Tag Archives: Suwannee River

Suwannee Riverkeeper will talk trash with Valdosta Mayor Scott James, Radio 92.1 FM 2023-03-24

Update 2023-03-24: Videos: Trash, Okefenokee, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting, WWALS Gala on Scott James radio 92.1.FM 2023-03-24.

Friday morning at 8:30 AM, Suwannee Riverkeeper will talk trash with Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson on his radio show, Talk 92.1 FM.
https://talk921.com/

WWALS and the City of Valdosta are doing a cleanup Saturday at Two Mile Branch; meet at 507 Mack Drive and park on Howell Brook Drive. The city is finally moving a bit on trash traps, but there is much more to do, including having the City Marshalls inform businesses of the city trash ordinances, including potential fines and other penalties.

[Radio, Two Mile Branch]
Radio, Two Mile Branch

We’ll also talk about Continue reading →

All nine Riverkeepers of Georgia oppose the mining permit applications by Twin Pines Minerals too near the Okefenokee Swamp 2023-03-09

I sent this at 4:08 PM today to TwinPines.Comment@dnr.ga.gov:

“Please find attached a letter of opposition by all nine Riverkeepers of Georgia to the mining permit applications by Twin Pines Minerals, LLC.”

[GA Riverkeepers letter for Okefenokee Swamp against strip mine 2023-03-09]

See also the letter by Waterkeepers Florida, representing all fifteen Waterkeepers of Florida. It includes links to the letters by Suwannee and St. Marys Waterkeepers.

You can still send in your own comment.

While the comment period on the Mining Land Use Plan nominally closes at 4:30 PM today, that same address has been open for comments for a year or more, and will probably remain open.

Plus GA-EPD has said that if there is a draft permit, they will open another 60-day public comment period.

Meanwhile, all the Waterkeepers of Georgia and Florida oppose that strip mine for white paint, and support the Okefenokee Swamp, the St. Marys and Suwannee Rivers, and the Floridan Aquifer.

The GA Riverkeepers letter

The letter is below in web form, or see it as PDF. Continue reading →

Please stop a strip mine near the Okefenokee Swamp that threatens both Florida and Georgia –Waterkeepers Florida

Update 2023-03-20: All nine Riverkeepers of Georgia oppose the mining permit applications by Twin Pines Minerals too near the Okefenokee Swamp 2023-03-09
Also, you can still send a comment to TwinPines.Comment@dnr.ga.gov.

Waterkeepers Florida, representing all fifteen Waterkeepers of Florida, opposes a titanium dioxide strip mine too near the Okefenokee Swamp, in a letter to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp Friday. (PDF)

You can still comment to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division by 4:30 PM, Monday, March 20th, and ask Georgia legislators to pass bills protecting the Okefenokee Swamp, the Suwannee and St. Marys Rivers, and the Floridan Aquifer.

[Support the Okefenokee Swamp, not a strip mine --Waterkeepers Florida 2023-03-17]
Support the Okefenokee Swamp, not a strip mine –Waterkeepers Florida 2023-03-17

March 17, 2023

[Logo of Waterkeepers Florida]

Governor Brian Kemp
206 Washington Street
Suite 203 State Capitol
Atlanta, GA 30334
Delivered via email to: brian.kemp@georgia.gov

Re: Please stop a strip mine near the Okefenokee Swamp that threatens both Florida and Georgia

Dear Governor Kemp and staff,

In support of our fellow Waterkeepers’ missions to protect the St. Marys River and the Suwannee River, we, Members of Waterkeepers Florida, are again expressing serious concerns regarding the activities the proposed Twin Pines Minerals, LLC (TPM) application number SAS-2018-00554-SP-HAR will have on the Okefenokee Swamp, its river systems, and the Floridan Aquifer. Waterkeepers Florida is a regional entity composed of all 15 Waterkeeper organizations working in the State of Florida to protect and restore our water resources across over 50,000 square miles of watershed, which is home to over 15 million Floridians.

