The new year had a wintery start and as it has become all too familiar in the District and throughout south-central Texas, we continue to hope for much needed rain to arrive soon. Last year ended with below-average rainfall in Austin for the third consecutive year. During the past three calendar years, we’ve missed out on a cumulative total of 19-20 inches of rainfall. Aquifer water levels reflect that missing water and as I write, we’re getting uncomfortably close to Stage IV Exceptional Drought. Only once in the District’s history have we entered Stage IV drought and that occurred in January 2024.
In the meantime, District staff and our Board of Directors manage drought and incoming permit applications as best we can. One of our consultants, LRE Water, recently completed a well-impact analysis and demonstrated how water levels, should they continue to fall, will impact wells in our District and beyond into adjoining groundwater conservation districts. You can read that report here.
We’re also about to move forward with Phase 2 of our in-house Trinity Aquifer Sustainability (TAS) model. With the aim of a recalibrated and more competent version of TAS, the District will create a “decision matrix” table that will suggest impacts on aquifer water levels and springflow in response to various pumping and drought scenarios. Another ideal outcome will have the TAS model work in a complementary fashion with the new southern Trinity Groundwater Availability Model under development by the Texas Water Development Board. Collectively, these modeling efforts should improve our understanding of the Middle Trinity Aquifer and provide new information for managing the resource.
Our new Director of Precinct 1, Mr. Jon Cradit, participated in his first two regular Board meetings during December and January. Jon brings his background as a hydrogeologist to the Board of Directors and we look forward to his contributions in the months and years ahead. Director Cradit replaced Dan Pickens, who served as a board member during the past four years. We thank Dan for his service and wish him all the best in his next chapter.
