ENVIRONMENT Counties, advocates calling for updated water management
Lowering LAKE
Even with rainfall in August and September, Lake Travis is continuing to see low water levels. On Oct. 10, Lake Travis was 22.75 feet below the historical October average.
664.64 ft.
620.35 ft.
641.89 ft.
BY GRACE DICKENS
Central Texas, according to county documents. While approval of these resolu- tions did not yield a direct response from the LCRA, growing support on the county level shows citizens are getting serious about water, CTWC President Jo Karr Tedder said. “People don’t tend to pay atten- tion until it hits home,” Tedder said. “That’s why we started reaching out to get LCRA to look at their Water Management Plan now, because when you’re in a drought, you can see the aws. The Water Manage- ment Plan is not protective enough.” Water is released from Lake Travis and Lake Buchanan for use by cities, businesses, industries and downstream farmers. In a drought, downstream farmers are the rst to be cut o as the plan seeks to secure water for those utilizing it for day-to-day use. To conserve water, the LCRA announced in July that it will not provide water downstream irrigators for the growing season from August through mid-October. The LCRA has a number of rules in place to ensure there is enough available water for local use, said John Hofmann, LCRA’s executive vice president of water at the Aug. 16 meeting. “People wonder, what if it’s drier than what you had planned for; what if the growth happens faster or the water demands manifest more quickly than expected. I’m happy to say the plan accounts for that as well,” Hofmann said. “If we reach
Following months of drought, resolutions went before four local counties in July and August asking the Lower Colorado River Authority to update its Water Management Plan, which outlines measures for conservation in drought conditions. The LCRA manages the water in the Highland Lakes, six bodies of water in central Texas including Lake Travis. The Water Management Plan was rst approved in 1989 and has been updated every ve years since 2010. The plan’s next scheduled update is set for 2025, but county ocials and water advocate groups such as the Central Texas Water Coalition are pushing to update the plan sooner. Resolutions passed by Travis and Burnet counties in July called for the modernization of the Water Manage- ment Plan to account for decreasing amounts of water owing into the lakes, which was the second lowest amount on record in August, accord- ing to the LCRA’s most recent Water Operations Committee meeting. The amount of inows in August repre- sented less than 1% of the long-term average, said Kelly Payne, LCRA’s vice president of water operations. Evaporation is also higher than the annual average, but below 2011 levels when Texas was in historic drought. Additionally, the resolutions addressed the unprecedented amount of future population growth and subsequent strain on existing water resources anticipated in
Historical Average
Historical Low
Current Level
SOURCE: LOWER COLORADO RIVER AUTHORITYCOMMUNITY IMPACT
Rising DEMAND As the population in Travis County grows, demand for water is expected to rise.
July 19 Travis County approves resolution asking for update to plan July 26 Burnet County approves resolution asking for update to plan Aug. 9 Hays County denies resolution asking for update to plan Aug. 2 Williamson County denies resolution asking for update to plan Oct. 13 LCRA completes annual review of plan Asking FOR REVIEW Several resolutions have gone before local commissioners courts requesting the Lower Colorado River Authority update its Water Management Plan to increase conservation.
Demand
Existing supply
2020
2030
2040
2050
2060
2070
0 40B 80B
120B 160B
Billions of gallons
SOURCES: BURNET, HAYS, TRAVIS AND WILLIAMSON COUNTIES; LOWER COLORADO RIVER AUTHORITYCOMMUNITY IMPACT
SOURCE: TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARDCOMMUNITY IMPACT
those [usage] triggers, we’ll do what the [Texas Commission on Environ- mental Quality] directed us to do and update the plan.” The LCRA will complete an annual review of its plan Oct. 13. Though no
action may be taken following the review, Tedder said the upcoming legislative session in Texas begin- ning in January will present some opportunities to critically evaluate water usage and conservation.
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LAKE TRAVIS WESTLAKE EDITION • OCTOBER 2022
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