The latest water supply news from The Texas Tribune.
Researchers are still studying the chemical makeup of “produced water” from Permian Basin oil fields. But regulators say they’re ready to issue permits to discharge the water into rivers and creeks. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/825fe931a0a40a5d41a8e73386e7c94a/Fracking%20Water%20TK%20TT.jpg)
Diminishing springs and aquifers due to heat, drought and high for demand water highlight the urgency for Central Texas conservation districts to prioritize climate-focused management, potentially involving reduced pumping for sustainability. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e76721e30fc0d9edb8e255afaaefb9bb/ICN%20Aquifers%20Stressed%20DB%20TT%2002.jpg)
Texas Rural Funders hopes a one-stop resource for grant applications and writers could help small towns win money to fund innovation and capital needs. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/8cd484304d9a04489f1366dbde9b48b7/0320%20Rural%20WiFi%20MF%2004%20TT.jpg)
Thousands of low-income, Latino residents in Texas still do not have safe drinking water. In one El Paso colonia, some residents are using solar distillation to generate water from the air. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3cf03d347140b2f87a6ce2a03766ab7d/Hueco%20Tank%20Water602%20TT.jpg)
Texans across the state are affected by declining water supplies, water infrastructure disruptions and flooding in their communities. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ef980ff9785253fd2055e6feec1e2b0a/West%20Texas%20Water%20JR%20TT%2039.jpg)
Following one of the hottest summers on record, lawmakers have set an ambitious target: By 2033, they want to bump up the state’s water supply by an amount equal to three of the largest reservoirs in the state. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/786f0896167eafde800ced80d2ddecfd/West%20Texas%20Water%20JR%20TT%2023.jpg)
Groundwater levels rapidly declined in rural Lee County after San Antonio began pumping the water and moving it 100 miles southwest. A Senate bill would help affected well owners. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9933d0e01db58951285e2c0c2658726d/Lee%20County%20Wells%20SP%20TT%2032.jpg)
The bill aims to create a water supply four times the size of Lake Livingston, one of the state’s largest reservoirs. But it may still be a “drop in the bucket” compared to the state’s needs. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/12/14/Undrinkable_MG_3531.jpg)
Texas has more than 7,000 water systems. A fraction of them self-reported that they lost 30 billion gallons of water due to broken pipes and leaks in 2021. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e0e8cba30fe8256400b34df833b39135/SAWS%20Water%20Main%20Break%20CS%2016%20TT.jpg)
On a daily basis, water managers in cities across the state move from crisis to crisis hoping to keep the water flowing to residents. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/72012e4a9391d7e563da51bf37b90ca0/0410%20Zavalla%20Water%20MF%20TT%2028.jpg)
Experts talked about how and where the state can best invest money to keep Texas water safely flowing to the public. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/19cf5370679c7a75b526dac42c202edc/05-09_BrokenPipes-Lead-Title-01-v3.png)
In a first-of-its-kind survey of public water utilities, the EPA estimates that 7% of water lines in Texas, more than 647,000, are lead based. It’s the fifth-highest proportion of lead-based water lines in the country. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e2690f38c1f6d944dcd10806b04d078e/Water%20Faucet%20Pipes%20MG%20TT%2003.jpg)
The Senate on Monday passed a bill that would create a new state fund tailored for large or long-shot water supply projects, including marine desalination. The bill will advance to the House. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/37f7fa5857fdc0eaa598794d6fe41577/Odessa%20Water%20Crisis%20EH%2009.jpg)
Voters would have the final say on whether the state sets aside billions of dollars to acquire new water sources and invest in aging infrastructure. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/34f5d78b3ca64aa4acb0156359347fd4/0201%20Zavalla%20Government%20JB%2020.jpg)
Some Toyah residents say state regulators at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality were “negligent” and want to know what took so long. The Texas attorney general has filed a lawsuit. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6fc378385361860e0314a7b7f988cd32/Toyahwater_water%20testing_Pskowski%201.jpg)
A survey was commissioned by the nonprofit organization Texas Water Trade and included responses from households in both rural border communities and in urban areas across Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9e23c0c5f28d5f9cca2957534d603307/Drinking%20Water%20Colonia%20JW%20TT%20158.jpg)
So far there has been an average of six boil-water notices a day across Texas in 2023. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ac9baf6b8b8fd30bff9f2c553ac58a28/Houston%20Boil%20MF%20TT%2009.jpg)
Officials said the water levels at the local reservoir were too low to meet safety standards. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/06ae91163fd2fc07de886785e2ce16dd/Re-edit%20Midland%20File%20LW%20TT%2011.jpg)
Rural communities face compounding reasons they can’t improve their water infrastructure, including inflation and a lack of human resources. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/33590f46ea66b40dcf05cda5a92b1f94/Rural%20Water%20EL%20TT%2037.jpg)
For more than 24 hours, nearly everyone in the nation’s fourth-most-populous city had been asked to boil water after a power outage at a water treatment plant Sunday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a2f4fab41fc597c499f72e64168eab37/Houston%20Boil%20MF%20TT%2016.jpg)