Groundwater Bulletin: Environmental Stewardship Coalition Scores Stunning Victory for Conserve First, Move Water Later!

Coalition Position on Permits

The people of Bastrop and Lee counties gained a MAJOR VICTORY at last night's Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District hearings.  The Board of Directors listened ... and they acted on our behalf.

THANK YOU Lost Pines BOARD MEMBERS!

1)  LCRA's request for 10,000 acre-feet/year was cut back 50% to 5,000 acre-feet/year except in years when the counties are in drought conditions.

2)  Forestar's request for 45,000 acre-feet/year to export was cut back 75% to 12,000 acre-feet/year.

3)  Environmental Stewardship and a group of landowners were accepted for timely filing of their request for "party status" at the End Op contested case hearing to be held before the State Office of Administrative Hearings.

Lead by a coalition of Environmental Stewardship, Neighbors for Neighbors, Lost Pines Sierra Club, Groups United to Advocate Responsible Development ("GUARD") and Independent Texans, and with another large turnout of concerned citizens and landowners, the Board heard testimony for almost two hours before getting down to business.  When they did get down to business, they had heard the wishes of the people and elected to ignore the recommendations of the General Manager. 

After considering the General Manager's recommendation to approve, Board member Prinz said "we're going to do it a little different" and proceeded to cut back the applications by Forestar and the LCRA in order to protect the adopted desired future conditions of the District.  Persuaded by the Bastrop Commissioners Court resolution on LCRA's request, the Board adopted the "extreme drought conditions" limitations and incorporated these conditions into their permit. 

Earlier, the Board set the stage for their dramatic actions by granting a contested case hearing for End Op and denying the request by Aqua Water Supply Corporation for contested case hearing on the Forestar and LCRA applications.  These actions set the stage for the general meeting where the Forestar and LCRA applications were reigned in to pumping levels that can be defended and that reasonably protect the Simsboro aquifer from over-pumping.  

We owe the Board of Director a tremendous vote of GRATITUDE for patiently listening to our comments and concerns over the last few months and then acting to protect our precious groundwater resources.  Please write the Board members, the County Juges, and your Commissioners and thank them for leading our counties through to this victory.  

Please use these links to write emails of gratitude:

Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District Board of Directors

Bastrop County Judge Pape and Commissioners

Lee County Judge Fischer and Commissioners.

Steve Box

Executive Director

Environmental Stewardship  

512-300-6609    

                                                   

                                                                                

GROUNDWATER BULLETIN   May 2013 Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District Hearings

