1.9 Threats to Agricultural and Natural Resources
Water shortages and declining water quality are threats to agricultural and natural resources in the South Central Texas Water Planning Region. As this region is projected to experience significant population growth through the year 2050, additional stress will be placed on water supply sources, which are already stressed in some areas. The Winter Garden and Edwards Aquifer areas are productive farming areas of the State. The Winter Garden area relies extensively upon groundwater from the Carrizo Aquifer for irrigation purposes, while irrigation farmers in Uvalde, Medina, and Bexar Counties rely upon groundwater from the Edwards Aquifer for irrigation. A loss of productivity in these areas would adversely affect the people and economy of the Region.
There are several threatened or endangered species in the area whose habitat relies upon a constant source of clean water. Many of these species are associated with the Edwards Aquifer and springs emanating therefrom. A reduction in either water quality or quantity could have adverse impacts on these fragile ecosystems. Therefore, major objectives of the water planning for the South Central Texas Water Planning Region are to improve efficiency of use of water so that the people and economy can function satisfactorily with smaller quantities per unit of activity, and to increase the supply of water at reasonable costs in order to have adequate quantities for all water user groups, thereby reducing the competition among user groups for the region’s presently available supply.
The South Central Texas Regional Water Planning Group (SCTRWPG) has given due consideration to potential or perceived threats to agricultural and natural resources, such as those identified above, in the course of developing this Regional Water Plan. Thoughts, concerns, or observations of the SCTRWPG regarding threats to agricultural and natural resources are expressed in the following locations throughout the Regional Water Plan:
Volume I, Section 5.2.6.1 with regard to the overall Regional Water Plan;
Volume I, Table 5.2-25 with regard to each of the water management strategies in the Regional Water Plan; and
Volume II, Section 2 through Section 6 with regard to each alternative regional water plan and each of the associated water management strategies.
1.10 Summary of Existing Plans and Programs
In January 1999, the SCTRWPG requested that representatives of each city and water conservation district of the region forward a copy of any available water plans, or water management documents. Entities with or without water planning documents were asked to indicate where they are planning to obtain their water for the next 50 years. Entities were also asked to respond if they already had a supply of water for the next 50 years. Approximately 70 responses were received. These responses included copies of plans, as well as summaries of local and regional water plans and studies conducted in the planning area (Table 1-14 Summary of Plans/Studies Submitted to the SCTRWPG 1 2 3 4 5 ). If an entity did not have a water plan, its current and future water source or sources are summarized in the table. A narrative description of each plan or study is presented in the following sections.
1.10.1 State and Federal Plans/Programs
1.10.1.1 State Water Plan[1]
In Section 26.051 of the Texas Water Code, the Executive Administrator of the TWDB is charged with producing a State Water Plan that addresses the broad public interest of the State. As currently specified in Sections 16.055 and 16.056, the Plan is to be periodically reviewed and updated and serve as a flexible guide to state policy for the development of its water resources. The TNRCC shall consider the State Water Plan in its water regulatory actions, although its actions are not bound by the Plan.
The 1997 Texas Water Plan provides a statewide perspective that places local and regional needs within the state context. Available individual and county-level studies were built into the overall findings, and in formulating water supply solutions, the Plan focused on economic viability while taking environmental sensitivity into consideration. New legislation, passed in the 75th Legislature, specifies a 5-year update period for the Plan, that is based on regional planning studies, and provides that related financial assistance applications must be consistent with the regional and State plans for regulatory approval by State agencies.
The ultimate goal of the State Water Plan is to identify those policies and actions that may be needed to meet Texas’ near- and long-term water needs, based on a reasonable projected use of water, affordable water supply availability, and the goal of conservation of the State’s natural resources.
1.10.1.2 Summary of Recommendations in the 1997 Water for Update to the State Water Plan[2]
1.10.1.2.1 Nueces River Basin
Portions of the Nueces River Basin within the South Central Texas Region will need to continue to depend heavily upon the Edwards and the Carrizo Aquifers to meet the basin’s future water needs.
1.10.1.2.2 San Antonio River Basin
With the Edwards Aquifer withdrawal limits imposed by SB1477, additional water supplies in the San Antonio and Guadalupe River Basins will need to be developed for use in the San Antonio area, even with the TWDB’s advanced water conservation savings projections. Long-term water needs in the area will be difficult to meet unless several options are successfully pursued. In order to meet the needs in the San Antonio area, the Board recommends that the Cibolo Reservoir project be developed before 2010. However, final decisions on actual projects and timing are to be made locally.
