Quick Facts

Municipal conservation strategies are expected to million acre-feet per year by 2060. Other surface water
result in about 650,000 acre-feet of supply by 2060, strategies would result in about 3 million acre-feet per
with irrigation and other conservation strategies year.
totaling another 1.5 million acre-feet per year.
Recommended strategies relying on groundwater are
The planning groups recommended 26 new major projected to result in about 800,000 additional acre-
reservoirs projected to generate approximately 1.5 feet per year by 2060.

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7 Water
Management
Strategies
The regional planning groups recommended 562 unique water supply
projects designed to meet needs for additional water supplies for Texas
during drought, resulting in a total, if implemented, of 9.0 million acre‐feet
per year in additional water supplies by 2060. Some recommended strategies
are associated with demand reduction or making supplies physically or
legally available to users.

After identifying surpluses and needs for water in TWDB may provide financial assistance for water
their regions, regional water planning groups evaluate supply projects only if the needs to be addressed
and recommend water management strategies to meet by the project will be addressed in a manner that is
the needs for water during a severe drought. Planning consistent with the regional water plans and the state
groups must address the needs of all water users, water plan. This same provision applies to the granting
if feasible. If existing supplies do not meet future of water right permits by the Texas Commission on
demand, they recommend specific water management Environmental Quality, although the governing bodies
strategies to meet water supply needs, such as of these agencies may grant a waiver to the consistency
conservation of existing water supplies, new surface requirement. TWDB funding programs that are targeted
water and groundwater development, conveyance at the implementation of state water plan projects, such
facilities to move available or newly developed water as the Water Infrastructure Fund, further require that
supplies to areas of need, water reuse, and others. projects must be recommended water management
strategies in the regional water plans and the state
water plan to be eligible for financial assistance.

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TABLE 7.1. RECOMMENDED WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY SUPPLY VOLUMES BY REGION
(ACRE‐FEET PER YEAR)
Region 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060
A 2,718 332,468 545,207 617,843 631,629 648,221 7.1
B 15,373 40,312 40,289 49,294 76,252 77,003
C 79,898 674,664 1,131,057 1,303,003 2,045,260 2,360,302
D 11,330 16,160 20,180 33,977 62,092 98,466
E 3,376 66,225 79,866 98,816 112,382 130,526
F 90,944 157,243 218,705 236,087 235,400 235,198
G 137,858 405,581 436,895 496,528 562,803 587,084
H 378,759 622,426 863,980 1,040,504 1,202,010 1,501,180
I 53,418 363,106 399,517 427,199 607,272 638,076
J 13,713 16,501 20,360 20,862 20,888 23,010
K 350,583 576,795 554,504 571,085 565,296 646,167
L 188,297 376,003 542,606 571,553 631,476 765,738
M 90,934 182,911 275,692 389,319 526,225 673,846
N 46,954 81,020 130,539 130,017 133,430 156,326
O 517,459 503,886 504,643 464,588 429,136 395,957
P 67,739 67,739 67,739 67,740 67,739 67,739
Total 2,049,353 4,483,040 5,831,779 6,518,415 7,909,290 9,004,839

7.1 EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF • potential impacts the strategy could have on
WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES the state’s water quality, water supply, and
After the water demand and supply comparisons and agricultural and natural resources (Chapter 8,
needs analyses were completed, planning groups Impacts of Plans); and
evaluated potentially feasible water management • reliability of the strategy during time of drought.
strategies to meet the needs for water within their
regions. A water management strategy is a plan or a Calculating the costs of water management strategies
specific project to meet a need for additional water is done using uniform procedures to compare costs
by a discrete user group, which can mean increasing between regions and over time, since some strategies
the total water supply or maximizing an existing are recommended for immediate implementation,
supply. Strategies can include development of new while others are needed decades into the future. Cost
groundwater or surface water supplies; conservation; assumptions include expressing costs in 2008 dollars,
reuse; demand management; expansion of the use using a 20-year debt service schedule, using capital
of existing supplies such as improved operations or costs of construction as well as annual operation and
conveying water from one location to another; or less maintenance costs, and providing unit costs per acre-
conventional methods like weather modification, foot of water produced.
brush control, and desalination.
Reliability is an evaluation of the continued availability
Factors used in the water management strategy of an amount of water to the users over time, but
assessment process include particularly during drought. A water management
• the quantity of water the strategy could produce; strategy’s reliability is considered high if water is
• capital and annual costs; determined to be available to the user all the time, but

