Part 1 In a turnout that filled the Community Center’s main room to capacity, Wimberley citizens attended a meeting initiated by The Wimberley Valley Watershed Association and the Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association last Friday evening. Both organizations presented speakers to clarify the reasons the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District levied an unprecedented fine against water supplier Aqua Texas that led the company to sue the District in a federal lawsuit.
In 2023, the District fined Aqua Texas $459,000 for pumping 89 million gallons of water beyond the amount their permit allowed from the sensitive Trinity aquifer that supplies Woodcreek and Wimberley. The aquifer also supplies water to Jacob’s Well and Blue Hole.
On December 29, Aqua Texas filed a lawsuit against the District for “unequal treatment.”
Attorney Jim Blackburn, TESPA board president and Professor in the Practice of Environmental Law at Rice University opened the meeting and outlined the issues that prompted the fine and the lawsuit. He reiterated the issues against Aqua Texas stated on the TESPA website.
“Aqua Texas failed to follow drought restrictions and Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District rules and they failed to fix leaky pipes, wasting millions of gallons of our precious groundwater. During the drought of 2022, Aqua pumped nearly 90 million gallons more than their permit allowed and they continue to pump,” he told the community. “Aqua’s noncompliance is unacceptable. Aqua Texas has refused to settle its notice of alleged violation of the HTGCD rules and has failed to fix the leaky infrastructure.”
Hydrogeologist and registered Texas geoscientist, Doug Wierman, presented scientific groundwater reports that showed the over pumping, which Aqua Texas freely admits, and discussed how “new wells drilled by Aqua Texas to pump more water from the aquifer would only exacerbate the problem, not allowing the aquifer to adequately recharge.”
In Part 2 of this series, we will cover the legal issues surrounding the lawsuits presented at the meeting by attorney Jim Blackburn who reviewed the legal actions against Aqua Texas, and relevant actions at the Public Utility Commission addressed by attorney Adam Friedman, partner with McElroy, Sullivan, Miller & Weber LLP.
