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WATER PRESERVATION
“Water is the most critical resource issue of our lifetime and our children’s lifetime. The health of our waters is the principal measure of how we live on the land.” – Luna Leopold
Overruling the Rule of Capture: What Can Texas Lean From 10 Other States Groundwater Law Updates?
| ces-pub-groundwater-laws-060321.pdf |
Gabriel Collins, J.D.
Baker Botts Fellow in Energy & Environmental Regulatory Affairs, Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy
June 2021
Baker Botts Fellow in Energy & Environmental Regulatory Affairs, Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy
June 2021
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Texas groundwater common law is fundamentally based on principles developed in ancient Rome more than a millennium ago.1 It has also been nearly 120 years since the state adopted the “rule of capture,” which, as described by the Texas Supreme Court “essentially allows, with some limited exceptions, a landowner to pump as much groundwater as the landowner chooses, without liability to neighbors who claim that the pumping has depleted their wells.”2
Since that landmark decision, Texas has grown into one of the largest economies and groundwater users in the world. Long-term water security is a necessary precondition for achieving another prosperous Texas century. Accordingly, the state acutely needs a common law system that can balance world-scale agricultural activity, industrial development, and urban growth while also protecting private property rights. |
This analysis aims to provide a foundation for such discussions. It draws upon dozens of judicial and legislative decisions taken in 10 other American states that, at various points in the past 150 years, have transitioned from the rule of capture to another groundwater common law doctrine. Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Oklahoma offer a blend of unique and cross-jurisdictional insights that can provide an informed basis for policymakers in Texas, should they choose to update the state’s groundwater common law. In this group of 10 states, Ohio and Michigan offer especially relevant examples, as each adopted groundwater law doctrines that emphasize equitable balancing between competing uses while still respecting water owners’ property rights.
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Drought Conditions Improve, La Niña Watch, and Cooler and Wetter-Than-Normal Conditions Expected
https://texaspluswater.wp.txstate.edu/2021/07/26/outlookwater-drought-conditions-improve-la-nina-watch-and-cooler-and-wetter-than-normal-conditions-expected/?utm_source=Texas%2BWater+Newsletter&utm_campaign=9256994fca-
By Robert Mace
July 26, 2021
July 26, 2021
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It’s been something of an unusual summer so far, at least compared with summers in the somewhat recent past, seemingly cooler and wetter than normal. I decided to peek at where June ranks (too soon to look at July…) with respect to the record. The 1901 to 2000 average temperature was 79.6 degrees Fahrenheit compared to June 2021 temperature of 80.3 degrees Fahrenheit. Although June seemed cooler than normal, it was 0.7 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than normal (or at least the normal between 1901 to
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2000; Figure 1a). However, our high temperatures have been 0.4 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than the record (but our lows have been 1.9 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than normal). Rainfall-wise, the state received 3.85 inches in June compared to the normal of 2.86 inches, 35 percent more than normal. Washington state—in the news lately for high temperatures—came in at 7.1 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than normal in June due to the heat dome that formed in the Pacific Northwest. Interestingly, June 2021 wasn’t the warmest June on record—2015 was (Figure 1b).
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Source: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/statewide/time-series/41/tavg/1/6/1895-2021?base_prd=true&begbaseyear=1901&endbaseyear=2000
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Source: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/statewide/time-series/41/tavg/1/6/1895-2021?base_prd=true&begbaseyear=1901&endbaseyear=2000
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Well, the rains continued for another month with much of the Gulf Coast receiving more than 10 inches, much of West Texas getting more than 5 inches, and the El Paso area getting a year’s worth of rain (8 inches) over the past four weeks (Figure 2a). Only the Big Bend Area got less than half
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an inch of rain this month. A sizable part of the entire state got two to three times more than average over the past 28 days with the Big Bend Area missing out yet again (Figure 2b). Rain over the past 90 days was much less than normal in the Big Bend Area with the rest of state near normal or above (Figure 2c).
