Water is Life

Dry Weather Predicted for Southwest, March through May (By Gary Cutrer)

Prospects for drier-than-normal conditions for both March 2012 and March-May 2012 are elevated over the Southwest, the southern and central High Plains, the immediate Gulf Coast, and Florida, according to the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center.

Water Events in March (By Gary Cutrer)

Following are water events, meetings, seminars, etc., scheduled for March 2012 according to the Texas Water Development Board:

Texas Water Conservation Association 68th Annual Convention

March 7-9
Sheraton Dallas Hotel
Dallas, TX

Hearing on Appeal of Groundwater Management Area 12 Desired Future Conditions
March 7, 10:00 a.m.
Milano Civic Center
Milano, TX

Texas Rural Water Association Annual Convention

March 14-16
Fort Worth Omni Hotel
Fort Worth, TX

Texas Water Law Conference

March 22-23
Westin La Cantera
San Antonio, TX

Texas Alliance of Groundwater Districts Quarterly Meeting

March 27-28
Crowne Plaza Hotel
Austin, TX

Central Texas Water Conservation Symposium – Drop by Dropless: Managing Your Resources Through a Drought

March 30, 2012
LCRA Dalchau Service Center
Austin, TX

Texas Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Groundwater Rights (By Gary Cutrer)

This press release from TSCRA says it all:

FORT WORTH, TEXAS – The Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) today [Feb 24] applauded the opinion of the Texas Supreme Court in the Edwards Aquifer Authority v. Burrell Day and Joel McDaniel case regarding whether or not landowners own the groundwater below their land.

“The Texas Supreme Court has affirmed that landowners own the groundwater in place below their land and that it is subject to constitutional protection as a property right,” said Joe Parker Jr, rancher and president of TSCRA.

“This opinion is a victory for Texas landowners and will be important for generations to come.  It also recognizes the important legislation, S.B. 332, that was passed by the Legislature in 2011” Parker said.

“TSCRA would like to thank the Texas Supreme Court for their diligent efforts in writing this opinion,” Parker continued.

Read more »

Ranchers, Farmers Cautiously Optimistic about Rains (By Gary Cutrer)

Heavy rains in Central and East Texas and soaking rains in West Texas fell the last two days. Some occasional showers and light but soaking rains have occurred since the first of the year with the latest rains doing a lot of good in West Texas and actually causing some minor flash flooding in the San Antonio and Austin areas.

Farmers are watching the skies closely in preparation for the upcoming planting season. Ranchers are thankful to have any moisture at all across grazing lands in Texas, even though much of the livestock inhabiting those pastures has been sold off.

Winter weeds are emerging and providing feed for goats and sheep still left out there. Winter wheat pastures are surviving now that  the rain has come. This year is already an improvement over the tinder dry conditions of 2011 when spring winds whipped up a record number of wildfires across Texas.

With the prognostication that La Nina will continue to influence the weather of the Southwestern U.S. in the dry direction, ag producers are crossing their fingers that those predictions are wrong and that the occasional rains will continue.

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NWS: La Niña to Dissipate by May 2012 (By Gary Cutrer)

Pressure departures: El Nino vs. La Nina.

End-of-2011 predictions called for the La Niña Pacific Ocean phenomenon to prolong extreme drought conditions in areas of North America through 2012.

But now, the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center is predicting a transition to “ENSO-neutral conditions during March-May 2012.”

ENSO stands for El Niño/Southern Oscillation

Read more »

Aussies Have Innovative Approach to Water Storage (By Gary Cutrer)

An Australian company that specializes in water systems has an innovative approach to water storage. Instead of setting above ground tanks and directing runoff to them, the company digs a wide, shallow hole, lines it with a membrane and then fills the void with interlocking plastic cubes with plenty of  ‘empty space’ for water to occupy. Another membrane is used to cover the water ‘sponge’ and then some of the dirt that was excavated  is used to level the storage area out, back to the original grade.

Here’s a video of that construction process from start to finish.

From the company’s website:

Modular systems are manufactured from 100% recycled plastics which have been designed with a unique interlocking capability, this allows Sub terra to design a tank to any size, shape and specifications your site calls for. Around trees, under sports fields, beneath major roads or as a complete watering system for parks and gardens.

Modular underground water storage tanks are fast and simple to install. The modular, inter-connecting style allows most of the tailoring and assembly to be done off-site. Once delivered, the erection is simple and the free-form structure can be as shallow as 0.1m and as deep as 2.5m, with any length and width in 1m increments.

