Southwest Texas Water Resources Addresses Nueces River Authority Board Regarding Impact of Uvalde Water Project on Surface Water Supplies in Nueces River Basin

SAN ANTONIO, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Rodney T. Smith, Ph.D., President of the Board of Managers of Southwest Texas Water Resources, LP (STWR), spoke Friday in Corpus Christi before the Board of the Nueces River Authority regarding the impact of the proposed Uvalde Water Project on surface water supplies in the Nueces River Basin.  Joining Smith for the presentation was Gene Dawson, Jr., P.E., President, Pape-Dawson Engineers.  The STWR presentation to the Board addresses the concerns raised by the Nueces River Authority over the potential impact on the surface water supplies of the Nueces River Basin.

"We appreciate this opportunity to address the scientific and environmental benefits of the Uvalde Water Project with you," Smith told the Board. "The Uvalde Water project is a balanced approach that, when teamed with conservation efforts, respects the region's environment and agricultural heritage, and we believe that our scientific data can alleviate concerns expressed by the Nueces River Authority."

In his presentation before the Nueces River Authority, Gene Dawson used the following sources of data for the STWR study:

• Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ): Water Rights Availability Package (WRAP Model); used by TCEQ to allocate surface water rights within the Nueces River Basin with a model simulation period between 1934 to 1996
• United States Geological Survey (USGS): Streamflow gage data; historical records of daily, monthly and annual gage and field measurements
• Edwards Aquifer Authority: MODFLOW model used to evaluate the impact of pumping on groundwater; the model estimates the amount of groundwater that is discharged as springflow and the groundwater well elevation, with a model simulation period between 1947 to 2000
• Historical Daily Records of the Uvalde County Index Well J-27 Elevation.

Dawson and Smith concluded the presentation with the following facts based on the study:

• Leona Springs is not a significant contribution to the Nueces River water supply
• The TCEQ WRAP model indicates that the Leona River is dry for 17.6% of the modeled period (1939 to 1996)
• Converting 40,000 AF of irrigation pumping to continuous pumping has minimal positive impact to Leona springflow
• There is a potential 8' rebound in the Uvalde Pool as a result of moving 40,000 AF of permitted Uvalde Pool permits to the San Antonio Pool within Bexar County
• Moving 40,000 AF from Uvalde Pool to San Antonio Pool has: a positive impact on Leona Springs only in wet years but does not increase reliability of surface water supplies in the Leona River Watershed; a negative impact on the San Antonio Pool and Hondo Creek.

"Our conclusions show that the Uvalde Water Project impacts Leona Springs only in wet years, and that the Springs are a small, intermittent contributor to the Leona River, which is itself a small and unreliable surface water supply for the Nueces River," Smith said during the Q&A session following the meeting. "Our study shows no material impact on surface water supplies in the Nueces River Basin."

The Uvalde Water Project is the cornerstone of Southwest Texas Water Resources' proposed plan for improving resource management in the Edwards Aquifer:

• The project enables owners of unrestricted Edwards permits in the Uvalde Pool to realize the economic value of the superior reliability of their water rights under Texas law
• The project would maintain all existing protections of water supplies for Uvalde County under the Edwards Aquifer Authority Act and provide long-term economic stimulus to the local community the Uvalde Water Project would create a water company based in Uvalde County to develop, finance and operate a well field there and construct a regional water pipeline from Uvalde County to Bexar County
• Operation of new water company new recurring income stream for participants in STWR leasing program
• Project construction
• Water company & STWR water right leasing program will generate 74 to 121 jobs permanently and increase annual output in Uvalde County by $15 million
• Construction activity generates 173 jobs and increases output in Uvalde County by $44 million.

In February, and again in July, Rodney Smith presented the environmental benefits of the Uvalde Water Project to the Edwards Aquifer Recovery Implementation Program (EARIP).  Since the Uvalde Water Project would require a change in Texas law, the Texas Legislature itself could make the changes in law to take advantage of the project's benefits.  Additionally, the EARIP could consider recommending that the Texas Legislature take notice of the project as a resource management tool during its ongoing deliberations.  Smith also testified in April before the Texas House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee at the State Capitol in Austin and spoke in June to a group of San Antonio and Bexar County business leaders at the Frost Bank quarterly Business Advisory Council luncheon.

"We will continue to work with elected officials, environmental groups, water utilities, and business and civic leaders in all communities in the Edwards Aquifer region to inform and educate on our plans to help provide a reliable long-term water supply," Smith said.

About Southwest Texas Water Resources:  Southwest Texas Water Resources (STWR) is a private business founded to protect and develop water resources across the United States to meet growing municipal needs for reliable and affordable water supplies consistent with environmental stewardship.  Visit www.uvaldewaterproject.com for additional information.

SOURCE Southwest Texas Water Resources, LP