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Source: https://water.weather.gov/precip/
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Source: https://water.weather.gov/precip/
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Source: https://water.weather.gov/precip/
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The amount of the state under drought conditions (D1–D4) decreased from 12.6 percent four weeks ago to 3.5 percent at present (Figure 3a) with drought and dry conditions fading away over much of the western parts of the state (Figure 3b). Exceptional drought, the most intense drought
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category, is now gone with only moderate drought in the Big Bend area (Figure 3a). Overall, 7.7 percent of the state remains abnormally dry or worse (D0–D4; Figure 3a), down considerably from 23.7 percent four weeks ago.
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Source: https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/
StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?TX
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Source: https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Maps/ChangeMaps.aspx
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The North American Drought Monitor, which runs a month behind reality, continues to show a raging drought in much of the western United States with exceptional drought entrenched in the American Southwest (Figure 4a). In a welcome change, precipitation in most of the Rio Grande watershed in Colorado and New Mexico over the last 90 days was much greater than normal (Figure 4b). Conservation storage in Elephant Butte Reservoir decreased from 7.6 percent full last month to 6.5 percent (Figure 4c), just above historic (since 1990) lows.
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The Rio Conchos basin in Mexico, which confluences into the Rio Grande just above Presidio and is an important source of water to the lower part of the Rio Grande in Texas, is in moderate to severe drought conditions (Figure 4a). Combined conservation storage in Amistad and Falcon reservoirs increased from 39.5 percent last month to 40.7 percent full today, still about 18 percentage points below normal for this time of year (Figure 4d).
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Source: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/temp-and-precip/drought/nadm/maps/en/202105
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Source: https://water.weather.gov/precip/
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Source: https://water.weather.gov/precip/
Source: https://water.weather.gov/precip/
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Despite the rains, there are still basins with flows below the historical 25th percentiles (Figure 5a). Statewide reservoir storage is at 85.7 percent full as
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of today, up from 85.3 percent a month ago and above normal for this time of year (Figure 5b). Most reservoirs in the eastern part of the state are now above 90 percent full (Figure 5c).
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Source: https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?map_type=dryw&state=tx
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Source: https://waterdatafortexas.org/reservoirs/statewide
Source: https://waterdatafortexas.org/reservoirs/statewide
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Sea-surface temperatures in the Central Pacific that, in part, define the status of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, have continued their warming trend such that we remain in neutral (La Nada) conditions (Figure 6a). Projections of sea-surface temperatures remain above La Niña conditions through the summer with the possible return to La Niña conditions in early
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fall (Figure 6a). The jump in temperature projections in late fall and early winter appears to be an artifact reflecting uncertainty in projecting that far in the future. The Climate Prediction Center projects neutral conditions holding through the June-August season (Figure 6b) and issued a La Nina Watch for the September-November season.
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Source: https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/
enso_advisory/ensodisc.pdf
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Source: https://iri.columbia.edu/our-expertise/climate/forecasts/enso/current/?enso_tab=enso-cpc_plume
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The U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook through October 31, projects drought removal in Far West Texas over the next three months, a development that would drive drought out of Texas (Figure 7a). The three-month temperature outlook projects warmer-than-normal conditions for the western half of the state (Figure 7b) while the three-month precipitation
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favors wetter-than-normal conditions for the easternmost parts of the state and drier-than-normal conditions for the westernmost parts (Figure 7c). The one-month temperature outlook projects cooler-than-normal conditions for the northern half of the state (Figure 7d) while the one-month precipitation favors wetter-than-normal conditions for the entire state except the Big Bend Area (Figure 7e).
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Source: https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/
products/expert_assessment/season_
drought.png
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Source: https://www.weather.gov/hun/climateforecast
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Source: https://www.weather.gov/hun/climateforecast
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Source: https://www.weather.gov/hun/climateforecast
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Source: https://www.weather.gov/hun/climateforecast
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Banking On Watersheds
By Dr. Larry Sunn
July 2021
July 2021
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Last month’s aquifer awareness article prompted questions about aquifer recharge and the quality of water gained from them; both are heavily dependent on how we interact with our watersheds. A watershed encompasses land surface that collects and drains water into an exit point. Everyone on the planet lives on a watershed somewhere. Everything we do for work, play, school, shopping, farming, or recreation occurs on a watershed. They can be as large as the Mississippi basin or as small as your lot in your hill country neighborhood from which water flows off your yard, roof, and driveway into streets and out to your local creek or Canyon Lake.