Cibolo Reservoir. This project would be located near the City of Stockdale in Wilson County, and would consist of a reservoir on Cibolo Creek, with diversion facilities on the San Antonio River. The diversion facilities, located near Floresville, would divert flows from the San Antonio River including treated effluent from the San Antonio area into the main reservoir. The TWDB estimated that over 122,000 acft/yr of water supply could be developed by this project, which includes the supplies that could be developed from the Cibolo watershed at the site, plus diversions of wastewater return flows from the San Antonio area and river flows from the San Antonio River. The project would pass flows averaging about 25,000 acft/yr to meet environmental needs under the consensus environmental planning criteria. The project would inundate 9,896 acres, including 1,615 acres of mixed riparian forest.
Medina Lake. The Medina Lake System is recommended to be converted from a purely irrigation supply source to an irrigation and municipal water supply source capable of satisfying a portion of the municipal needs in western Bexar County. The TNRCC has authorized diversion of up to 19,974 acft/yr from Diversion Lake for municipal purposes. Water supply contracts between BMA and BMWD exist today.
1.10.1.2.3 Guadalupe River Basin
In order to ensure that the springs at San Marcos and New Braunfels continue to flow, alternative water supplies must be developed to meet part of the needs now being met from the Edwards Aquifer. One reservoir, Sandies Creek, is recommended for development in the basin before 2030. Supplies from this project could be used to meet part of the needs in the Edwards Aquifer area, as well as some of the needs in the lower part of the basin which are presently supplied by Canyon Reservoir, thereby freeing supplies from Canyon Reservoir to be used in the New Braunfels – San Marcos area. The following is recommended to increase the supplies in the basin:
Hydropower Subordination. The TWDB recommended that the hydropower permits below Canyon Reservoir be subordinated to Canyon Reservoir. This subordination is expected to increase the dependable supplies available from Canyon by about 35,000 acft/yr. The TWDB recommends that hydropower subordination be implemented before 2010. Both the GBRA and the City of Seguin have already subordinated their hydropower rights to Canyon Reservoir.
Sandies Reservoir. This project would consist of an off-channel storage reservoir located on Sandies Creek, with facilities to divert water from the Guadalupe River into the reservoir during high river flow. The reservoir would be located in DeWitt and Gonzales Counties northwest of the City of Cuero. The diversion facilities could be located in Gonzales County near the City of Gonzales or further downstream above Cuero. The TWDB estimates that a supply of more than 97,600 acft/yr could be developed by operating this project so as to pass through only the amount of water actually projected to be used by downstream water rights holders. If full downstream water rights are considered and a corresponding volume of water is passed to meet them, then the TWDB estimates the supply available from the project would be 80,000 acft/yr. The amount of flows estimated to be passed through this reservoir for environmental maintenance in 3,175 acft/yr. This project would inundate 29,322 acres, including an estimated 2,388 acres of mixed riparian forest.
1.10.1.2.4 Lavaca-Guadalupe Coastal Basin
The Lavaca-Guadalupe Coastal Basin will continue to be supplied by imports from the Guadalupe River, with 20 percent of the needs being met from locally available groundwater.
1.10.1.2.5 San Antonio-Nueces Coastal Basin
The San-Antonio-Nueces Coastal Basin will continue to rely on imports from the Nueces River Basin to provide most of its needed supplies. However, additional contractual commitments for future water supplies will need to secured from the City of Corpus Christi, which is the major regional supplier in the area.
1.10.1.3 Texas
Clean Rivers Program and Goals[3]
The Clean Rivers Program was established by the Texas Clean Rivers Act in 1991. In accordance with the statute, the TNRCC adopted rules guiding comprehensive regional assessments of water quality focusing on river basins or watersheds.
The goal of the Clean Rivers Program is to maintain and improve the quality of water resources within each river basin in Texas through an ongoing partnership involving the TNRCC, other agencies, river authorities, regional entities, local governments, industry and citizens. The program uses a watershed management approach to identify and evaluate water quality issues, establish priorities for corrective action, and work to implement those actions. Specifically, the Cleans Rivers Program has nine goals. These are:
Enhance public participation and education;
Encourage comprehensive watershed planning;
Identify pollutant sources;
Provide a scientific approach to water quality issues;
Focus on priority issues;
Prevent and reduce pollution at the source;
Ensure better use of public funds;
Promote water conservation; and
Provide assistance for local initiatives.