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TABLE 7.2. RECOMMENDED WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY SUPPLY VOLUMES BY TYPE OF
STRATEGY (ACRE-FEET PER YEAR)
Type of Water Management Strategy 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060
Municipal Conservation 137,847 264,885 353,620 436,632 538,997 647,361 7.2
Irrigation Conservation 624,151 1,125,494 1,351,175 1,415,814 1,463,846 1,505,465
Other Conservation * 4,660 9,242 15,977 18,469 21,371 23,432
New Major Reservoir 19,672 432,291 918,391 948,355 1,230,573 1,499,671
Other Surface Water 742,447 1,510,997 1,815,624 2,031,532 2,700,690 3,050,049
Groundwater 254,057 443,614 599,151 668,690 738,484 800,795
Reuse 100,592 428,263 487,795 637,089 766,402 915,589
Groundwater Desalination 56,553 81,156 103,435 133,278 163,083 181,568
Conjunctive Use 26,505 88,001 87,496 113,035 136,351 135,846
Aquifer Storage and Recovery 22,181 61,743 61,743 72,243 72,243 80,869
Weather Modification 0 15,206 15,206 15,206 15,206 15,206
Drought Management 41,701 461 461 461 461 1,912
Brush Control 18,862 18,862 18,862 18,862 18,862 18,862
Seawater Desalination 125 125 143 6,049 40,021 125,514
Surface Water Desalination 0 2,700 2,700 2,700 2,700 2,700
Total Supply Volumes 2,049,353 4,483,040 5,831,779 6,518,415 7,909,290 9,004,839
*Other conservation is associated with manufacturing, mining, and steam-electric power industries.

it is considered low or moderate if the availability is 7.2 SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDED WATER

contingent on other factors. MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
To meet the needs for water during a repeat of the
The water management strategy evaluation process drought of record, regional water planning groups
also considered other factors applicable to individual evaluated and recommended water management
regions including difficulty of implementation, strategies that would account for an additional 9.0
regulatory issues, regional or local political issues, million acre-feet per year of water by 2060 if all are
impacts to recreation, and socioeconomic benefits or implemented (Tables 7.1 and 7.2). These strategies
impacts. included 562 unique water supply projects designed
to meet needs for additional water supplies for Texas
Upon conclusion of a thorough evaluation process, during drought (this figure is lower than presented in
planning groups recommended a combination of water previous plans because it does not separately count
management strategies to meet specific needs in their each entity participating in a given project).
regions during a repeat of the drought of record. In
this planning cycle, planning groups could also include 7.2.1 WATER CONSERVATION
alternative water management strategies in their Conservation focuses on efficiency of use and the
plans. An alternative strategy may be substituted for a reduction of demands on existing water supplies.
strategy that is no longer recommended, under certain In 2010, almost 767,000 acre-feet per year of water
conditions and with the approval of the TWDB executive conservation savings is recommended, increasing to
administrator. All recommended and alternative water nearly 2.2 million acre-feet per year by 2060 from all
management strategies included in the 2011 regional forms of conservation strategies (Table 7.3). Some of the
water plans are presented in Appendix A. savings from water conservation practices are achieved

