WATER NEWS FOR BLANCO COUNTY AND BEYOND . . .In This Edition:
* Current Drought Condition
* Blanco County Burn Ban Status
* March 8 Rainwater Harvesting Information Session
* "Gentlemen, do not start your engines"
* B-PGCD Developments
* Kendall County’s Groundwater Conservation District Declares Permit Moratorium
* How Much Water Do We Have?
* Did You Know - Groundwater Facts
Current Drought Condition
Blanco County drought condition as of Feb. 19 D2 Severe (D4-Exceptional highest level)
www.drought.unl.edu/dm/DM_state.htm?TX,S
Blanco County Burn Ban Status
At the Feb. 12th meeting of the Blanco County Commissioners Court the Burn Ban was extended. The Commissioners voted unanimously to extend the ban for the maximum period allowed, 90 days.
Extreme caution is mandatory; conditions are very ripe for fire. The smallest spark can have a devastating result. Please be very careful!
March 8 Rainwater Harvesting Information Session
Mark your calendars and tell your friends who are interested in rainwater harvesting; the Rainwater Harvesting Information Program is coming up.
Saturday, March 8th from 1:30 to 5:00 PM
PEC Auditorium, 201 S. Ave. F, Johnson City
Featured Speaker: Mr. Billy Kniffen, County Extension Agent, Menard County
Information will be presented regarding:
collecting rainwater for potable and non-potable uses
systems installed in Blanco County
suppliers of rainwater harvesting products and servicesMr. Kniffen is recognized as the leading advocate and expert on rainwater harvesting in the A&M Extension Service and plays a leadership role in launching that program for the Service.
Following the presentation, a review of local systems presented by Preserve Our Water and introduction of installers and product suppliers offered. Next, weather permitting, will be a short field trip. The new system at the Johnson City High School will be the first stop, where JCISD Superintendent David Shanley will discuss the project. The final stop will be a short drive west on Hwy 290 to the Mary Moody Ranch, where that residential system will be presented by Mrs. Moody and CA Cowsert of the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
This free program is co-sponsored by the Texas AgriLife Extension- Blanco County, LCRA, Nature Conservancy of Texas, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Pedernales Soil and Water Conservation District, and Preserve Our Water.
"Gentlemen, do not start your engines"
Score two for sane and sustainable land use in Blanco County.
Citizens attending the meetings of, first, the Blanco County Commissioners on the morning of Tuesday, Feb 12 and then the Round Mountain City Council that evening got some most welcome news. Neither group of elected officials has any intention of granting an endorsement of the race track project promoted by Mr. Steve Patti of Motorsports Resorts International.
At the request of several land owners near the area of the proposed facility, the matter was placed on the Blanco County Commissioners Court agenda as an information item. Several citizens and property owners spoke in opposition and two people who could not attend offered letters in opposition.
Judge Bill Guthrie commented following the citizen presentations. He said that it was his understanding that Mr. Patti had sought land in two other of the four Blanco County precincts prior the current attempt and had been unable to persuade an owner to sell to him. He also reported having spoken to Mrs. Bonnie Hayes who is the owner of the property of current interest to MRI. She informed him that an offer had been extended and flatly refused. She did not anticipate further discussions with Patti.
The judge said that he had spoken only once to Patti; that Patti had not requested action by the Court but that he had approached individual Commissioners and sought their endorsement. Those requests were denied. Finally, he said that, on advice of the County Attorney the Court would neither endorse nor condemn the proposed development.
The turnout for the Round Mountain City Council meeting was another SRO over flow.
Steve Baker and Curtis Wilson each gave very well prepared presentations. Dave Collins, on behalf of Preserve Our Water, highlighted the need for the LCRA’s Highland Lakes Watershed Ordinances in Blanco County and asking the Council to lobby the Commissioners on that topic. Several others offered very brief comments in opposition.
There were no supporters of the development present - if such exist beyond Mr. Patti.
Mrs. Bonnie Hayes was present to explain that she is sick and tired of the whole business. She reiterated that when Mr. Patti had approached her with an offer to buy her ranch she "turned him down, flat." Will Moursund (City Attorney) in an effort at humor suggested Mr. Patti needed to up his bid. With more than a hint of annoyance in her tone, Mrs. Hayes said that Patti didn't have enough money to get her to sell to him!
After all had spoken, Mr. Moursund read a two page letter addressed to Mr. Patti that he had prepared for the mayor's signature. Basically the letter said Patti had failed to supply any information on which they could render any of the decisions available to them - that is, decisions regarding a sub-division application. Mr. Patti has not filed a sub-division request.
Although Mr. Moursund took the same position as Judge Guthrie regarding Mr. Baker's request that they pass a resolution in opposition to the development, he also indicated no vote of support would be forth coming, either.