In the South Central Texas Region, the Guadalupe-Blanco, San Antonio, and Nueces River Authorities, in partnership with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, administer and operate the Clean Rivers Program. The program is funded from fees assessed to wastewater discharge and water rights permit holders, and is focused upon water quality monitoring to determine water quality trends. Data are collected and analyzed for important water quality parameters, including dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, temperature, total dissolved solids, chloride, sulfate, nitrate nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen, total phospherus, and ortho-phosphorus. Bacterial data such as fecal coliform, Escherichia coli, and fecal streptococcus are collected, and biological sampling of fish is done.
Data collection and water quality monitoring provides information to support a wide range of analyses, including:
Temporal and spatial analysis of water quality and standards compliance;
Knowledge of water quality and flow for unclassified streams;
Evaluation and development of state-wide, regional, and site-specific standards;
Permit criteria related to the perennial or intermitten nature of receiving streams;
Receiving water assessments;
305(b) assessment and 303(d) priority monitoring;
Use attainability assessments;
Waste load evaluations (WLE) or total maximum daily load (TMDL) development; and
Special studies.
The information developed and maintained through the CRP is extremely important to both natural resource protection and to water planning, in that the information is essential to the management of waste disposal and the production of safe drinking water for public purposes.
1.10.1.4 Federal Clean Water Act Program and Goals
In 1972, Congress enacted the Federal Clean Water Act. This Act is the primary federal law that protects the nation’s waters, including lakes, rivers, aquifers and coastal areas. The Clean Water Act’s primary objective is to restore and maintain the integrity of the nation’s waters. This objective translates into two fundamental national goals:
Eliminate the discharge of pollutants into the nation’s waters; and
Achieve water quality levels that are fishable and support contact recreational use.
More specifically, the Clean Water Act:
Requires major industries to meet performance standards to ensure pollution control;
Charges states and tribes with setting specific water quality criteria appropriate for their waters and developing pollution control programs to meet them;
Provides funding to states and communities to help them meet their clean water infrastructure needs; and
Requires a permitting process to ensure that development and other activities are conducted in an environmentally sound manner.
1.10.2 Regional Water Plans
1.10.2.1 Bexar-Medina-Atascosa Counties Water Control and Improvement District No. 1[4]
BMA owns and operates Medina Lake and Diversion Lake approximately 25 miles northwest of San Antonio and currently operates primarily as an irrigation district, although it has contracted to sell surplus irrigation water for municipal use. BMA is authorized to store more than 237,000 acft of water in Medina Lake with an annual diversion right of 66,000 acft/yr. Of its total diversion right, BMA has been authorized to divert approximately 20,000 acft/yr for municipal purposes and the balance, approximately 46,000 acft/yr, for irrigation use. BMA currently has approximately 34,000 acres of irrigable land within the District eligible to receive irrigation waters. BMA is also authorized to maintain and operate Chacon Lake, located in the Nueces River Basin in Medina County, with an annual diversion right of approximately 2,000 acft/yr for irrigation purposes.
BMA has existing contracts for use of its authorized municipal diversion rights. Specifically, BMA has two contracts with the BMWD and a third contract (limited to approximately 5,000 acft/yr) with interest in Bandera County. BMA also has several smaller contracts with water utilities and/or irrigators around Medina Lake, which consume the balance of the present allocation of municipal water rights associated with the Medina Lake System.
BMA’s current active water development project involves a Small Watershed Project pursued though the Natural Resource Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Project has been authorized by Congress for consideration by the Office of Management and Budget. The beneficial results from the Project are estimated by the National Resource Conservation Service in “water savings” of approximately 34,000 acft/yr through reduction of losses in the Medina Canal System and other conservation measures. The Project also includes expansion of a small regulating reservoir in the BMA canal system known as Pearson Lake.
1.10.2.2 Canyon
Lake Water Supply Corporation[5]
In January 1996, Canyon Lake WSC and the TWDB entered
into an agreement to jointly fund a Regional Water Study for western Comal
County. This study was completed and
approved in December 1997. This plan
addresses the conjunctive use of Trinity Aquifer groundwater and surface water
from Canyon Reservoir. Canyon Lake WSC
currently has a
1.5-mgd surface water treatment plant in operation on the south shore of Canyon
Reservoir.