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TABLE 7.3. SUPPLY VOLUMES FROM RECOMMENDED CONSERVATION STRATEGIES BY REGION
(ACRE-FEET PER YEAR)
Region 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060
A 0 299,077 488,721 544,840 553,661 556,914
B 13,231 13,798 13,833 13,875 13,891 14,702
C 46,780 107,975 154,950 197,288 240,912 290,709 7.3
D 0 0 0 0 0 0
E 0 33,275 37,275 41,275 46,275 52,275
F 3,197 43,113 80,551 81,141 81,769 82,423
G 10,857 24,873 31,473 33,757 38,011 41,758
H 116,880 137,151 147,529 156,336 172,831 183,933
I 20,111 30,480 33,811 36,085 41,381 41,701
J 579 622 641 643 669 681
K 18,498 169,207 179,630 192,541 221,622 241,544
L 33,843 41,032 47,818 53,944 64,761 82,297
M 15,743 54,469 102,047 154,932 217,882 286,629
N 1,664 2,449 3,398 4,466 5,766 7,150
O 485,275 442,100 399,095 359,792 324,783 293,542
P 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 766,658 1,399,621 1,720,772 1,870,915 2,024,214 2,176,258

passively in the normal course of daily activities, recommended in 2060 is five times greater than that
such as flushing a low-flow toilet or showering with produced by recommended groundwater strategies.
a low-flow showerhead. Other savings are achieved Surface water strategies, excluding desalination and
through education and programs designed specifically non-traditional strategies, compose about 51 percent
to reduce water usage. Conservation includes water of the recommended volume of new water, compared
savings from municipal, irrigation, and “other” to 9 percent from groundwater strategies in the 2012
(mining, manufacturing, and power generation) water State Water Plan. Surface water management strategies
users. Water conservation is being recommended in recommended by the regional planning groups total
greater quantities over time. Comparing the 2007 State in excess of 4.5 million acre-feet per year by 2060.
Water Plan with the 2012 plan, there is an additional
129,400 acre-feet of water conservation recommended In the 2012 State Water Plan, 26 new major reservoirs
in the current plan. are recommended to meet water needs in several
regions (Figure 7.1). A major reservoir is defined as
7.2.2 SURFACE WATER STRATEGIES one having 5,000 or more acre-feet of conservation
Surface water strategies include stream diversions, storage. These new reservoirs would produce 1.5
new reservoirs, other surface water strategies such as million acre-feet per year in 2060 if all are built,
new or expanded contracts or connection of developed representing 16.7 percent of the total volume of all
supplies, and operational changes. recommended strategies for 2060 combined (Figure
7.2). Not surprisingly, the majority of these projects
One long-term trend in Texas is the relative shift from would be located east of the Interstate Highway-35
reliance on groundwater to surface water. The volume corridor where rainfall and resulting runoff are more
of water produced by surface water strategies plentiful than in the western portion of the state.

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 FIGURE 7.1. RECOMMENDED NEW MAJOR RESERVOIRS.

Lower
Bois d'Arc Reservoir
Millers Creek
Jim Bertram Lake 07
Reservoir Augmentation Lake Ringgold

Lake Ralph Hall

Marvin
Post Reservoir Cedar Ridge Reservoir Nichols
Reservoir
Turkey Peak Reservoir

Lake Columbia

Fastrill Replacement
Coryell County Reservoir Project
(Off-Channel) (Off-Channel)

Brushy Creek Reservoir

Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority Mid Basin Project
(Off-Channel)
Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority Exelon Project
(Off-Channel) Fort Bend Off-Channel
Allens Creek Reservoir
Guadalupe-Blanco Reservoir
River Authority New Appropriation Brazoria Off-Channel
(Lower Basin - Off-Channel) Reservoir
Dow Off-Channel
Reservoir

Gulf Coast Water Authority Off-Channel Reservoir

Lower Colorado River Authority
Nueces Off-Channel San Antonio Water System Project (Off-Channel)
Reservoir
Lavaca Off-Channel
Laredo Low Water Reservoir
Weir

Brownsville Weir

FIGURE 7.2. RELATIVE VOLUMES OF RECOMMENDED WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES IN 2060.

