Researchers study Suwannee Basin to minimize pollution risks

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Posted 10:31AM on Monday, April 1, 2002

TIFTON - The Suwannee River -- immortalized in Stephen Foster's 1851 song ``Old Folks at Home'' -- is considered one of the nation's most pristine and undeveloped rivers. Researchers who want to keep it that way are sampling water and gathering information on farming practices in the river's western headwaters, which cover 19 southwestern Georgia counties. They are particularly worried about fertilizer and other contaminants flowing into the river from farms. Weaving southwest for about 200 miles from Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp to Florida's Gulf Coast, The Suwannee River passes through cypress swamps, pine forests and limestone outcrops. Nature lovers flock there for boating, camping, fishing, snorkeling and just to admire its natural beauty. It also provides habitat for wildlife, including deer, songbirds and alligators. The headwaters include the Withlicoochee, the Alapaha and the Little rivers. They flow through some of the Georgia's most productive farmland in a 2.6-million-acre drainage area. Richard Lowrance -- a research ecologist with the U-S Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service in Tifton -- and six others are working on the 4-year study. Manure will be a major focus of the research how much can the area handle without polluting the three tributaries and ultimately the Suwannee. Lowrance said a goal of the project is to learn more about the affects of animal production and manure on water quality. Another goal is to help farmers avoid water quality problems and to give them opportunities to expand, if market conditions favor animal production.