New LCRA drought plan limits watering with hefty fines
Drip irrigation systems now fall under the same drought restrictions as automated sprinkler systems for all firm water customers of the Lower Colorado River Authority. Highland Lakes cities that fall under the new restrictions, which go into effect on May 1, include Marble Falls, Granite Shoals, Burnet, Cottonwood Shores, Horseshoe Bay, and Sunrise Beach Village.
Starting May 1, all firm water customers of the Lower Colorado River Authority are required to initiate Stage 2 drought restrictions or face fines of up to $10,000 per violation. Firm water customers are cities, businesses, industries, and lakeside property owners that contract with the LCRA to draw water directly from the lakes.
Restrictions include limiting automated and drip irrigation systems to once a week from midnight to 10 a.m. on designated days. Hand watering with a hose or bucket is still allowed at any time.
The tighter restrictions are part of the new Drought Management Plan officially approved by the LCRA Board of Directors on April 25. The plan affects the cities of Marble Falls, Granite Shoals, Burnet, Cottonwood Shores, Horseshoe Bay, and Sunrise Beach Village, which must pass the restrictions on to their residential and business water customers or face the new fines.
“This action is a reflection of the serious drought we’re in,” said LCRA Executive Vice President of Water John Hofmann in a media release. “We don’t know when this drought will end, and we need to cut discretionary water use to help protect and extend our water supplies.”
The LCRA board also approved an updated Water Conservation Plan that will now go to the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality for a final OK. The board is required by state regulation to review and possibly update these plans every five years. The last time the DMP and WCP were updated was in 2019.
The new Water Conservation Plan calls for a 2024 water savings of 31,000 acre-feet. Of that, 1,000 acre-feet should be cut from LCRA power plants, 12,000 acre-feet from municipal customers, and 18,000 acre-feet from irrigation operations. The LCRA cut off water to downstream interruptible agriculture customers for the second year in a row in March because of drought conditions.
The LCRA has been in a Stage 2 drought response since August 2023. Stage 2 is triggered when the combined amount of water in lakes Buchanan and Travis, the authority’s two reservoirs, falls below 900,000 acre-feet, or 45 percent of capacity.
Stage 2 restrictions will remain in place until the two reservoirs reach a combined storage of 1.1 million acre-feet, or about 55 percent capacity.
As of Friday, April 26, the combined storage was at 842,279 acre-feet, or 42 percent of capacity.