Based upon priorities within Comal County, the Canyon Lake WSC Board of Directors has elected to limit the planned service area to the portion of western Comal County that lies north of State Highway 46. Funding is approved, and plans are being developed to construct a 4.0-mgd surface water treatment plant in the spring of 2000 on the north shore of Canyon Reservoir. The GBRA has indicated that the raw water will be made available when Canyon Lake WSC presents its request for additional raw water. A current contract with GBRA for 1,000 acft of raw water from Canyon Reservoir meets present needs, but an additional 5,000 acft will be needed for future growth.
1.10.2.3 Canyon Regional Water Authority[6]
Canyon Regional Water Authority (CRWA) is a subdivision of the State of Texas created by the Texas Legislature in 1989. CRWA is made up of member entities (Crystal Clear WSC, East Central WSC, BMWD, Green Valley SUD, Springs Hill WSC, City of Cibolo, City of Marion, City of La Vernia, Maxwell WSC, and County Line WSC) who are retail water suppliers in the South Central Texas Region. CRWA functions as a partnership of water supply corporations, cities, and districts responsible for acquiring, treating, and transporting potable water.
CRWA is currently operating under agreements with several member entities to develop additional resources within the Cibolo Creek sub-basin area. This entails development of Carrizo Aquifer water along with certain small water rights on Cibolo Creek.
CRWA’s current ongoing projects include expansion of the Lake Dunlap Water Treatment Plant and the Mid-Cities Transmission System to serve the Cities of Marion, La Vernia, Cibolo, and BMWD. A water purchase contract between CRWA and GBRA has been negotiated to accommodate the requested increase of Springs Hill WSC, Green Valley SUD, Marion, Cibolo, East Central WSC, and BMWD. In order for CRWA to meet the requested needs of its member entities, a phased approach to accommodate the requested increase in treated water from the Lake Dunlap facility has been proposed. Phase I includes the requested increases of Crystal Clear WSC, Springs Hill WSC, and Green Valley SUD. Phase II includes the remainder of the requested increases for East Central WSC, the Cities of Marion and Cibolo, Green Valley SUD, BMWD’s Northeast Service Area, and Springs Hill WSC.
CRWA is also currently involved in the Hays/Caldwell Water Regionalization Project. The overall project consists of a surface water treatment plant to be constructed along the San Marcos River east of the City of San Marcos and a transmission system to deliver treated water to Martindale WSC, Maxwell WSC, County Line WSC, and Crystal Clear WSC. Following treatment, finished water would be delivered to the four participating entities via a transmission system consisting of two components. One component delivers treated surface water to CCWSC and the second component delivers treated surface water to Martindale WSC, Maxwell WSC, and CLWSC.
1.10.2.4 City and County of Victoria[7]
In June 1992, a regional water supply plan was prepared for the City and County of Victoria. The plan showed that at least 16,000 acft/yr was available for appropriation in the Guadalupe River just downstream of the Central Power & Light power plant in Victoria. It was further recommended that by mixing treated surface water and groundwater at a rate of half surface water and half groundwater a good quality water could be produced and water production costs would be reduced. Finally, it was recommended that the groundwater resource be protected. This protection would take the form of the City or County of Victoria, or a newly created district, measuring water levels and testing water quality on at least a quarterly basis.
The City of Victoria subsequently applied for and obtained a water rights permit authorizing run-of-river diversion of up to 20,000 acft/yr and storage of up to 1,000 acft/yr in an off-channel storage facility.
1.10.2.5 Green Valley Special Utility District[8]
Green Valley SUD has three wells in the Edwards Aquifer from w from which they currently receive water. They also purchase water from New Braunfels Utilities. The proposed permit amount from the Edwards Aquifer Authority (EAA) for Green Valley SUD is set at 1,060 acft/yr and will be imposed in the year 2000. If this causes a shortage of water, they intend to purchase or lease water rights from those available on the market.
Green Valley SUD has a contract with the Canyon Regional Water Authority for 725 acft/yr with an additional 300 acft/yr available for their use. Once the expansion of CRWA’s water treatment plant on Lake Dunlap is completed and the transmission line is complete, Green Valley SUD is contracted to receive 1,400 acft/yr.