LCRA's Contribution to BANKRUPTCY LCRA's contribution to  Water Bankruptcy The following Images demonstrate the impact of LCRA's pumping of  100% of the requested 10,000 acre-feet/year, and 25% of the requested amount on the Simsboro Aquifer in Bastrop and Lee Counties.  Currently the LCRA pumps water from the Colorado River to Lake Bastrop to provide for the cooling needs of the LCRA power plant located on the reservoir.  The LCRA is requesting a permit for groundwater so that they can maintain their ownership of the Colorado River surface water and sell that amount to users in the Highland Lakes and elsewhere in the basin.  Pumping of groundwater from the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer (including the Simsboro) from the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District Permits and other Groundwater Districts in GMA-12 are predicted, by their own models, to BANKRUPT flows from the aquifers into the Colorado River (Image 3 below).  Based on this modeling, the Colorado River will likely go from being a "gaining" river to a "losing" river.  The Lower Colorado River Authority has never taken a serious look at these impacts in order to protect the river, but rather, are seeking to participate in the pumping that will damage the river. NOTICE:  Please keep in mind that the images below are for the PROPOSED permits ONLY (124,226 acre-feet/year) and DO NOT include EXISTING permits (45,365 acre-feet/year).  Image 1:  Draw-down impact of LCRA pumping around Lake Bastrop and the Colorado River.  Image 2:  Draw-down impact of LCRA pumping if reduced to 25% of the requested pumping.  Image 3:  Pumping of groundwater from the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer (including the Simsboro) from the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District Permits and other Groundwater Districts in GMA-12 are predicted, by their own models, to bankrupt flows from the aquifers into the Colorado River.  The Colorado River will likely go from being a "gaining" river to a "losing" river.  The Lower Colorado River Authority has never taken a serious look at these impacts in order to protect the river, but rather, are seeking to participate in the pumping.  Draw-down:  A Visual Perspective PRINT FLYER What does "draw-down" resulting from groundwater pumping look like on a map?  As you may know, the Desired Future Conditions are established in terms of the draw-down, in feet, of aquifers in Bastrop and Lee counties and throughout the District.  Recently, Environmental Stewardship obtained visual images based on the Groundwater Availability Model (GAM) used by the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District to evaluate the impact of proposed pumping from current permit applications on the Simsboro Aquifer.  Draw-down, measured in feet, is indicated on the contour lines of the maps below.  Click on Maps below to Enlarge NOTICE:  Please keep in mind that the images below (except for Image 1) are for the PROPOSED permits ONLY (124,226 acre-feet/year) and DO NOT include EXISTING permits (45,365 acre-feet/year).  Image 1.  PERMIT THIS - The draw-down, in feet, expected when the Adopted Desired Future Conditions (DFC) are met in Bastrop and Lee counties. The dark area in Burleson County is from Post Oak Savannah GCD pumping.  Click on Map to Enlarge Image 2.  NOT WATER BANKRUPTCY - The draw-down, in feet, expected if ALL current applications are approved and pumped to the maximum permitted.  Notice the red area in Lee county where draw-down is 1000 ft, and orange area in Bastrop County where draw-down is 750 ft.  Click on Map to Enlarge  Image 3.  WATER BANKRUPTCY - The majority of draw-down, in feet, in Lee County is from the proposed Forestar well field.  Click on Map to Enlarge Image 4.  WATER BANKRUPTCY - The majority of draw-down, in feet, in Bastrop County is from the proposed End Op well field, which is directly below Houston Toad habitat.  Click on Map to Enlarge PERMIT THIS:  If permitted at all, individual permits should first be reduced to levels actually supported by the application and then all permits reduced overall as necessary to an aggregate level that, including existing permits, protects the Adopted Desired Future Conditions.  In summary, if permitted at all, Forestar and End Op qualify for less than 5% of the water they are seeking.  In addition, the district needs to factor in the impact of existing permits before issuing any new permits. This has not been done. (See Image 1).  Image 5.  This image depicts Forestar pumping reduced to 25% of requested pumping volume but DOES NOT include existing permits.  Click on Map to Enlarge Image 6.  This image depicts End Op pumping reduced to 25% of requested pumping volume but DOES NOT include existing permits.  Click on Map to Enlarge Lost Pines Groundwater Statistics Below are some statistics about current applications, existing permits and facts from the Lost Pines Management Plan.  Current Simsboro Aquifer Applications Pending: -  45,000 acre-feet/yr          Forestar Group      Contested -  10,000 acre-feet/yr          LCRA                    Contested -  56,000 acre-feet/yr          End Op                 Contested -    3,226 acre-feet/yr          Manville WSC        Approved -    3,360 acre-feet/yr          Heart of Texas      Withdrawn -    1,613 acre-feet/yr          City of Bastrop      Approved 119,199 acre-feet/yr     TOTAL APPLICATIONS FOR SIMSBORO WELLS Currently Permits in the Simsboro Aquifer  -  23,627 acre-feet/yr            Aqua WSC -    6,653 acre-feet/yr            Manville WSC  -  11,023 acre-feet/yr            Lee Co. WSC  -       100 acre-feet/yr            Lee Co. FWSD  -         67 acre-feet/yr            Hunters Crossing  -    3,850 acre-feet/yr            Alcoa (currently pumping 6201 acre-feet/yr) 45,365 acre-feet/yr        TOTAL PERMITS FOR SIMSBORO WELLS 164,884 acre-feet/yr TOTAL SIMSBORO APPLICATIONS + PERMITS    4.4 times the Available Water (2060 MAG) for the Simsboro Aquifer   5.6 times the Available Water (2010 MAG) for the Simsboro Aquifer **************************  A FEW FACTS From the Lost Pines Management Plan -  Total Available Groundwater (MAG) in the District by 2060 is 58,888 acre-feet/yr. -  Bastrop County projected water demand by 2060 is 65,266 acre-feet/yr. -  Lee County projected water demand by 2060 is 6,603 acre-feet/yr.    -  Current discharge to surface waters from all aquifers is 78,612 acre-feet/yr.   -  Net recharge to all aquifers (recharge - discharge) is 7,249 acre-feet/yr.    -  Current pumping for all aquifers in the District is 47,811 acre-feet/yr (website) -  Current permits for all aquifers 73,000 acre-feet/yr (Austin-American Statesman)  New Website and Blog We are excited to announce that we have a new website and blog.  The site contains the same information that was on our old site, but now includes the ability to BLOG.  This means the site is MUCH MORE INTERACTIVE by allowing you, the reader, to make comments on specific pages and information posted.  We look forward to having a conversation with you about your interests and concerns.  To visit our new website and blog click on this link. 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