Editorial by State Rep. Eddie Lucio III
Posted: Monday, January 20, 2014 12:03 am
With the scarcity of water a threat to South Texas’ future, the Rio Grande Regional Water Authority’s board is wise to take a cautious yet proactive approach in researching ways that the region could establish a regional groundwater conservation district to regulate water flow from our area.
At a Jan. 8 meeting in Weslaco of the water authority’s board, McAllen Mayor Jim Darling, who is board president, raised legitimate questions about whether our region is doing enough to protect groundwater beneath our soil. And while many questions are still unanswered regarding the right of capture for groundwater in Texas — and several conflicting court cases — this is a precious resource we should do everything to guard.
“We’re the most under-represented area without groundwater districts,” Darling said. “It kind of concerns me that we’re not controlling our own destiny.”
It’s a valid concern. Because as surface water sources diminish in our state due to expanding population and agricultural needs, more entities are looking at groundwater extraction to fulfill demand. We need to protect our groundwater from being sucked up and sent elsewhere.
State Rep. Eddie Lucio III, a lawyer who is on legal retainer for the board, explained the process for forming a conservation district. This includes: legislature; a petition by landowners of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ); and TCEQ has the authority to create a district, although Lucio said that is in extreme cases and has never been done.
He did caution that there are conflicting legal rulings on groundwater cases and it’s well expected that the next Legislature will take up this issue, which could likely change existing rules.
He told the board conservation districts manage the conservation, preservation and protection of groundwater; manage recharge and prevent waste.
“What you want to do is to know who’s pumping, what they are using it for and where they are sending it, so we have an understanding a great snapshot of our groundwater usage,” Lucio said.
In 2011, the Legislature decided owners “have a right to the groundwater beneath your property; but it is subject to reasonable management by a groundwater district,” Lucio said. “Meaning in proportion to the land you own, you will get so much water.”
What is uncertain is how much these districts can regulate water flow with regard to enforcement and how that might change in upcoming years.
State Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, a Democrat who represents the Valley, last week was named to the Joint Interim Committee to Study Water Desalination and sits on the Senate Natural Resources Committee. Water, he told us, is an issue that will be front and center next session.
Hinojosa filed legislation on behalf of Brooks County, which formed a groundwater conservation district that extends into the northern fringe of Hidalgo County. “Many areas of the state have created groundwater districts to be able to regulate the flow of groundwater for farming and agriculture and other uses,” he told a member of The Monitor’s editorial board. “My opinion is we need it. Because underground water is very much a part of meeting the water needs of our growing state and that is part of meeting the needs of our growing economy.”
Forming a conservation district involves administration costs, a representative from Brooks County testified to the Rio Grande Regional Water Authority. It also is subject to regulations as stipulated in the legislation, such as whether conservation board members are elected or appointed. And enforcement is a problem for that county, he said.
There certainly is a lot to consider but our area is wise to begin studying this now to protect this precious resource in the future.
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