Green Valley feels that their water needs will be met over the next ten years by the combination of these and other options. They will investigate the reuse of water from any available source and will consider partnering with other municipalities to find a feasible method.
1.10.2.6 Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority[9]
The GBRA was established to develop, conserve, and protect the water resources of the Guadalupe River Basin and make them available for beneficial use. GBRA is a regional entity serving Hays, Comal, Guadalupe, Caldwell, Gonzales, DeWitt, Victoria, Kendall, Refugio, and Calhoun Counties.
GBRA’s internal planning process reflects short-term local projects, but GBRA recognizes that any long-term projects must be regional. GBRA has several water supply projects that are underway, under construction, or are in the design phase with construction to follow, including the Western Canyon Regional Water Supply Project and the CRWA/BMWD Water Supply Agreement. The Western Canyon Regional Project will include the construction of a water treatment plant west of Canyon Reservoir, and a water transmission pipeline system to deliver treated water to the project participants’ ground storage tanks or other selected delivery points. Depending on the final size of the plant, it will be able to treat approximately 9.3 million gallons of water daily. Potential in-district participants include the Bulverde Utility Company, Apex Water Services, Comal Independent School District, the City of Boerne, and the City of Fair Oaks Ranch. As a part of this project, limited quantities of water will be provided to out-of-district customers, including the San Antonio Water System, Bexar Metropolitan Water District, and the San Antonio River Authority.
GBRA has submitted an application to the TNRCC to increase the amount of Canyon Reservoir stored water for municipal, industrial, and other purposes. GBRA has also approved a short-term, temporary out-of-district allocation to the BMWD, as well as the East Central WSC, and the Green Valley SUD, and has entered into an agreement with the San Antonio Water System (SAWS) and the San Antonio River Authority to set guidelines for regional water supply development. This will initiate a process of identifying available sources of supply, studying alternative methods of developing these supplies, conducting the regional planning necessary to utilize these supplies, and developing the appropriate contracts.
1.10.2.7 Medina County Regional Water Management Plan[10]
The Medina County Regional Water Management Plan was developed in order to evalute the long-term alternatives to the use of groundwater and perform a cost analysis on the effectiveness of such alternatives and is being lead by the Bexar-Medina-Atascosa Water Control and Improvement District No. 1.
The specific objectives of the plan included the following:
1. To establish county-wide population and water demand projections for Medina County;
2. To describe the quantity and quality of water resources that are available to meet the future demands within the study area and to quantify any limits to development of these resources;
3. To evaluate conjunctive management and use of groundwater and surface water resources within Medina County and provide a basis for management strategies that may be used to fulfill the regional water demands; and
4. To formulate the basic elements of alternative plans that may be used to reconcile water demands with the resources available.
1.10.2.8 Portions of Comal, Kendall and Bexar Counties[11]
A potential regional water supply project is based upon a contract between the GBRA, and three entities in Bexar County (SAWS, BMWD, and the San Antonio River Authority) to provide 4,000 acft/yr to Bexar County. The project will consist of facilities for the diversion of raw water from Canyon Reservoir, a water treatment plant and facilities to convey the raw water from Canyon Reservoir to the water treatment plant. Facilities to convey treated water from the water treatment plant for use in areas within portions of Comal, Kendall, and Bexar Counties are also included in this plan.
1.10.2.9 San Marcos Area[12]
In December of 1995, a study evaluated two alternatives for development of a regional water supply system to meet the present and future needs (year 2020) of each of the study participants (City of Kyle, City of Lockhart, Crystal Clear WSC, Elim WSC, Martindale WSC, Maxwell WSC, County Line WSC, Goforth WSC, Plum Creek WSC, and Creedmore-Maha WSC). The first alternative evaluates the feasibility of enlarging the City of San Marcos’ proposed water treatment plant to serve both the City of San Marcos and the ten water supply entities outside of the City’s service area. Alternative 2 assumes that the city of San Marcos develops its own individual water supply system and the other ten study participants develop a separate regional system to serve their needs.