Water is the ultimate resource. For decades engineering practices sought to capture, concentrate, and convey water away from a site as quickly as possible. The old “drain-age” is evolving into a new paradigm of “retain-age” with a call to slow the water down, spread the water out, sink the water into the land, store the water in the aquifer, and share the water with all forms of life. Practical applications, such as bio-swales and rain gardens help to biologically filter stormwater and enrich water quality—more on these conservation alternatives in future editions. These alternative applications enhance water quantity by optimizing groundwater recharge and reducing peak run-off flows. If you live in a steep hill country watershed or a low-lying flood plain, rain garden ideas may be challenging to implement. You will need to evaluate your slope stability, soil porosity, storm event size, and subsequent run-off volumes of your site to determine which of these concepts are appropriate. Conserving water via watershed management is much like sound family budget management; the steps are equivalent to our income, deposits, savings, and expenses. We want the water balance of our watersheds to run in the blue and not in the red. RAINFALL = INCOME. Our central Texas watersheds only receive water as rainfall—OK, and sometimes snowfall. Our 30” in annual precipitation is the only true source of income to re-supply our community's water budget allowance. Our county and city officials help by implementing storm water run-off plans, requiring detention and retention ponds, and enforcing land use patterns that enhance the receptive capacity of our watersheds. |
RECHARGE = DEPOSITS. Recharge processes are critical for the water cycle to refresh itself via a deposit slip called infiltration. The capacity to make water deposits depends heavily on the watershed's speed and its recharge potential. Much of the Edwards Aquifer is recharged via direct infusion. Trinity recharge must percolate and be absorbed, or else there is no replenishment of our Trinity water savings account. Both aquifers’ recharge potential is impaired by building and paving over natural recharge areas or disconnecting established rivers from their floodplains. So, local jurisdictional stormwater techniques and tree preservation ordinances are put in place to help undisturbed native vegetation retain water to better feed the aquifers.
RETENTION = SAVINGS. Retaining recharged precipitation is a savings account asset. Storing water is often the most challenging aspect of water supply management. Stock tanks and swales, as well as retention and detention ponds, all increase the residence time of water in temporary storage pools in our watersheds. This helps optimize water absorption for Trinity aquifer recharge. RELEASE = EXPENSE. The water expense element takes many forms, from our well straws drilled into the aquifer to evaporation to transpiration—the latter two being parts of the continuous water cycle we learned about in middle school. The nature of this cycle is to continually revolve because nature’s “expense” stage is necessary to produce the “income” stage. However, our human development practices (e.g., creating impervious surfaces, channelizing stormwater) tend to increase the rate and volume of stormwater's return to the gulf via excessive runoff and flood discharges. This, then, directly reduces the landscape's ability to retain water and diminishes the amount of water available in the aquifer for later release during the dry season. The implementation of watershed conservation practices helps to amplify recharge and optimize retention. These “four Rs” of watershed conservation: rainfall, recharge, retention, and release help ensure optimal amounts of water will be available “in the bank” for future release. Feel free to send rainwater capture questions to us at the Comal Trinity Groundwater Conservation District, Dr. Sunn at comaltrinitygcdsecretary@gmail.com. Our water well and rain catchment consulting services are offered to the public without charge. |
Helen Ballew, CCCA Consultant
Conserving Our Water, Saving Our Springs
NBU Connections — Special Edition 2021
A Word From CCCA Consultant Helen Ballew
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The I-35 corridor between San Antonio and Austin is one of the fastest growing regions in the country. More people means more demand on the aquifer, even though we have other (more expensive) water supplies coming on line. Some might say “Why worry? We have this vast amount of good clean water underground. We won’t run out, and besides, it’s cheap.”
We might not literally run out of fresh drinking water from the aquifer, but if we draw it down too far to get that water, we could lose our great springs. When the springs run dry, the rivers run dry, water-based tourism disappears, and economies dry up. When alternative sources of water are needed to make up the difference, the cost of water goes up. If the Edwards Aquifer is so important to our community well-being and even our pocketbooks, how can we protect this exceptional groundwater supply and its great springs? We can do that first and foremost by conserving water, using less, thus keeping it in the ground. If you don’t use it, you don’t lose it, and you don’t have to pay for it. |
Comal Springs is one of the ‘Great Springs of Texas.’ In fact, it is the largest spring system in the American Southwest, and it issues from one of the most prolific groundwater sources in the world – the Edwards Aquifer. These facts might make those of us who live here feel proud, but they should also give us pause. Why? Because the growing demands on the aquifer endanger it and threaten its future as a relatively inexpensive water supply.”