Continue reading →

WWALS Public Comments on Mining Land Use Plan of Twin Pines Minerals, LLC, too near the Okefenokee Swamp 2023-03-17

March 17, 2023

Land Protection Branch,
4244 International Parkway,
Atlanta Tradeport- Suite 104,
Atlanta, Georgia 30354

twinpines.comment@dnr.ga.gov

RE: WWALS Public Comments on Mining Land Use Plan of Twin Pines Minerals, LLC (PDF)

Dear EPD,

This letter recommends denying the permit applications by Twin Pines Minerals, LLC (TPM) to mine for titanium dioxide (TiO2) near the Okefenokee Swamp, based on specifics of the Mining Land Use Plan,1 as requested in the Notice of the Opportunity for Public Comment.2

[Please deny the mining permits]
Please deny the mining permits

Why this decision is important far away

First, we present some context for why this decision is important far away from the Okefenokee Swamp.

Any lowered water level or dewatering of the surface around the Swamp increases the risk of fires. The 2007 Bugaboo fire spread smoke west across the Suwannee River Basin, causing respiratory distress 80 miles away in Quitman, continuing 450 miles to Meridian, Mississippi. Southwards the smoke closed I-75 and went 370 miles to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. North it went 250 miles to Atlanta.

During the 2017 West Mims fire, Lowndes County Fire (along with Valdosta and its other cities, and nearby counties) sent assistance from 75 miles away. They were among 900 firefighters from across the country.3 “There’s nobody Continue reading →

Again rescheduled: Suwannee River Chainsaw Cleanup 2023-06-10

Update 2023-06-15: Pictures: Suwannee River Chainsaw Cleanup, Three Steps Landing to Fargo, GA 2023-06-10.

The deadfalls are still four feet underwater, with more rain coming, so we’re rescheduling again, this time to Saturday, June 10th, in hopes that summer evapotranspiration will keep the Suwannee River lower.

You do not have to use a saw to join us on the last five Suwannee River miles down to Fargo as we clear three or four more deadfalls.

[Duck and float under to the left, 14:59:12, 30.7158583, -82.5130261]
Duck and float under to the left, 14:59:12, 30.7158583, -82.5130261

Thanks to Adam Schock of the Conservation Fund for permission to use Three Steps Landing. That will make this one a lot easier than last time.

When: Gather 10 AM, launch 11 AM, end 4 PM, Satuday, June 10, 2023

Put In: Three Steps Landing. Meet at Fargo Ramp and we’ll sort out the shuttle.

Take Out: Fargo Ramp, Half a mile southeast of Fargo on US 441, the boat ramp is on the northeast side of US 441 and on the west (right bank) of the Suwannee River, in Clinch County, Georgia. Continue reading →

SRWMD to acquire Camp & Abel Tract, Hamilton County, Suwannee River 2023-03-14

If I’m reading this correctly, SRWMD discussed maybe buying only one of two tracts, or maybe just getting a conservation easement, and then decided to buy both of these tracts on the Suwannee River in Hamilton County.

This is on the agenda for next Tuesday’s Board Meeting of the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD).

9 AM, Tuesday, March 14, 2023, at SRWMD HQ, 9225 Co Rd 49, Live Oak, FL 32060.

GoTo Webinar Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2418452120888926044

Public Comment Form Link: www.MySuwanneeRiver.com/Comments

[Camp & Abel 1 & 2]
Camp & Abel 1 & 2

The tracts are rather far apart, Tract 1 being upstream from FL 6 across from Columbia County, and Tract 2 being downstream from Woods Ferry River Camp, which is across the river in Suwannee County.

Also on the agenda is an agreement with the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) for above-ground and underground water laboratory analysis.

I didn’t see anything interesting in the Continue reading →

WWALS Development Director Veronica Oakler 2023-03-01

Hahira, GA, March 2, 2023 — WWALS is pleased to announce the hiring of Veronica Oaker as Development Director, to help us with fundraising and community outreach. Veronica joined WWALS on March 1st, with a rich background in water advocacy. She has previously worked at Clean Water for North Carolina, the Florida Department of Transportation, the Executive Office of the Florida Governor, and the city of Tallahassee. She has degrees from the University of Florida and the Florida Coastal School of Law. Veronica lives in Madison, Florida. Plan on meeting Veronica at an upcoming outing or event. Or, she might even phone you up to chat.