Groundwater availability for the study area is limited by legislative and court actions regarding the Edwards Aquifer. The study showed the development of a regional water supply facility serving all of the study participants (Alternative 1) would result in the least cost to the existing customers and would provide the more economical long-term water supply for the region. At present, the early phases of this plan, including a regional water treatment plant near the City of San Marcos and a pipeline connecting the plant to Lake Dunlap, have been completed. Planning is underway to construct a potable water pipeline from the San Marcos Water Treatment Plant extending to the City of Kyle, Creedmoor-Maha, the City of Buda, and other county entities.
1.10.2.10 Zavala-Dimmit Counties Water Improvement
District No. 1[13]
Water for the Zavala-Dimmit Counties Water Improvement District No. 1 is from the Nueces River and Turkey Creek watersheds. The District has a permit to divert 28,000 acft/yr from the Nueces River from several diversion points near Crystal City and Carrizo Springs in Zavala and Dimmit Counties. An unofficial water conservation program is always in effect and the TNRCC Watermaster enforces a drought plan when water becomes short. The District anticipates that it will continue to obtain its water from the Nueces River for the next fifty years pending unforeseen developments.
1.10.3 Certified Groundwater Conservation District Management Plans
1.10.3.1 Edwards Aquifer Authority[14]
The EAA was created by the 73rd Texas Legislature in 1993 to supplant the Edwards Underground Water District, and in part, to enforce reductions in withdrawals from the Edwards Aquifer mandated in SB1477.
The EAA began operations on June 28, 1996 as a “conservation and reclamation district” to manage the southern portion of the Edwards Aquifer. The EAA’s jurisdiction is limited to the Edwards Aquifer within an area that includes all of Bexar, Medina, and Uvalde Counties and parts of Atascosa, Comal, Caldwell, Hays and Guadalupe Counties.
Water use data for 1990 show that a total of 647,000 acft of water was used within the EAA’s boundaries. Approximately 519,000 acft or 80 percent of this demand was supplied by water from the Edwards Aquifer. Other groundwater and surface water resources supplied the remaining 20 percent of water used in 1990.
In order to meet the current and continued water shortages experienced in the EAA’s planning area, the EAA has derived nine basic management goals from its enabling statute, the EAA Act, as amended:
1. Develop, implement, and enforce comprehensive programs for managing withdrawals of water from the Edwards Aquifer in order to sustain domestic, municipal, agricultural and industrial water supplies. These programs will promote efficiency, control and prevent waste, and help protect natural resources;
2. Facilitate the marketing and transfer of Edwards Aquifer water rights between buyers and sellers in order to promote efficiency and to control and prevent waste;
3. Support and conduct research and, as appropriate, implement strategies to enhance the yield of the Edwards Aquifer and promote conjunctive management of groundwater and surface water supplies;
4. Implement technical and financial assistance programs to encourage the use of cost-effective measures to improve water use efficiency, minimize waste, and increase beneficial reuse and recycling of water by municipal, industrial, commercial, institutional and agricultural water users so that water supplies are conserved or made available for alternative or future uses;
5. Implement programs in cooperation with other local, state, and federal agencies to monitor and protect the quality of the Edwards Aquifer;
6. Implement and enforce water management practices, procedures, and methods to ensure, by the end of 2012, the continuous minimum springflow of Comal and San Marcos Springs in order to protect species, habitats, instream uses, and bays and estuaries that are dependent on discharge from the Edwards Aquifer;
7. Continue to develop, operate, and maintain the data collection and retrieval network for the Edwards Aquifer region in order to improve basic data required to better understand the geology and hydrology of the Edwards Aquifer and to better understand the meteorological conditions that affect the Edwards Aquifer;
8. Provide information to the public and interested parties on the mission, goals, and initiatives of the Authority and expand education programs on the geology, hydrology, use, conservation and management of the Edwards Aquifer; and
9. Ensure the efficient and cost-effective management and operation of the EAA, as well as its overall fiscal integrity.
The EAA’s initial Groundwater Management Plan was developed without recommendations on specific water management strategies that could be implemented to meet future water needs in the Edwards Aquifer region. This approach was taken in order to minimize potential inconsistency with the soon to be prepared South Central Texas Region Water Management Plan. It is anticipated that subsequent versions of the EAA’s Groundwater Management Plan will incorporate relevant portions of the regional water plan and will provide more definitive recommendations with regard to the implementation of regional water management strategies.