Helen Ballew Comal County Conservation Alliance |
Katherine Romans, Executive Director, Hill Country Alliance
The Future of Texas' Water Resources
NBU Connections — Special Edition 2021
A Word From Our Hill Country Alliance Partner Katherine Romans
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The Texas Hill Country is a region defined by its water resources. From the banks of the Blanco to the secret swimming holes of the Guadalupe to the pristine waters of the Comal, our creeks, rivers, and springs are the source of our economic and ecological resilience. Millions of Texans, from Mountain Home to Matagorda Bay, rely on those flows for their livelihoods and quality of life. And yet, our water resources are in immediate jeopardy. Booming population growth means increasing strains on an already over-allocated resource. Three of the top five fastest growing counties in the country - including Comal County - are right here in the Hill Country. More roads, rooftops, and driveways mean less opportunity for precious rainfall to percolate into our groundwater supply. More development means additional straws pumping water from our aquifers. There simply is not anendless supply of water in our creeks, springs, and rivers to sustain the projected doubling of our current population over the next 30 years.
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Time and again, studies show that conserving the water we already have is the most cost-effective way to secure our water future. The Hill Country Alliance and our partners in the Texas Living Waters Project work with residents, landowners, cities, and utilities to promote water conservation practices across the region and the state.
Conservation actions taken now will continue yielding water benefits well into the future. Each of us has a role to play in protecting the waters of the Hill Country. By installing low-flow fixtures, native and drought-tolerant landscapes, capturing rainwater off our roofs, and being savvy consumers of water resources, we can all contribute to ensuring the waters that define this region are here to sustain future generations. We hope you’ll dig in to learn more about the Hill Country’s water resources at hillcountryalliance.org. |
Ian Taylor
NBU Chief Executive Officer
A Message From Ian Taylor, NBU Chief Executive Officer
| 21-15310-connections_21x9_25-webresspreads.pdf |
As Chief Executive Officer of New Braunfels Utilities (NBU), I lead a passionate team dedicated to educating our customers about the intricate details of rate design and assisting customers with utility bill management. A key component is understanding how conservation is directly linked to preserving our water supply and providing the most cost-effective water resources. As you read this special edition of NBU Connections, you will hear from experts on our team as well community partners, including the Comal County Conservation Alliance, a Texas Master Gardener, and the Hill Country Alliance, about the importance of conservation and its impact on our economic well-being.
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The Texas Living Waters Project is transforming the way we manage water so there will be enough for our wildlife, our economy, and our kids. Forever.
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World Water Day, March 22, 2021 — Strategies for Water for All in the Lone Star State
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Most Texans don’t worry about being left behind without access to clean, affordable drinking water – after all, it never fails to fill our sinks, showers and hoses. But in a growing, drought-prone state that is ground zero for climate change, making sure that we’ll always continue to have fresh water for all is a concern that we at the Texas Living Waters Project wrestle with daily.
Water scarcity would impact the lives of each and every Texan – but in particular, our changing water landscape threatens low- and moderate-income water rate payers who must subsidize wasteful water practices from higher-income residents, businesses and industrial users; rural communities whose groundwater supplies are encroached upon by rapidly growing urban centers; and the fish and wildlife, as well as the people whose livelihoods depend on them, that need plentiful fresh water flowing through our rivers and into our bays. March 22 is World Water Day. Building a future with fresh water for all is no easy task, and there is no single solution. However, we have identified seven strategies that are a strong starting place for addressing this challenge in the Lone Star State: 1. REDUCING DEMAND — Before anything else, communities must engage mightily in water conservation. Using less water is the only way to truly mitigate water scarcity. 2. COLLABORATING — Texas communities must bring more stakeholders to the table to plan for their water future. Whether or not a community implements a One Water management approach, we can all benefit from thinking more comprehensively about how time-tested strategies like stormwater collection can be used alongside of innovations that utilize new developments, parks and community spaces to manage water more efficiently and effectively. 3. EMBRACING INNOVATION — Communities must be willing to think beyond traditional approaches to embrace and incentivize the adoption of newer, more innovative |
solutions. Nature-based approaches to development and land restoration have incredible benefits for communities, including preparing them to be more resilient when faced with both droughts and storms.