[Veronica Oakler with huge bald cypress]
Veronica Oakler with huge bald cypress

“I’m excited to come back home to the Suwannee River watershed where my family and I live, work, and play,” said Veronica Oakler. “I have admired the fantastic work that WWALS has accomplished over the past 10 years to raise awareness of water quality issues downstream of polluting sources, especially sewage, pipelines, and trash.”

Continue reading →

Suwannee Riverkeeper on Scott James Radio 92.1 FM 2023-02-28

Update 2023-03-02: Videos: Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle, Sewage spills, Trash, Okefenokee Swamp over stripmine @ Radio 2023-02-28.

Suwannee Riverkeeper will talk about the Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle coming up this Saturday, saving the Okefenokee Swamp from a strip mine, trash, sewage, parks, and rivers on Scott James Talk 92.1 FM radio this morning, Tuesday, 8:30 AM.

[Radio, Paddle]
Radio, Paddle

https://talk921.com/

https://www.facebook.com/events/1471470606719880

Topics discussed will probably include: Continue reading →

Upper and Middle Suwannee River MFL Peer Review Meeting 2023-03-15

Update 2023-03-28: Videos: Upper and Middle Suwannee River MFL Peer Review Meeting 2023-03-15.

Thanks to WWALS Board member Dennis Price, P.G. of Hamilton County, Florida, for spotting this meeting about minimum flows and levels on the Suwannee River, including underground water down to the Floridan Aquifer.

Please come to the meeting at SRWMD HQ in Live Oak at 9AM Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

Or send comment to MFL@srwmd.org by April 30, 2023.

[Meeting Notice and MFLs]
Meeting Notice and MFLs

SRWMD, Alerts & Notices, February 22, 2023 9:00 AM Upper and Middle Suwannee River MFL Peer Review Meeting

A public meeting to start the peer review process for the Upper and Middle Suwannee River Minimum Flows and Levels (MFLs) has been scheduled. An overview of these proposed MFLs will be presented by the District to the peer reviewers and the public. These MFLs are specifically for the Upper and Middle Suwannee River segments. The District will continue to work on the MFLs for priority springs along the river based on the District’s MFL priority list schedule.

The draft Upper and Middle Suwannee River MFL technical documents are posted to the District’s website for review. See the links and provided information below.

Public comment is being accepted on MFL methods and analyses presented in the technical documents until April 30, 2023. Please email all comments to MFL@srwmd.org.

The public meeting is being held on March 15 at 10am at the District’s headquarters in Live Oak, FL.

Access the links below for more information.
Middle Suwannee River & Springs MFLs
Upper Suwannee River & Springs MFLs

The only springs mentioned by name in the two MFLs web pages are Continue reading →

Miners and GA-EPD picked a bad gauge for the stripmine permit application 2023-02-21

If you needed another reason to object to the strip mine proposed far too near the Okefenokee Swamp, here it is.

Hydrologists from seven different universities rebut the choice of the Macclenny St Marys River gauge by the miners and the state regulatory agency to model and monitor the proposed titanium dioxide strip mine. The hydrologists propose the Moniac gauge as much closer to the mine site.

[St. Marys River Gauges --NOASS, USGS]
St. Marys River Gauges –NOASS, USGS
Red circle: proposed titanium dioxide stripmine site.
Center green diamond: Moniac St. Marys River Gauge.
Bottom green circle: Macclenny St. Marys River Gauge.
Upper right green diamond near Folkston: Traders Hill St. Marys River Gauge.
Left green diamond: Fargo Suwannee River Gauge.

I would argue that neither of those gauges is downstream from water flowing from the eastern side of the mine site: for that they need the Traders Hill gauge.

Further, they should also be monitoring the Fargo gauge on the Suwannee River. And they should be modeling and monitoring not just water levels but also water quality at all these locations.

To comment on the permit applications, Continue reading →