Reuse, 10.2%
Groundwater, 8.9%

Municipal Conservation, 7.2%

New Major Reservoir, 16.7%
Groundwater Desalination, 2.0%
Conjunctive Use, 1.5%
Seawater Desalination, 1.4%
7.2 Aquifer Storage and Recovery, 0.9%
Other Conservation*, 0.3%
Brush Control, 0.2%
Weather Modification, 0.2%
Surface Water Desalination, <0.1%

Irrigation Conservation, 16.7%

Other Surface Water, 33.9%

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FIGURE 7.3. RECOMMENDED GROUND AND SURFACE WATER CONVEYANCE AND TRANSFER PROJECTS.

12

13
15
44

3
19
8 7
10

20
9
4

11
6
17 5

30
16

31
29

32

28
21

27
18 22

35
40 23
39
38
37

26
41
36
GROUNDWATER 43
42
SURFACE WATER

“Other surface water” strategies include existing strategy category recommended, and usually requires
supplies that are not physically or legally available additional infrastructure such as new pipelines to
at the present time. Examples include an existing divert and convey water from an existing source to a
reservoir that has no pipeline to convey water to some new point of use. Transporting water from existing,
or all users, a water user that does not have a water developed sources such as reservoirs, to a new point
supply contract with the appropriate water supplier, of use many miles away, is very common in Texas and
or an entity that has no “run-of-river” water right to will become more prevalent in the future. An example
divert water for use. is the current project to construct a joint pipeline from
Lake Palestine to transport water to Dallas and water
Other surface water strategies are recommended to from Tarrant Regional Water District’s lakes to Fort
provide in excess of 742,400 acre-feet per year of supply Worth. Figure 7.3 and Table 7.4 depict recommended
in 2010, and about 3 million acre-feet per year by 2060. major groundwater and surface water conveyance
Other surface water is the largest water management and transfer projects.

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TABLE 7.4. RECOMMENDED GROUND AND SURFACE WATER CONVEYANCE AND TRANSFER PROJECTS
ID Project Conveyance From To
1 Roberts County Well Field Roberts County Amarillo
2 Potter County Well Field Potter County Amarillo
3 Oklahoma Water to Irving Oklahoma Lake/Reservoir Irving
4 Toledo Bend Project Toledo Bend Reservoir Collin County
5 Toledo Bend Project Toledo Bend Reservoir Kaufman County
6 Toledo Bend Project Toledo Bend Reservoir Tarrant County
7 Wright Patman - Reallocation of Flood Pool Wright Patman Lake Dallas
8 Marvin Nichols Reservoir Marvin Nichols Reservoir Colin, Denton,
Tarrant Counties
9 Lake Palestine Connection (Integrated Pipeline with Tarrant Lake Palestine Dallas
Regional Water District)
10 Additional Pipeline From Lake Tawakoni (More Lake Fork Supply) Lake Fork Dallas
11 Tarrant Regional Water District Third Pipeline and Reuse Navarro County Tarrant County
12 Oklahoma Water to North Texas Municipal Water District, Tarrant Oklahoma Lake/Reservoir Colin, Denton,
Regional Water District, Upper Trinity Regional Water District Tarrant Counties
13 Lower Bois D’Arc Creek Reservoir Lower Bois D’Arc Reservoir Collin County
14 Grayson County Project Lake Texoma Non-System Portion Collin, Grayson
Counties
15 Lake Texoma - Authorized (Blend) Lake Texoma North Texas Municipal Water District System Collin County
16 Integrated Water Management Strategy - Import From Dell Valley Dell City El Paso
17 Develop Cenozoic Aquifer Supplies Winkler County Midland
18 Regional Surface Water Supply Lake Travis Williamson County
19 Millers Creek Augmentation Millers Creek Reservoir Haskell County
20 Cedar Ridge Reservoir Cedar Ridge Reservoir Abilene
21 Conjunctive Use (Lake Granger Augmentation) Burleson County Mclennan
22 Conjunctive Use (Lake Granger Augmentation) Burleson County Round Rock
23 Allens Creek Reservoir Allens Creek Lake/Reservoir Houston
24 Gulf Coast Water Authority Off-Channel Reservoir Gulf Coast Water Authority Off-Channel Reservoir Fort Bend County
25 Brazoria Off-Channel Reservoir Brazoria Off-Channel Reservoir Brazoria County
26 Fort Bend Off-Channel Reservoir Fort Bend Off-Channel Lake/Reservoir Brazoria County
27 Purchased Water Toledo Bend Reservoir Jefferson County
28 Purchased Water Toledo Bend Reservoir Newton County
29 Purchased Water Toledo Bend Reservoir Rusk County
30 Purchased Water Lake Palestine Anderson County
31 Lake Columbia Lake Columbia Cherokee County
32 Angelina County Regional Project Sam Rayburn-Steinhagen Reservoir System Lufkin
33 Lake Palestine Infrastructure Lake Palestine Tyler
34 Regional Carrizo For Schertz-Seguin Local Government Gonzales County Guadalupe County
Corporation Project Expansion
35 Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority Simsboro Project Lee County Comal County
36 Seawater Desalination Gulf Of Mexico Sea Water Bexar County
37 Off-Channel Reservoir - Lower Colorado River Authority/ Colorado, Matagorda, Wharton Counties Bexar County
San Antonio Water System Project (Region L Component)
38 Regional Carrizo For Saws (Including Gonzales County) Gonzales County Bexar County
39 Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority Mid-Basin (Surface Water) Gonzales County Comal County
40 Texas Water Alliance Regional Carrizo (Including Gonzales County) Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer Comal County
41 Garwood Pipeline And Off-Channel Reservoir Storage Colorado River Corpus Christi
42 Off-Channel Reservoir Near Lake Corpus Christi Nueces Off-Channel Reservoir Corpus Christi
43 Lavaca River Off-Channel Reservoir Diversion Project Lavaca Off-Channel Reservoir Corpus Christi
44 Lake Alan Henry Pipeline Lake Alan Henry Lubbock