4. THINKING BIG PICTURE — Communities must remember that when the Texas environment suffers, so do we. Water supply strategies must be implemented responsibly, in a way that allows enough fresh water to flow into rivers and all the way to Texas bays. 5. PLANNING FOR DROUGHT — Community drought management protocols typically kick in when water supplies drop to a certain level or water treatment facilities begin to reach capacity – but often, this ignores earlier signs of real drought. Instead of waiting for supplies to stretch thin, our communities should develop multi-faceted drought response plans that also consider whether the region is in a climatic drought. By doing so, communities can become more nimble and proactive in stretching water supplies in the face of drought. 6. DIVERSIFY — No strategy is sufficient or reliable on its own; Texas communities must stay flexible and resilient by investing in a diverse mix of strategies. By implementing a host of smaller-scale strategies, communities may even be able to avoid larger, more destructive water supply projects. 7. REMAINING DILIGENT — Technology has been, and will continue to be, a boon for water conservation and supply. Still, as new technologies become available, communities must continue to fully evaluate strategies to ensure they are the right fit for them and the environment. Water utilities should invest in research and development and be willing to test and give feedback on new strategies. These recommendations are excerpted from Best Bets for Texas Water, a guidebook to evaluating water supply and management strategies for Texas’ water future. |
The waters that feed the springs that sustain our rivers tomorrow are underground today. These natural aquifers are the water banks that supply our cities, farms, fish and wildlife, providing more than 55 percent of our water supply. There is no more important resource for us to protect and manage wisely. Between us, we can ensure our water needs are met for all of our tomorrows.
Groundwater
texaslivingwaters.org/groundwater/
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Simply put, groundwater is water that is found beneath the surface of the earth. The aquifers which store groundwater are often compared to underground reservoirs; they are recharged by water percolating down from the surface and release water through springs.
According to the Texas Water Development Board, water from aquifers or groundwater provides over 55 percent of the state’s water supply. A vast majority of the groundwater (nearly 80 percent) is used to irrigate crops. Cities such as San Antonio, El Paso, Houston and Amarillo also depend, to varying degrees, on groundwater to supply homes, businesses and industries. Many rural Texans also rely on groundwater from individual wells. Aquifers support springs that provide the majority of the water to our most beloved rivers, including the Guadalupe, San Marcos, Frio, San Antonio, Nueces and Llano, and they also sustain Austin’s Barton Springs Pool, and other popular Texas swimming holes. Many of these springs are also home to unique and often endangered animals and plants. |
Heavy pumping from Edwards-Trinity Aquifer for irrigation caused Comanche Springs flow to decline after 1947
Comanche Springs Pool near Ft. Stocketon in 1938 Source: Image captured from rootsweb.orgAs pressure on our state’s limited water resource continues to grow, Texas must ensure that our groundwater resources are managed wisely in order to protect our vital aquifers and springs. In some parts of the state, groundwater is being used much more quickly than it is being replenished. For example, the massive Ogallala Aquifer in the Texas Panhandle, which provides the majority of groundwater supplies in Texas, is being pumped at a rate six times greater than the recharge rate. Likewise, the city of Houston has been seriously impacted by groundwater pumping that has resulted in significant land subsidence. The sinking land levels have increased the frequency of flooding and have caused extensive damage to homes, roadways and other critical infrastructure costing billions of dollars. It is imperative that moving forward, we manage these precious resources more sustainably. |
Brian Lehmann/Circle of Blue
When It Rains, Texans Forget Drought & Worsening Water Scarcity
www.texastribune.org/paid-post/when-it-rains-texans-forget-drought-and-worsening-water-scarcity/?utm_campaign=trib-sponsorshare&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR2vpIiDK1UlBfhdefqkc4Gflftz3O8D6BrjcXygWfjiK_m3saZwKgqhhi4
After the pandemic, soaring population growth, development will again challenge planning and water supply.
