Barton Springs Drainage System Said to Be Failing

A drainage ditch designed during the 1960s to protect Barton Springs from contaminated runoff from surrounding homes and roads is apparently not functioning adequately, thus threatening Austin's beloved icon. Testing by the city indicates that pollutants from the surrounding neighborhood appear to be leaching into a tributary and therefore into the pool, leading to yet more potential battles between the city, the neighborhood and a local developer. (Austin American-Statesman)