It would appear that any effort by MRI to establish their facility in the Round Mountain ETJ will be met by the city with great skepticism.
Mr. Patti is nothing if not persistent. We all will keep our eyes and ears open for future "Patti sightings".
B-PGCD Developments
The Groundwater Conservation District held its February meeting Thursday the 21st. There was a full agenda and a couple of important and positive developments came out of the discussions.
General Manager Ron Fieseler informed the Board that Judge Dan Mills had signed the order dismissing the long standing law suit - certainly good news for all. He further reported that the changes and enhancements to the District web site specified in the lawsuit settlement agreement - intended to promote public access to and awareness of important water related matters - were on track to be completed within the 60 period required.
The rule changes specified by the settlement require a public process. The Board voted to initiate that process. It is anticipated that additional changes may also be made to improve the District’s ability to effectively manage our groundwater. Preserve Our Water will participate fully in the process. We will keep you posted on developments, including public discussions of the changes.
The much needed and long overdue research program committed to by the Board in September took a major step toward becoming a reality. A public workshop that will set the priorities and initial projects for that research has been scheduled. It will be held on March 27th from 1:00 - 5:00 PM.
Unless the number of participants requires a change, the workshop will be held at the B-PGCD offices in Johnson City. Preserve Our Water will issue an announcement when the materials to be provided in advance of the workshop are available and note any change in location.
Several highly qualified and experienced scientists from the area will be invited to the workshop to help our District get this program off to a solid start.
Kendall County’s Groundwater Conservation District Declares Permit Moratorium
The Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District (CCGCD) that serves Kendall County has taken a decisive and bold step in its efforts to meet its statutory mandate to manage groundwater resources. In a press release issued Feb. 11, 2008, the District declared a moratorium on operating permits for new non-exempt wells. The moratorium well expire in August unless extended by CCGCD action.
The ban on new permits was undertaken because the District had determined that current pumping demand is approaching their "water budget." They assured the public in the release that they have not detected any areas of serious depletion or "mining" (withdrawing more than can be recharged by rainfall).
However, they feel it is critical to gain a far better understanding of reserves and demand and so have taken this precautionary measure.
During the next 6 months, owners of wells that should have operating permits (non-exempt wells), have something of an amnesty. The District cautions that any existing non-exempt well not permitted during this period will have no priority for receiving a permit once the moratorium expires.
This action by CCGCD is noteworthy as many Groundwater Conservation Districts operate under the incorrect belief that they have no choice but to grant any operating permit application. Like Kerr County’s Headwaters GCD that has prohibited all operating permits for the Edwards Aquifer (Plateau), Cow Creek officials are demonstrating that a well constructed Management Plan and well crafted Rules provide significant authority for managing the groundwater, as the legislature intended.
Click HERE for the complete text of the CCGCD Press Release
How much water do we have?
Considering the Kendall County action, one may ponder, How are we doing in Blanco County? Good question, and the answer is mixed.
The Blanco-Pedernales GCD Management Plan displays the current "water budget" for our three aquifers - the Middle Trinity that serves well over half the county’s population and the Ellenberger and Hickory that serve Johnson City and the northern part of the county.
Region K developed the water budgets (volume of water available for annual use) in 2003 using scientific methods very similar to those currently being used in the Desired Future Condition (DFC) efforts of Groundwater Management Area.
The Ellenberger, in particular, has a comparatively large budget of over 2,000 acre feet (AF - a term used to represent the amount of water required to cover one acre with one foot of water, 326,000 gallons). Given fairly limited current demand, it would appear that aquifer is currently in good shape, although it is a little researched groundwater feature and data are sparse.
The news for the Middle Trinity is rather different. The water budget is 1,600 AF. The District staff, as a part of the DFC process, has developed an up-to-date estimate of demand on this aquifer. That estimate for both permitted and exempt wells is 1,592 AF.
Clearly, according to the best data currently available (which is not outstanding, by any means), we are cutting it pretty close to the budget for the Middle Trinity.
Did You Know...? - Groundwater Facts
What is a drought?
Dumb question, right?
Well, not necessarily. Most of us would say a drought is, like the title of the famous book about the drought of the 1950s, "the time it never rained." But scientists complicate matters a bit, as they are wont to do, identifying three drought categories. Those are meteorological (rainfall), hydrological (surface and groundwater) and agricultural (plant moisture content).
There are two, well known drought indexes that track and report drought conditions.
One, the Palmer Index covers Texas only. It is primarily a meteorological measure incorporating some hydrological data.
The second is a national index called the US Drought Monitor. This index incorporates both hydrological and agricultural data.
Like the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, Preserve Our Water has chosen to rely in the US Drought Monitor to track and report on our drought conditions in Blanco County.
