Low lake levels raise concern over Marble Falls development

CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF

MARBLE FALLS —  As Marble Falls annexes several hundred acres south of the city for proposed private development, residents on Lake Travis are calling for a halt to new water contracts because of record drought conditions and dwindling lake levels along the Colorado River.

On Feb. 17, Marble Falls City Council approved the voluntary annexation of about 40 percent of land known as Gregg Ranch in the southwest corner of the intersection of Texas 71 and U.S. 281.

Private developers have proposed building 1,500 homes in multiple phases potentially over several decades.

“We’ve put together a development agreement in that the city has existing volume in its sewer and water plant … to, basically, service the development,” City Manager Mike Hodge said. “We do have the capacity available, and while we need to be good stewards of resources, we also need to be in a position that if some new development comes our way, we’re ready to take advantage of it.”

The city contracts with the Lower Colorado River Authority to use water in Lake Marble Falls for domestic use. With the annexation, the city is expected to further extend infrastructure from the Baylor-Scott & White Hurd Regional Medical Center under construction in the northeast corner of the intersection of 71 and 281 into the Gregg Ranch property.

Spicewood resident Jimmie Knowles lives on the Colorado River in the unincorporated Red Bluff Lake Estates in far eastern Burnet County and believes development during times of dwindling lake levels “penalizes” communities downstream of the Upper Highland Lakes.

Knowles contends the supply of water in Lake Marble Falls directly impacts water downstream in the Lake Travis area.

“You can’t keep building and building and building when you don’t have the water to support it. I just think it ought to be slowed down,” Knowles said. “I’m a business man. I believe in developing property, but I think there’s a point in time you have to slow down until you have the proper resources to support your development.”

Marble Falls is among dozens of so-called “firm water” wholesale customers that contract with the LCRA for domestic water use. The cities then bill customers for treating and providing water services.

Wholesale customers are currently under a 10 percent mandatory reduction in water use because of lack of rain, record low inflows and dwindling levels at lakes Buchanan and Travis, the two main reservoirs along the Highland Lakes chain. The combined storage is about 36 percent full or 716,000 acre-feet of water.

When the storage reaches 600,000 acre-feet, the mandatory water-use reduction as dictated by the water management plan will increase to 20 percent.

“Water has made the whole annexation process and development process quite complicated,” Marble Falls Mayor George Russell said. “You don’t want to kill what you got, and you don’t want to over-extend the very scarce water supplies we have here.”

Even in times of drought, the housing market continues to drive development.

“One of the biggest needs in Marble Falls is affordable housing. It fills a niche that we need for the hospital and other businesses around here,” Russell said. “Somewhere down the road, if the good Lord doesn’t send us some rain pretty soon, moratoriums may come in, unless we can come up with the water.”

For now, the city is expected to move forward with a proposal to annex the remaining Gregg Ranch property, extend infrastructure and begin research on alternative water resources.

“With new development, we do get some credit with the fact we are firm water customers, and we do have that capacity available,” Hodge said.

“We’re putting together a water and sewer master plan, and part of that scope is taking a look at alternative water sources — for instance, ground wells — or other connections we could make with other sources,” he added. “There’s just the concern to have some diversity in our water source and also not make it so we’re so reliable on Lake Marble Falls and LCRA.”

On Feb. 18, the most recent report by the LCRA, officials announced they would revise and reduce the amount of water permitted in new contracts for firm water customers, while proclaiming the region is on track to potentially fall under a drought worse than the drought of record.

Those characteristics include a two-year period since the lakes were full; the lowest inflows since the 1947-57 drought; and the combined storage of lakes Travis and Buchanan falling below 600,000 acre-feet of water.

“I don’t think there will be enough water to come out of wells to supply Gregg Ranch. As long as we stay in this drought region, I really question if there’s going to be enough water to support those 1,500 homes,” Knowles said. “All those developments don’t have a firm 30- or 40-year contract to get water out of Lake Marble Falls. Our opinion is don’t sign a long-term contract hoping that the sky’s going to fall or not fall or the rain’s going to happen.”

connie@thepicayune.com