By Keith Schneider, Circle of Blue
September 2020
September 2020
WIMBERLEY, Texas – Among the famed springs that distinguish the Texas Hill Country as a region of crystal-clear water and iconic swimming holes, Jacob’s Well stands out. The spring’s water source is rain that falls on the thin soils of Hays County and filters through porous limestone before filling a network of deep, ancient caves.
The water rises back to the surface from a hole, about 12 feet across, in the bottom of Cypress Creek. The round opening is so blue, so shimmering, that viewed from the top of a nearby limestone cliff it looks like an eye. Unblinking as it emerges from the darkness, the water forms an intent gaze that appears capable of seeing the opposing moods of the Hill Country: the calming influence of ample water supply in wet seasons, and surging alarm during drought.
When it’s wet in Hays and the 16 other counties that form the Hill Country, Jacob’s Well pours about 900 gallons a minute into Cypress Creek, more than enough to fill the Blue Pool downstream that is a summertime recreational asset in this town of 3,000 residents. In wet years, ample rainfall means that the various circumstances of economic development — population growth, land use changes and water supply — are like soft breezes, licks of wind that are not terribly distracting.
The water rises back to the surface from a hole, about 12 feet across, in the bottom of Cypress Creek. The round opening is so blue, so shimmering, that viewed from the top of a nearby limestone cliff it looks like an eye. Unblinking as it emerges from the darkness, the water forms an intent gaze that appears capable of seeing the opposing moods of the Hill Country: the calming influence of ample water supply in wet seasons, and surging alarm during drought.
When it’s wet in Hays and the 16 other counties that form the Hill Country, Jacob’s Well pours about 900 gallons a minute into Cypress Creek, more than enough to fill the Blue Pool downstream that is a summertime recreational asset in this town of 3,000 residents. In wet years, ample rainfall means that the various circumstances of economic development — population growth, land use changes and water supply — are like soft breezes, licks of wind that are not terribly distracting.
‘God is Not Making More Honey Creeks’: Longtime Neighbors Clash Over Planned Hill Country Development
| hill_country_development.docx |
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Joyce Moore lives in Gillespie County, but on many weekends, she makes the roughly hourlong drive south to Bulverde to the 640-acre ranch where she grew up, land that has been in her family for nearly 150 years.
Last Saturday, termite damage was the issue of the day. She and her 19-year-old son Josh worked in 103-degree heat fixing a decaying roof on a century-old pumphouse. After long days such as this, Moore likes to drive up to the old chapel on the hillside, where she can see across the rolling hills of oak, juniper, prickly pear, and native grasses. "I used to enjoy coming out here," Moore said. "Now, I don't, and I can't with what's to come." Moore now only sees what will soon change that view forever. A massive residential subdivision planned by her neighbor to the south originally called for 2,400 homes packed on small lots. Ronnie Urbanczyk and his wife, Terry, own approximately 560 acres and have lived in the area 6 miles northwest of Bulverde on State Highway 46 since the early 1990s. Moore remembers when she first heard about the Urbanczyk development from one of the hunters to whom she leases her land. "I felt sick to my stomach," she said. |
The water that feeds Honey Creek stays at an almost constant temperature in the low 70s.
Honey Creek is a nearly untouched water source on private property near Guadalupe State Park.
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One Water – Blue Hole Primary School
| one_water_–_blue_hole_primary_school.docx |
While COVID-19 dominates headlines in 2020, groundwater protection efforts in the Texas Hill Country are set to realize a tremendous success story when the first One Water school in Texas officially opens its doors for classes this fall! Blue Hole Primary School will serve the growing Hill Country communities of Wimberley and Woodcreek with one of the most water efficient and cost-effective approaches ever envisioned for a school campus in Texas.
