an 8-hour day and a 5-day week, Henry Ford finally saw his own self-interest and Ford Motor Company on September 25, 1926, made it company policy.

Why? Workers with free time and money to spend bought cars: long-term profit!

A century later, many companies are doing the opposite: laying off workers and replacing them with so-called AI: short-term profiteering. This trend only increases, because if competitors are doing it, every company has incentive to do it.

But companies are sabotaging themselves. Fired workers cannot easily find new jobs, so they can’t afford to buy. An economy with no purchasing is in trouble.

[The AI Layoff Trap 2026-03-02 --Brett Hemenway Falk, Gerry Tsoukalas, No jobs means no buying, One policy works to stop it]
The AI Layoff Trap 2026-03-02 –Brett Hemenway Falk, Gerry Tsoukalas, No jobs means no buying, One policy works to stop it

There are other issues, such as firing experienced people means companies lose their ability to do new things or to deal with unexpected challenges, and fewer jobs mean people trying to join the job market find nothing, so there’s little new talent incoming and few left to train them. But the chase for short-term profits overrides all that.

Plus the proliferation of hyper-scale datacenters catering to this so-called Artificial Intelligence (AI), using much cooling water, either directly, or through new power plants. See:

https://wwals.net/issues/datacenters

New research models this corporate behavior and finds that most proposed solutions do not stop it. Continue reading →

Statewide Drought Response Level 1 –GA-EPD 2026-04-27

Georgia starts to catch up with Florida in drought declarations.

Georgia Environmental Protection Division Declares Drought Response Level 1

On April 27, 2026, after consideration of the drought severity and the water resource impacts, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) declared a state-wide Drought Response Level 1 for public water systems using surface water and/or groundwater. EPD has been closely monitoring drought conditions in Georgia for months, and on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, EPD held conference calls with public water systems to discuss current water supply and EPD’s consideration of issuing a Level 1 drought response. Following the conference calls, the public water systems had three days to submit any additional feedback before EPD could proceed with a drought response declaration.

[Statewide Drought Response Level 1 --GA-EPD, April 27, 2026]
Statewide Drought Response Level 1 –GA-EPD, April 27, 2026

As a result of the Level 1 Drought Response, public water systems must implement a public information campaign including, at a minimum, notice regarding drought conditions and drought-specific announcements in one or more of the following ways: newspaper or online ads, bill inserts, social media, and notices in public libraries. This public information campaign is designed to help citizens better understand drought, its impact on water supplies, and the need for water conservation.

Outdoor water use between the hours of 4 PM and 10 A.M. is still Continue reading →

FL statutes give JEA until 2032 or 2039 or 2044 to divert its wastewater –Joe Squitieri @ SCRP 2026-04-02

Wastewater professional Joe Squitieri pointed out that 2032 may not be the real deadline for wastewater outflows to stop going into rivers according to FL SB 64.

Extensions could be granted until 2039, or maybe even 2044. So JEA could keep outflowing into the St. Johns River after 2032.

[FL statutes give JEA until 2032 or 2039 or later to divert its wastewater --Joe Squitieri @ SCRP 2026-04-02]
FL statutes give JEA until 2032 or 2039 or later to divert its wastewater –Joe Squitieri @ SCRP 2026-04-02

Here’s the video:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1329841519196016/

https://youtu.be/qsp91kAdL5E

He also reminded us that the JEA Buckman wastewater plant is under a Florida Consent Order for exceeding a range of contaminant limits.

Plus, even when that plant is in compliance, it produces quite a bit of nitrates and other contaminants. It failed a test that involves putting fish in the outflow: none of them survived, he said. Then there are PFAS forever chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

“They really don’t know what they’re doing,” he said.

He recommended if they can clean it up enough, they should turn their wastewater into potable reuse.

For much more about Water First North Florida (WFNF), including all the local and regional elected letters and resolutions against, who you can contact, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

For the other speakers at that meeting, see Continue reading →

Thanks, Georgia Power for a water quality testing grant 2026-04-16

Thanks to Georgia Power for another generous grant for water quality testing!

Thanks to Don F. Hutchinson, Area Manager, Southwest Region, Georgia Power, and his Admin Assistant Peyton Avrett for coming to Troupville Boat Ramp on the Little River so we could thank them.

For more about the WWALS Volunteer Water Quality Testing Program, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/testing

[Thanks, Georgia Power, for a water quality testing grant, At Troupville Boat Ramp, April 16, 2026]
Thanks, Georgia Power, for a water quality testing grant, At Troupville Boat Ramp, April 16, 2026

Here’s the video:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/953491027626147/

https://www.instagram.com/p/DXNiVmwiAM2/

https://youtu.be/NZbmlRY7CyM Continue reading →

Valdosta Mandatory Outdoor Water Use Restrictions Take Effect April 15, 2026 2026-04-14

Good idea.

[Valdosta Mandatory Outdoor Water Use Restrictions Take Effect April 15, 2026, Published 2026-04-14]
Valdosta Mandatory Outdoor Water Use Restrictions Take Effect April 15, 2026, Published 2026-04-14

Mandatory Outdoor Water Use Restrictions Take Effect April 15 (published 2026-04-14)

The City of Valdosta is reminding residents and businesses that mandatory outdoor water use restrictions will take effect beginning April 15, 2026. These measures are being implemented in response to ongoing drought conditions, reduced rainfall, and increased water demand that have significantly impacted local water source levels.

In addition to local enforcement, the City will enforce provisions outlined in the Georgia Water Stewardship Act, which has been in effect statewide since June 2, 2010. Violations may result in fines or water service disconnection.

Watering Guidelines:

Continue reading →

Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings –Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson 2027-01-17

Update 2026-04-14: The promoters bear the burden of proof about WFNF –WWALS to SRWMD 2026-04-13.

Nine years after Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson asked them to stagger their meetings, SRWMD and SJRWMD are still meeting the same day, three hours drive apart.

So tomorrow if you want to talk about Water First North Florida (WFNF), you much choose: SRWMD in Live Oak or SJRWMD in Palatka.

[Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings, 2017-01-17 --Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson @ joint meeting about NFRWSP]
Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings, 2017-01-17 –Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson @ joint meeting about NFRWSP

For much more about WFNF, including who else to contact, some questions to ask, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Here’s the WWALS video of Merrillee from January 17, 2017:

https://youtu.be/lCnR0Rw0BF8?si=V7Zpwc53S3__6CS6 Continue reading →