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Water Planning

Waters Of The United States And The Clean Waters Act: New EPA Rules

Waters of the United States and the Clean Waters Act: New EPA Rules

There has been considerable interest in the Hill Country about the EPA’s new Waters of the US (WOTUS) rules clarifications. The debate revolves around the EPA including more waterways into its jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act than it traditionally has. (We should remember that the rules explicitly exempt Agricultural uses.) A good explanation of the evolving rules comes from a recent University of Texas School of Law forum on the topic. Read more from Colleen Schreiber: December 3, 2015 Panel…

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Information And Assistance Available For Accessing Low-interest SWIFT Funds For Conservation Projects

Information and assistance available for accessing low-interest SWIFT funds for conservation projects

The Texas Water Development Board’s water project funding program known as SWIFT (State Water Implementation Fund for Texas) helps communities develop and optimize water supplies at cost-effective rates by providing flexible low-interest loans.  An exciting aspect of the SWIFT program is the commitment to use at least 20% of funding to provide low interest loans for conservation projects that will generate greater water efficiency in both urban and rural areas.  That is a great deal for Texas and Texans. Several…

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San Antonio’s Vista Ridge Pipeline Project Partners Face Off In Legal Dispute

San Antonio’s Vista Ridge Pipeline project partners face off in legal dispute

In a move that could cause further turbulence for a proposed $3.4 billion San Antonio pipeline project, one groundwater company has sued another after it says it was cut out of money related to the deal. Brenham-based Metropolitan Water Company is suing Austin-based Blue Water Systems in Travis District Court over a dispute involving water at the proposed pipeline’s source, in areas to the northeast of Austin. The suit claims that Met Water signed into an revenue-sharing agreement with Blue…

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Texas Water Symposium To Explore The Health And Long-term Sustainability Of The Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer

Texas Water Symposium to explore the health and long-term sustainability of the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer

The first Texas Water Symposium of 2016 has been set for February 11th at Texas State University in San Marcos.  The program will feature a conversation between leading groundwater scientists about the long-term health of the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer, and its ability to sustainably serve the needs of a thirsty region. The symposium will take place from 7 pm to 8:30 pm on Thursday, February 11 in the LBJ Room of the Texas State University Student Center, San Marcos, TX. The…

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Q&A With Meredith Miller

Q&A with Meredith Miller

The Texas Tribune has published an excellent Q and A piece with Meredith Miller on the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment’s citizen science Texas Stream Team. In addition to her other numerous duties at the Meadows Center, Meredith oversees the many citizen volunteers that monitor and protect our state’s watersheds. The Q&A: Meredith Miller by Madlin Mekelburg Dec. 1, 2015 Trib+Water Meredith Miller is a senior program coordinator at the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at…

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SWIFT round two application period to open on Dec. 1

The Texas Water Development Board will open the application period for the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) financial assistance program on December 1, 2015. This will be the second round of financial assistance made available through the SWIFT program. "The second round of SWIFT financial assistance is an important milestone for the TWDB and the state," said TWDB Board Chairman Bech Bruun. "Thanks to the hard work of the TWDB staff and water entities around the state, demand…

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Is The Vista Ridge Groundwater Reliable? Who’s Calling For It?

Is the Vista Ridge Groundwater Reliable? Who’s calling for it?

Thursday the San Antonio City Council will vote on a new SAWS rate structure being proposed in part to pay for Vista Ridge. “The controversial Vista Ridge water pipeline, if completed, will pump 50,000 acre-feet/year of Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer groundwater from a well field located in Burleson County.” Curtis Chubb takes a hard look while San Antonio’s largest business group is backing water rate increase. Commentary: Is the Vista Ridge Groundwater Reliable? November 16, 2015 by Curtis Chubb, The Rivard Report The…

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Public Hearing And Council Agenda Item About San Antonio’s Water Policy Thursday Evening

Public Hearing and Council Agenda item about San Antonio’s water policy Thursday evening

San Antonio City Council will discuss the findings of the highly publicized water policy report this Thursday November the 12th during City Council which begins at 9am. Agenda item number four will be a briefing on the San Antonio Water Policy Study commissioned by the city to study the various aspects of the city’s future water planning and policy including the Vista Ridge project. A public hearing will begin at 6pm on that same report.  The public may register to…

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Water Forum VI: Vista Ridge, Conservation, Rate Increase

Water Forum VI: Vista Ridge, Conservation, Rate Increase

The $3.4 billion Vista Ridge water pipeline, water conservation, the Nov. 19 City Council vote on a new rate increase and structure that will result in reduced bills for low usage and higher bills for big water users dominated the conversation at the San Antonio Clean Technology Forum‘s sixth annual water forum staged before a sold-out luncheon crowd at the Pearl Stable on Monday. Mayor Ivy Taylor, who delivered opening remarks, asked for audience and community support for the rate increase and…

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“We All Know That The Hill Country Is One Of The Most Beautiful Features Of Texas”

“We all know that the Hill Country is one of the most beautiful features of Texas”

“And, we know that its springs and pristine rivers are its jewelry,” Con Mims at the HCA Leadership Summit. More than 150 regional leaders assembled in Fredericksburg last week. “Protecting those springs and rivers is an ever increasing challenge as the population of this state expands and large numbers of people are attracted to the rolling hills, expansive vistas, and rugged canyons that are hallmarks of the Hill Country.  The very beauty of the Hill Country may be its fatal…

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