The South Central Texas Water Advisory Committee is a 20-member committee created by SB1477 to serve in an advisory role to the EAA Board of Directors, particularly with regard to downstream water uses, water rights holders, and issues. The governing body of designated counties and municipalities appoints members. The South Central Texas Water Advisory Committee is also charged with making a biennial report to the Board assessing the effectiveness of the EAA. The South Central Texas Water Advisory Committee by resolution may request that the EAA Board reconsider any action considered prejudicial to the Guadalupe River downstream water interests and may also request that TNRCC review EAA actions.
1.10.3.2 Evergreen
Underground Water Conservation District[15]
The Evergreen Underground Water Conservation District (EUWCD) was created in 1965 and includes Atascosa, Frio, Wilson, and Karnes Counties. The total area within the EUWCD is 2,461,000 acres, or 3,845 square miles. The area’s economy is heavily dependent upon agriculture and agriculture related business, as approximately 80 percent of the total groundwater pumpage in the EUWCD is used in agriculture.
The primary objective of this Management Plan is to control groundwater withdrawals to reduce aquifer mining within the EUWCD. The Plan outlines four main goals that the EUWCD will use as tools to accomplish its primary objective. These are:
1. Promoting the most efficient use of groundwater;
2. Implementing a management strategy to address controlling and preventing the waste of groundwater;
3. Implementing a management strategy to address the conjunctive use of surface and groundwater; and
4. Implementing a management strategy that will address natural resource issues which impact the use and availability of groundwater, and which are impacted by the use of groundwater.
The EUWCD’s regulatory action plan contains guidelines on how to obtain a water well drilling and production permit as well as ways to obtain permits to transport water from the district. The EUWCD has also formulated a plan to take appropriate measures to discontinue activities that are either causing, or are a potential threat to cause groundwater contamination, and has limited permitted annual withdrawals to estimated annual recharge.
1.10.3.3 Gonzales County Underground Water Conservation District[16]
The Gonzales County Underground Water Conservation District (GCUWCD) was created in 1994 to conserve, preserve, protect and prevent waste of the groundwater resources of Gonzales County. The District was created on an order of the TNRCC and is specifically charged with managing the Sparta, Queen City, and the Carrizo Aquifers in Gonzales County. The District includes 576,000 acres within Gonzales County that lie over the usable portions of the aquifers. In 1997, the District reported groundwater pumpage of 12,651 acft for Gonzales County and the District expects that groundwater pumpage will increase to 20,256 acft in the next ten years. The District’s economy is heavily dependent upon agriculture and agriculture related business.
The goals of the Gonzales County Underground Water Conservation District contained in the current Management Plan include:
To establish and maintain an aquifer monitoring network;
To investigate aquifers within the District and to improve the level of knowledge about those aquifers;
To coordinate drought contingency planning and to reinforce surface water supply by using groundwater;
To promote conservation and efficient use of aquifers within the District;
To prevent and control waste of groundwater within the District;
To inform the public on aquifer conditions and water conservation;
To promote cooperation between water management entities and user groups within the District;
To protect aquifers within the District from damage due to mineral exploration activities; and
To provide for reasonable allocation of water resources to be transported out of the District and to monitor this activity.
Over the next 10 years, the county expects to shift its water use away from surface supplies and rely more heavily on available groundwater. The GCUWCD has limited permitted annual withdrawals to estimated annual recharge.
1.10.3.4 Medina County Groundwater Conservation District[17]
The Medina County Groundwater Conservation District was created in 1991. The District’s jurisdiction is limited to the minor aquifers underlying Medina County, since the EAA has jurisdiction over the Edwards Aquifer. The District anticipates demand increases upon these aquifers, and therefore has an interest in aquifer storage and recovery projects to increase supplies. The current groundwater management plan lists four major goals as follows:
Each year, the District will provide educational materials to the newspapers and to the general public on at least six occasions concerning waste which is prohibited under the District rules;
Each year, the District will work with all interested parties and appropriate agencies to develop additional information on aquifer storage and recovery projects and will require permits for all aquifer storage and recovery projects;
Each year, the District will provide automatic timer devices to the public in response to all requests in an effort to increase the efficiency of irrigating lawns; and
Each year, the District will provide informative speakers to schools and civic groups to raise public awareness of practices that insure the efficient use of groundwater.