Plastic modules with plenty of empty space for water are used to form the sponge.

The company suggests that parks, sports fields and similar open areas that really don’t bear any load from above, i.e. buildings, are ideal candidates for this type of storage system. I would imagine that, considering some type of plastic is used for the underlying and covering membranes, this system would have a definite lifespan and tend to deteriorate after that. Still, it’s an interesting concept and one that stimulates the thinking organ. (That would be the brain in most people.)

TWDB Offering Free Conservation Workshop (By Gary Cutrer)

The Texas Water Development Board, in partnership with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the Brazos River Authority, is hosting a free water conservation workshop.  The workshop will give an overview of reporting requirements for water conservation, developing a water conservation plan and completing various reporting requirements.  The workshop will also touch on various components of water conservation planning, strategies for selecting and establishing conservation programs and guidance on appropriate tools and resources.

Toyota Funding 4-H Film on Water Conservation (By Gary Cutrer)

SAN ANTONIO ­ The 4-H2O for the Alamo program in Bexar County is onee of the educational initiatives featured in a new film about water conservation in Texas being produced by National 4-H Council and funded by Toyota, according to project coordinators.

“The film will showcase what 4-H members throughout the state are doing to conserve water and to inspire other 4-H member and non-member youth to do the same,” said Tara Wheeler, national project manager-curriculum for National 4-H Council, headquartered in Chevy Chase, Md.

Wheeler said the film will be completed within the next few months and will have a finished length of five to 10 minutes. She added that while the film’s content is targeted at the middle school-level, young people at higher and lower grade levels also will be able to benefit from seeing it.

“The film is highlighting activities related to the 4-H2O Community Project supported by Toyota and 4-H, and 4-H2O for the Alamo in Bexar County is an example of this important national educational initiative,” she said. “The film’s content will address the need for water conservation throughout Texas and will include interviews with people who have chosen careers relating to environmental stewardship, so kids can learn about jobs involving environmental responsibility.”

The film will end with a “call to action” for young viewers to make changes in their communities by addressing local water issues and concerns, she added. It will be posted on the National 4-H website, http://www.4-h.org, and also will be shown to 4-H members and other young people at schools and in community venues nationwide.

According to the National 4-H Council, 4-H2O Community Project initiatives nationwide have been made possible by a $2 million commitment from Toyota. The initiative’s goal is to involve youth in water quality and conservation while increasing interest in the sciences.
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Who owns the groundwater beneath your land? (By Gary Cutrer)

Landowner groups host groundwater ownership forum in Lubbock

PRESS RELEASE FROM Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association

AUSTIN, TEXAS – Texas landowner groups have joined forces in an effort to ensure that groundwater continues to be recognized as a vested, real private property right. The groups will host an educational forum Oct. 28, at the Merket Alumni Center from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. The forums are aimed to help the public understand current groundwater ownership issues.

The growing effort, currently supported by the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA); the Texas Wildlife Association (TWA); the Texas Farm Bureau (TFB); the Texas Poultry Federation (TPF); the Exotic Wildlife Association (EWA); the Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association (TSGRA); the Texas Cattle Feeders Association (TCFA); the Texas Association of Dairymen (TAD); the South Texans’ Property Rights Association (STPRA); the Riverside and Landowners Protection Coalition; the Texas Forestry Association; and the Texas Land and Mineral Owners Association (TLMA), brings together more than 400,000 Texans who own more than 50 million acres of private property.

According to estimates by the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB), by 2060 Texas’ population will more than double, increasing its water demand by 27 percent. Because groundwater from Texas aquifers supply more than half the water for the state, it is critical that groundwater resources be managed to provide for current and future use.

Each forum will cover various groundwater topics including the current groundwater regulation under the Texas Water Code, legal issues surrounding groundwater, and why groundwater conservation is important not only to private property owners in Texas, but also to Texas communities.

Forums are free and open to the public. The Merket Alumni Center is located at 17th and University in Lubbock. For more information visit www.groundwaterownership.com.

California Reluctant to Declare Drouth Over (By Gary Cutrer)

Lake Oroville at near capacity in better days.

Despite plenty of rain and snow coming in from the Pacific this winter, the California Department of Water Resources is reluctant to declare an end to the state’s three-year drouth. Although a lot of wet stuff has fallen, the state’s biggest source of drinking and irrigation water is still only at 40 percent capacity. Lake Oroville provides drinking water to 25 million Californians and irrigates 700,000 acres of farmland. If the melting snowpack in the northern Sierras fills the reservoir, the state’s drouth may well be over–for now. See article here.