Subsurface drip irrigation field installation. Treated effluent and harvested rainwater will irrigate Blue Hole Primary School’s new athletic fields. Photo by Bob Farmer, AGCM
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Installation of onsite treatment and reuse system will feature a low energy and highly efficient packed-bed recirculating gravel treatment system to polish black/gray water for irrigation. The system has been designed to meet Edwards Aquifer rules for nutrient reduction. Photo by Bob Farmer, AGCM
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Pedernales Falls River Corridor
Water Rights Success Story to Preserve & Protect
| water-rights-success-story-to-preserve-and-protect-prc.pdf |
When looming development threatened an idyllic slice of the Texas Hill Country known as the Pedernales Falls River Corridor, a group of like-minded neighbors took action to preserve the rare riverside beauty, habitat and history of the corridor, not only for themselves, but for future generations. These landowners used conservation easements to protect their property forever, and are encouraging other property owners along the corridor to do so as well.
Texas Stormwater Score Card 2020
| scorecard2020_08web.pdf |
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Water is a part of life, and our waterways are a part of what makes Texas special. But, runoff pollution threatens our favorite swimming holes, our drinking water, our pets, and wildlife. When stormwater runs off roofs, roads, parking lots, and sidewalks, it gathers toxic chemicals, excess nutrients, trash, and other forms of pollution. Traditional concrete channel infrastructure compounds the problem: it concentrates pollutants and directs the dirty water directly into local streams. To address the issue Texas municipalities are turning to nature-based infrastructure. Rain gardens, green roofs, the conservation of natural spaces, and other techniques can reduce runoff pollution by up to 90%.
The Texas Stormwater Scorecard evaluates the stormwater management policies of local governments across Texas to see how well they support the use of nature-based infrastructure. |
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CCCA & Great Springs Project Create Protected Land Map
| jan_19_map_creation.pdf |
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Edwards Aquifer is a world class freshwater supply in a world where that should really mean something. Its crystal clarity and purity provides clean drinking water for millions of people, and it gives rise to great beautiful springs that have nourished minds, bodies and spirits for thousands of years. These great springs have, in turn, given rise to great cities: mainly San Antonio, New Braunfels, San Marcos, and Austin. We are blessed beyond words to live in this place with this natural wonder. And we are responsible for ensuring others who come after us will enjoy and benefit from it as well.
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San Antonio's Edwards Aquifer Protection Program
| txwj-sanantonioaquiferprotection.pdf |
Read a review and analysis of San Antonio's Edwards Aquifer Protection Program. The city of San Antonio has effectively educated the public on the value of this sales tax funded measure, even though some justification of its premises, such as inevitable development in western counties, remains subjective.
Water flows via beautiful streams in Texas Hill Country.
One Water: The Future of Land + Water in Central Texas
Katherine Romans, Executive Director
Hill Country Alliance
June 27, 2018
Hill Country Alliance
June 27, 2018
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For centuries, the Texas Hill Country has been a region defined by its water resources. Early European settlers traced the paths of the San Antonio, Nueces, Guadalupe, and Colorado Rivers, following their rocky beds, spring-fed tributaries, and shallow draws, no doubt noting every seep and spring along the way.
Before the Europeans, numerous tribes of indigenous peoples hunted, gathered, and fished along these same creeks and rivers. Evidence of their preference for the rivers and the spring sites of the Hill Country is easy to read in the archeology of burned rock middens, ancient campsites, and remnant arrowheads. Livelihoods in the early days of European settlement of the Hill Country were built and lost on the fortunes of wet years and dry. Every good rancher knew the carrying capacity of their land and how to manage livestock levels to maintain soil moisture. Not a drop was wasted. It’s easy to appreciate the value of water when you have to carry it, one bucket at a time, from the well, spring, creek, or river out back. Today’s water story in the Texas Hill Country, however, is much different. Would our forefathers recognize our relationship with water today? In as little as four or five generations—since the era of our grandmothers’ mothers and grandmothers—we have lost that deep and abiding connection to water—where it originates—and its value to our lives. The advent of well drilling technology and major pipeline infrastructure has opened otherwise water-constrained areas for development. We now dump upwards of a third of our clean, treated municipal drinking water onto our lawns, golf courses, and gardens statewide, and closer to 50 percent in some communities. Over-pumping from limited Hill Country aquifers threatens the spring flow that sustains our most iconic rivers and swimming holes. In Hays County, two