1.10.3.5 Uvalde
County Underground Water Conservation District[18]
The Uvalde County Underground Water Conservation District’s Drought Management Plan provides standards for determining that drought conditions exist, how long they continue, and when a drought has ended. These standards also define increasing stages of drought severity. Upon declaration of a drought, users will be required to initiate demand reduction measures to reduce pumping of the Edwards Aquifer. Two mechanisms define the type of reductions required. The first mechanism is the reduction goal established for each stage. The goals define percentage reductions in the base usage that are to be achieved. The second mechanism is the requirement that each user implement specific minimum demand reduction measures. Users will develop their own management plans that describe how each of the two mechanisms will be implemented within their respective service areas or operations.
1.10.3.6 Wintergarden
Groundwater Conservation District[19]
The Wintergarden Groundwater Conservation District was created in 1997 and encompasses all of Dimmit, La Salle, and Zavala Counties. The total area within the District is 2,685,148 acres, or 4,195 square miles. The area’s economy is heavily dependent upon agriculture and agriculture related business, as approximately 89 percent of the total groundwater pumpage within the District is used in agriculture.
The primary objective of this Management Plan is to control groundwater withdrawals to reduce aquifer mining within the District. The Plan outlines four main goals that the District will use as tools to accomplish its primary objective. These are:
1. Establishing an aquifer water level metering network with a minimum of five monitoring wells by December 31, 2001;
2. On at least two occasions each year provide public information on water conservation and waste prevention through public speaking appearances at public schools, civic organizations or newspaper articles;
3. Each year the District will confer at least on one occasion with the Nueces River Authority on cooperative opportunities for conjunctive resource management; and
4. Each year the District will insure that all new wells permitted for construction within the District comply with the District construction standards through monitoring of the State of Texas water well report required to be provided to the District by water well drillers.
The District’s regulatory action plan contains guidelines on how to obtain a water well drilling and production permit as well as ways to obtain permits to transport water from the district. The District has also formulated a plan to take appropriate measures to discontinue activities that are either causing, or are a potential threat to cause, groundwater contamination.
[1] TWDB, Op. Cit., August 1997.
[2] Ibid.
[3] TNRCC, “The Clean Rivers Program Goals,” April 28, 1997.
[4] Information
transmitted in a letter received from the law offices of McGinnis, Lochridge
& Kilgore, L.L.P. on
behalf of the Bexar-Medina-Atascosa
WCID No. 1 dated February 23, 1999.
[5] The Hogan
Corporation, “Canyon Lake Water Supply Corporation Regional Water Plan,” Canyon
Lake Water
Supply Corporation, December 1997.
[6] Information transmitted in a letter received from the Canyon Regional Water Authority dated February 25, 1999.
[7] Camp Dresser
& McKee Inc. and Michael Sullivan & Associates, “Regional Water Supply
Plan for the City and
County of Victoria," June 1992.
[8] Information transmitted in a letter received from Green Valley SUD dated February 24, 1999.
[9] Information transmitted in a letter received from GBRA dated February 26, 1999.
[10] Bexar-Medina-Atascosa WCID #1, “Medina County Regional Water Management Plan,” September 1999.
[11] Draft
agreement between the San Antonio Water System and the Guadalupe-Blanco River
Authority, “Regional
Water Supply Project for Portions of
Comal, Kendall, and Bexar Counties,” March 16, 1998.
[12] HDR
Engineering, Inc., “Regional Water Supply Study for the San Marcos Area,”
prepared for GBRA and
TWDB, December 1995.
[13] Information
transmitted in a letter received from Zavala-Dimmit Counties Water Improvement
District No. 1
dated February 17, 1999.
[14] Edwards Aquifer Authority, “Groundwater Management Plan,” August 1998.
[15] Evergreen
Underground Water Conservation District, “Management Plan of the Evergreen
Underground Water
Conservation District,” August 5,
1998.
[16] Gonzales
County Underground Water Conservation District, “Management Plan and Rules of
the Gonzales
County Underground Water
Conservation District,” adopted November 26, 1997 and amended February 10,
1998.
[17] Medina County Groundwater Conservation District, “Groundwater Management Plan,” July 22, 1998.
[18] Uvalde
County UWCD, “Uvalde County Underground Water Conservation District Drought
Management Plan,”
November 28, 1994.
[19]
Wintergarden Groundwater Conservation District, “Wintergarden Groundwater
Conservation District
Management Plan,” June 15, 1999.