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Some regions recommended operational improvement installing supplemental wells; 4) temporarily over-
strategies for existing reservoirs to increase their drafting aquifers to supplement supplies; 5) building,
efficiency by working in tandem with one or more expanding, or replacing treatment plants to make
other reservoirs as a system. “System operations” groundwater meet water quality standards; and 6)
involves operating multiple reservoirs as a system to reallocating or transferring groundwater supplies
gain the maximum amount of water supply from them. from areas where projections indicate that surplus
groundwater will exist to areas with needs.
Reallocation of reservoir storage from one approved
purpose to another is a strategy that was recommended 7.2.4 WATER REUSE STRATEGIES
by some regions to meet needs from existing reservoirs. Water management strategies involving reuse are
This reallocation requires formal changes in the way recommended to provide roughly 100,600 acre-feet
reservoirs are operated and shifts more of the storage per year of water in 2010, increasing to approximately
space from flood control or hydro-electric power 915,600 acre-feet per year in 2060. This represents
generation to water supply. If the operational change slightly more than 10 percent of the volume of water
involves a federal agency such as the U.S. Army Corps produced by all strategies in 2060. Reuse projects in the
of Engineers, congressional approval is required if the 2012 State Water Plan produce approximately 348,000
reallocation involves more than 50,000 acre-feet. These acre-feet less water than those recommended in 2007.
operational changes may come at a cost, however. This is directly related to several recommended
Compensation for lost electrical generation will likely wastewater effluent reuse projects that were funded
be required for hydro-electric storage reallocation, and through TWDB’s Water Infrastructure Fund and have
additional property damages from flooding are possible been implemented in the intervening five-year period.
if flood storage capacity is reduced.
Direct reuse projects in which the wastewater never
7.2.3 GROUNDWATER STRATEGIES leaves the treatment system until it is conveyed
Groundwater management strategies recommended in through a pipeline to the point of use do not require
the regional water plans total 254,057 acre-feet in 2010 an additional conveyance permit. These projects are
and increasing to 800,795 acre-feet in 2060. Additional commonly used to provide water for landscapes, parks,
recommendations for groundwater desalination of and other irrigation in many Texas communities.
56,553 acre-feet in 2010 and 181,568 acre-feet in 2060
result in a total of 310,610 acre-feet of groundwater Indirect reuse involves discharge of wastewater into a
in 2010 and 982,363 acre-feet in 2060. Desalination stream and later routing or diverting it for treatment as
of brackish groundwater and other groundwater water supply. Since the wastewater is discharged into
management strategies compose about 11 percent state water for conveyance downstream, it requires
of the total volume of water from recommended authorization known as a “bed and banks permit”
strategies in 2060. Not including desalination, the from the Texas Commission on Environmental
recommended groundwater strategies involve some Quality.
combination of the following: 1) installing new wells;
2) increasing production from existing wells; 3)

