Conservation News

Vetoes of Larson?s bills don?t pass the sniff test – San Antonio Express-News

Among the casualties, a bill for brackish water development; another bill on using a state fund for desalination and aquifer storage facilities; and others extending ground water permits and promoting conservation easements. Larson told Express-News journalist Peggy Fikac the vetoes were retribution for an ethics bill….

Source: Vetoes of Larson?s bills don?t pass the sniff test – San Antonio Express-News

State begins testing Balmorhea springs as Apache drills nearby – Houston Chronicle

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is so concerned about a plan to drill thousands of oil wells around Balmorhea State Park in West Texas that it has embarked on an unprecedented environmental study of the springs that feed the park’s famous pool, provides drinking water for thousands of people and supports one of the most sensitive ecologies in Texas. The study of the San Solomon Springs aims to monitor the effects oil and gas drilling by Apache Corp. of Houston,?….

Source: State begins testing Balmorhea springs as Apache drills nearby – Houston Chronicle

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signs bill to allow Montgomery County voters to elect Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District board members | Community Impact Newspaper

May 18, 2017: A bill authored by several Montgomery County legislators to elect and not appoint Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District board members was signed into

Source: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signs bill to allow Montgomery County voters to elect Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District board members | Community Impact Newspaper

Guest opinion: Conroe’s groundwater legal fight accelerates rate increases – San Antonio Express-News

When local groundwater production fees rise soon, a major cause of higher water bills will be the relentless City of Conroe-led litigation which challenges the authority of the Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District to impose water production limits on large-volume water users and others. Conroe’s taxpayer-funded litigation against the district — with the mission to ensure sustainable, cost-effective water supplies for Montgomery County’s current and future needs — forced the district to incur hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal costs which will be passed on to residents through higher groundwater pumpage fees. Conroe, along with the other plaintiffs, has abandoned or lost 16 of its 18 original lawsuit claims against the district…

Source: Guest opinion: Conroe’s groundwater legal fight accelerates rate increases – San Antonio Express-News

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signs bill to allow Montgomery County voters to elect Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District board members | Community Impact Newspaper

May 18, 2017: A bill authored by several Montgomery County legislators to elect and not appoint Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District board members was signed into

Source: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signs bill to allow Montgomery County voters to elect Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District board members | Community Impact Newspaper

Water project promises relief before Houston becomes parched – Houston Chronicle

Any Houstonian who’s ever stalled out in a rush-hour gully washer, swatted mosquitoes on a humid summer afternoon or hauled soggy carpet to the curb after a neighborhood flash flood will be forgiven for thinking the supply of water is one thing they needn’t worry about. In 1939, government scientists reassured residents the local water table should be fine even if average pumpage should reach 50 million gallons daily. […]

Source: Water project promises relief before Houston becomes parched – Houston Chronicle