Advisory committee members discuss alternatives for minimum storage level for Highland Lakes

Members of the Water Management Plan Advisory Committee continued to wrestle with the issue of combined minimum storage at their April 26 meeting.

The group is trying to come to consensus on how low the volume of water in lakes Travis and Buchanan should be allowed to fall during severe drought in the computer simulations. The simulations are used to help build the plan that determines how water from lakes Travis and Buchanan is allocated. The theoretical low amount of water in the lakes during a repeat of the worst drought in recorded history is an important part of the plan and helps determine when water is cut back and even cut off to certain customers during drought.

The groups helping LCRA update the plan represent the major interests that depend on the Highland Lakes: cities and industry, farmers, environment and lake area businesses and residents. All agree that the combined minimum storage should be based on one year's needs of the municipal and industrial customers that contract with LCRA for "firm" water, or water that should be available through a repeat of the worst drought in history, called the Drought of Record. The goal is to provide these customers with water supply sufficient to meet critical needs during a severe drought.

The interest groups looked at factors including evaporation, customer demands and the amount of water needed for the downstream environment to determine combined minimum storage. The groups came up with a range of proposals.

Combined storage is not a direct representation of lake levels, but instead represents the volume of water in the two lakes that serve as the region's water supply reservoirs. None of the four interest groups were perfectly aligned at the April 26 meeting. Generally, lake area businesses and residents whose economy depends on higher lake levels are advocating for a higher combined minimum storage, as are the municipal and industrial customers that pay for "firm" water. The downstream agricultural and environmental groups generally are advocating for a lower combined minimum storage. The farmers want the plan to allow water to be released downstream for agriculture, while the groups representing the environment want water released downstream to supply adequate habitat for the species in the river and Matagorda Bay.

Given the difficulty and complexity of the issue, the Advisory Committee decided to explore alternatives to setting a single combined minimum storage. The alternatives were discussed in terms of providing a "fail safe" or "adaptive" method. The idea would be to allow farmers and the environment to avoid the harshest restrictions during dry years that do not qualify as extreme drought, but still provide municipal and industrial customers and lake area interests a protective combined minimum storage during severe drought. Ideas discussed included using different triggers or other mechanisms that would allow LCRA to adjust the amount of water available for downstream interests based upon the conditions being experienced. The group felt that this type of approach had merit and needed further study.

The diverse 16-member advisory committee has been meeting since July and is scheduled to finish its work in June. The advisory committee is tasked with providing input to LCRA on how to improve water management strategies outlined in the plan. Once the LCRA Board of Directors approves an updated plan, it goes to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for a final decision.

The lakes help provide water for 1.1 million people in Central Texas as well as water for farming, industry and the environment. The plan contains triggers that determine who must reduce water use, and when, in times of drought. The triggers are generally based on the combined storage of lakes Travis and Buchanan.

The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for May 10 at the Riverside Conference Center in Bastrop. Another meeting is scheduled for May 24 at the same location. For more information on the Water Management Plan or the Advisory Committee please go to www.lcra.org/watermanagementplan.