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TABLE 7.5. RECOMMENDED WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY CAPITAL COSTS BY REGION
(MILLIONS OF DOLLARS)
Region 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 Total
A $187 $129 $137 $287 — — $739 7.5
B $110 — — $7 $383 — $499
C $9,922 $3,976 $3,891 $928 $17 $2,747 $21,482
D $39 — — — — — $39
E — $382 — $246 $214 — $842
F $223 $439 $252 — — — $915
G $2,064 $745 $94 $273 $10 — $3,186
H $4,710 $4,922 $287 $1,135 $458 $506 $12,019
I $363 $350 $79 $80 — $12 $885
J $11 $44 — — — — $55
K $663 $67 $4 $169 — $4 $907
L $1,022 $2,973 $2,321 $2 $12 $1,294 $7,623
M $2,070 $124 — — — — $2,195
N $45 $113 $360 — — $139 $656
O $669 $273 $167 — — — $1,108
P — — — — — — —
Total $22,097 $14,537 $7,592 $3,127 $1,095 $4,702 $53,150

FIGURE 7.4. EXISTING SUPPLIES AND RECOMMENDED WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY SUPPLIES
BY REGION (ACRE-FEET PER YEAR).
4,500,000

4,000,000

3,500,000 Water Management Strategy Supplies*

Existing Water Supplies
3,000,000

2,500,000

2,000,000

1,500,000

1,000,000

500,000

0
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P
* Some water management strategies include demand reduction or shifts of existing supplies to other users.

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Using artificially created wetlands to provide biological demands. This strategy is feasible only in certain
treatment such as nutrient uptake, the Tarrant Regional formations and in areas where only the utility owning
Water District was the first wholesale water provider the water can access it. It is recommended to provide
in Texas to discharge treated wastewater through a almost 81,000 acre-feet per year by 2060.
natural filtering system before returning the water to
its water supply lakes. This provides an additional Brush control and other land stewardship techniques
source of water, which then can be diverted to water have been recommended for many areas in the western
treatment plants for potable use. Similar indirect half of the state. Removing ash juniper and other
reuse projects are being implemented by other water water consuming species has been shown in studies to
suppliers in north Texas, and additional projects are in restore springflow and improve surface water runoff
the planning stages. in some cases. However, since water produced by this
strategy during a drought when little rainfall occurs
7.2.5 OTHER STRATEGIES is difficult to quantify, it is not often recommended as
Conjunctive use is the combined use of multiple a strategy to meet municipal needs. Brush control is
sources that optimizes the beneficial characteristics of recommended to supply approximately 19,000 acre-
each source. Approximately 136,000 acre-feet of water feet per year in all decades between 2010 and 2060.
per year is recommended by 2060 from this strategy.
Desalination, the process of removing salt from
Weather modification, sometimes referred to as cloud seawater or brackish water, is expected to produce
seeding, is the application of scientific technology that nearly 310,000 acre-feet of potable water by 2060.
can enhance a cloud’s ability to produce precipitation. Improvements in membrane technology, new
More than 15,000 acre-feet per year of new supply variations on evaporative-condensation techniques,
is recommended from this strategy for all decades and other more recent changes have made desalination
between 2020 and 2060 in Region A. more cost-competitive than before. However, it is a
very energy-intensive process and power costs have a
Drought management is a temporary demand significant effect on the price of produced water.
reduction technique based on groundwater or surface
water supply levels of a particular utility. Unlike Rainwater harvesting is the capture, diversion, and
conservation, which can be practiced most or all of storage of rainwater for landscape irrigation, drinking
the time, drought management is temporary and is and domestic use, aquifer recharge, and stormwater
usually associated with summer weather conditions. abatement. Rainwater harvesting helps reduce
Drought management is recommended to supply outdoor irrigation demands on potable water systems.
nearly 2,000 acre-feet per year by 2060. While it is often a component of municipal water
conservation programs, rainwater harvesting was
Aquifer storage and recovery refers to the practice not recommended as a water management strategy
of injecting potable water into an aquifer where it is to meet needs since, like brush control, the volume of
stored for later use, often to meet summer peak usage water may not be available during drought conditions.

