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Water Catchment Areas (Watershed)

Texas Groundwater Supplies In Danger, Reports Say

Texas groundwater supplies in danger, reports say

Across Texas, groundwater is being pumped out of aquifers so quickly that more wells are in danger of going dry, and more springs and surface water may begin to dry up, according to two reports released on Tuesday. Statewide, Texas is losing groundwater at nearly twice the maximum sustained rate — and according to plans already pending with local management agencies, that rate is likely to increase in coming years unless officials change course.   Read more on the WaterWorld…

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Watershed Association Purchases 74 Acres Of Dry Cypress For Recharge Protection

Watershed Association Purchases 74 acres of Dry Cypress for Recharge Protection

The Wimberley Valley Watershed Association (WVWA) finalized the purchase of 74 acres adjacent to the Colemans Canyon Preserve on Wednesday, November 10, 2021.  This purchase secures critical recharge area for the Middle Trinity Aquifer and is within the catchment area for Jacob’s Well.   Read more from the Wimberley Valley Watershed Association here.

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White House To Review Floodplain Building Codes In Response To Petition

White House to review floodplain building codes in response to petition

The White House on Tuesday announced a series of new proposals for climate initiatives, including new building standards for structures in flood-vulnerable areas. In the fact sheet, the Biden administration announced a comment period for an update to the National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP) standards for floodplains. The last major update to the standards took place in 1976.   Read more from Zack Budryk with The Hill here.

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Climate Change Is Making Texas Hotter, Threatening Public Health, Water Supply And The State’s Infrastructure

Climate change is making Texas hotter, threatening public health, water supply and the state’s infrastructure

Climate change has made the Texas heat worse, with less relief as nighttime temperatures warm, a report from the state’s climatologist published Thursday found. Climate data also show that the state is experiencing extreme rainfall — especially in eastern Texas — bigger storm surges as seas rise along the Gulf Coast and more flooding from hurricanes strengthened by a warming ocean, the report says. Those trends are expected to accelerate in the next 15 years, according to the report, which…

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Highland Lakes Residents Speak At Recent LCRA Board Meeting As Agency Continues Work On New Commercial Dredging Ordinance

Highland Lakes residents speak at recent LCRA board meeting as agency continues work on new commercial dredging ordinance

By Emily Hilley-Sierzchula - Published October 27, 2021 Highland Lakes residents who spoke during a recent Lower Colorado River Authority board meeting urged directors to be cautious while creating a new commercial dredging ordinance. At its Nov. 17 meeting, the LCRA Board of Directors will consider whether to adopt the proposed Highland Lakes Dredge and Fill Ordinance (HLDO). The 15 directors also will decide on proposed changes to the existing Highland Lakes Watershed Ordinance (HLWO). The HLDO is “a solution…

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Blast Zone: Quarries Are Expanding In The Texas Hill Country, And Rivers, Streams And Once-pristine Landscapes Are Paying The Price. Regulators Can’t Keep Up.

Blast Zone: Quarries are expanding in the Texas Hill Country, and rivers, streams and once-pristine landscapes are paying the price. Regulators can’t keep up.

Flat Creek had always been translucent, flowing clear and cold through Kathleen Wilson’s 15-acre spread in the Texas Hill Country. Then something changed. The dust was the first sign. “That was really the first noticeable thing, was the whole surface was covered with dust,” said Wilson, 63, who runs an eco-friendly bed and breakfast on the Blanco County property. “You’d stick your hand in and it would, like, stick to you.”   Read more from Brian Chasnoff with San Antonio…

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Results From Well Visits – Trinity Aquifers

Results from Well Visits – Trinity Aquifers

This summer the Watershed Association teamed up with the Comal Trinity Groundwater Conservation District and the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District and visited over 60 private wells in northern Comal County and western Hays County. Many thanks to all participating well owners! It is our hope that the measurements made during the site visits were useful to individual well owners. The data collected allow for a comprehensive regional snapshot of aquifer conditions in both the Middle and Lower Trinity Aquifers.…

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Water Company’s Moves Anger Buyers, Landowners, Local Governments

Water company’s moves anger buyers, landowners, local governments

In 2018, Ronnie Urbanczyk signed a contract to purchase water from Texas Water Supply Co., a Boerne company with access to at least 40 water wells that tap into the drought-sensitive Trinity Aquifer just south of the Bexar County line. Three years later, Urbanczyk doesn’t want the water anymore, but that won’t stop Texas Water Supply from holding him to the water contract. The impasse could put an end to plans to turn Urbanczyk’s land into a state park. The…

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Wastewater Threatens Texas Streams

Wastewater threatens Texas streams

Diane Causey is a 75-year-old antique shop manager in Utopia, a tiny town of 277 people located an hour-and-a-half northwest of San Antonio. Her favorite place in town is a swimming hole on the Sabinal River, accessed on land her family owns. This section of the Sabinal, a little-known Texas river fed by springs, is crystal-clear and chilly even in June. Each summer, Causey’s extended family of more than 100 people converge on the swimming hole for their annual family…

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EPA Recognizes Austin Water For Efforts To Restore Ecosystems

EPA recognizes Austin Water for efforts to restore ecosystems

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized Austin Water in this year’s Outstanding Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development Competition. Austin Water’s Wildlands Conservation Division received First Place in the People’s Choice Category for a project that manages stormwater runoff in sensitive habitat areas in its Balcones Canyonlands Preserve. This work connects forest fragments, restores diverse native flora and fauna, and recharges karst features on critical conservation lands.   Read more in the press release from the City of…

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