landowner-developers are seeking permits to pump a combined 1.2 billion gallons per year from the Trinity Aquifer. We know that this part of the aquifer provides flow to the San Marcos River, the Blanco River, tributary creeks, Jacob’s Well, and thousands of private water wells. The Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District estimates that the level of pumping requested may completely de-water the Cow Creek (Middle Trinity) Aquifer within seven years—the very same water on which many Hays County residents depend as their sole source. We also see growing threats to the water quality in our Hill Country creeks. Booming development yields increased impervious cover and additional runoff. More and more often, developers are seeking permits to dump treated wastewater effluent into dry or ephemeral creeks. While some Hill Country rivers can handle the nutrient loading from treated wastewater discharge (and many Texas rivers depend on it for their baseflow), many of our pristine creeks with little or low flow simply cannot manage the treated wastewater input. Often this results in algal blooms, nutrient loading that destroys the natural aquatic food chain, and diminishes water quality making our waterways unswimmable, undrinkable, and off-limits for human contact. More than 1,500 miles of Hill Country Creeks, rivers and streams are listed as impaired. As we look to add three to five million additional residents to the 17 counties of the Hill Country by 2050, how will we ensure water quantity and quality to sustain the homes, businesses, and quality of life that defines this region of Texas? THE SOLUTION IS A MINDSET CHANGE One Water is a term that refers to the holistic approach to water management, although it's nothing new when we consider the history of our predecessor’s relationship to water resources. |
Municipal Water Use — Fall 2014
It simply means considering all water—whether groundwater, surface water, rainfall, stormwater, drinking water, wastewater, or even new sources such as air conditioning condensate—as part of the complete water balance. One Water poses the question, “How can we more holistically manage these resources for the benefit of humans, the environment, the economy, and our quality of life?” It is the kind of question that we at the Hill Country Alliance ask every day. The beauty of One Water is that it finds solutions not only by looking at our demand for water but, importantly, by generating new supplies of water. Stormwater is no longer a nuisance to be shunted away through concrete culverts as quickly as possible—it is something to be stored in rainwater gardens, bioswales, and cisterns. Air conditioning condensate and grey water can be used to flush toilets and to keep gardens lush in times of drought. By switching to distributed infrastructure models, we can put water collection, treatment, and wastewater treatment closer to the source of where it is generated and used. The adoption of a One Water approach will take the work of more than just nonprofits like the Hill Country Alliance. Most importantly, it will require citizens and community members to demand a long-term approach to water planning. It will demand innovation from engineering firms, builders, and designers exploring more nonconventional solutions. It will take the work (and vision) of city policymakers and water utility managers to invest in infrastructure changes that will have long-term payouts. RURAL AND URBAN PARTNERSHIPS Ultimately, the future of the rapidly urbanizing communities of the Hill Country—including three of the top 10 fastest growing counties in the nation—will depend on the continued stewardship of the rural residents of the area. The vast majority of the water we drink, swim in and enjoy all along the central IH35 corridor begins as rainfall on the lands of the Hill Country. The stewards of those rural lands—the ranchers, farmers, and landowners—are doing their part to ensure long-term water supplies for Austin and San Antonio. A new landowner coalition in the Hill Country has formed to learn more about the drivers of spring flow and aquifer health in order to keep Hill Country creeks full of water, even in times of drought. We would all do well to pay attention to their findings and seek opportunities to support those stewardship efforts whenever we can. In the same vein, the future of our rural Hill Country will depend on the quick adoption of a One Water approach within the rapidly developing urban core. Let’s ask developers to bring forward-thinking ideas to the table on how they’ll ensure responsible water management for new construction. Let’s demand our cities take a more nuanced approach to water management. Let’s look to our state legislature to see how we can remove barriers to innovation in water management. Water is THE sustaining element behind the beauty, quality of life, and economic vitality of the Hill Country. One Water is the best way to ensure the continued prosperity of our region for future generations. |
Katherine Romans is the executive director of the Hill Country Alliance, a nonprofit focused on protecting the water, land, communities and night skies of the Texas Hill Country. She has more than a decade of nonprofit and legislative experience in natural resource issues, and has been working on issues of growth and conservation with the Hill Country Alliance for five years. Katherine holds a Master of Environmental Management from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.