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FIGURE 7.5. WATER NEEDS, NEEDS MET BY PLANS, AND STRATEGY SUPPLY BY REGION
(ACRE-FEET PER YEAR).
2,500,000

Identified Water Needs

Water Needs Met by Plan
2,000,000 Water Management Strategy Supplies

1,500,000

1,000,000

500,000

0
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P

DROUGHT MANAGEMENT Residents were limited to 1,000 gallons of water

On April Fool’s Day in 1911, legendary Texas per person per month, about a third of an average
cattleman and oil pioneer, W.T. “Tom” Waggoner, American’s typical water use. All outdoor watering
discovered oil on his family’s ranch near Electra. In was banned and people were asked to use their
the midst of one of the worst droughts on record, toilets five times before flushing (CNN, 2000).
he exclaimed, “Damn the oil, I need water for my
cattle.” (Time Magazine US, 2011). Drought management strategies, such as those used
in Electra in 2000, are temporary measures that are
Though his perspective may have changed with the used to reduce water demand during a drought.
expansion of the Waggoner ranching and oil empire, All wholesale and retail public water suppliers
water has remained scarce in the region, particularly and irrigation districts in Texas must include these
during times of drought. Nearly a century later, measures in drought contingency plans as required
the town of Electra—named after Tom Waggoner’s by the Texas Water Code. In Region B and many
daughter—faced a desperate situation during the areas of Texas, water conservation and drought
drought of 2000. With a mere 45-day water supply, management are a way of life.
the town imposed severe water restrictions.

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7.3 WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY climate variability or the possibility of a drought worse
TOTALS AND COSTS than the drought of record (Figure 7.5).
As discussed further in Chapter 9 (Financing Needs),
the total capital costs of the 2012 State Water Plan— REFERENCES
representing all of the water management strategies CNN, 2000, Texas Drought Order: Don’t Flush, http://
recommended by the regional water planning groups— www.cnn.com/2000/WEATHER/08/01/drought.01/
is $53 billion. The estimated capital costs of strategy index.html.
implementation has increased significantly from the 2007
estimate of $31 billion, and it does not include annual Time Magazine US, 2011, Milestones December 23, 1934:
costs such as operational and maintenance costs (Table Time Magazine, http://www.time.com/time/magazine/
7.5). The increase in costs is attributable to several factors, article/0,9171,711640,00.html#ixzz1LUcDQnR.
including an increased volume of strategies in areas of
high population growth, increased construction costs,
increased costs of purchasing water rights, increased
land and mitigation costs, and the addition of new
projects to address uncertainty and other considerations.

In general, recommended water management strategy

supply volumes increased significantly over the 50-
year planning period due to the anticipated increase
in population and water demands, coupled with a
reduction of current supplies over time. In Figure 7.4,
the total water supply volume from all recommended
water management strategies for each region is shown
in addition to the current water supplies. The total in this
figure is not the total water available to the region because
water management strategies include redistribution
of existing supplies and water conservation, which are
reductions in demands.

Some regions recommended water management

strategies that would provide water in excess of their
identified needs. This was done for various reasons
including uncertainty in the ability of a strategy to be
implemented; recommending the ultimate capacity of the
strategy such as a reservoir in a decade before the entire
firm yield is needed; potential acceleration of population
and demand growth; and uncertainty related to demand
and supply projections, due to various factors such as

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Chapter 7 : water management strategies
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Chapter 7 : water management strategies