CONTROL THE TAP
TEXAS NEEDS TO ADOPT NEW RULES FOR WATER
The buying and selling of water is going to become a big part of Texas' future. And faced with that, a state Senate committee is considering some new water rules for the 2005 Legislature to discuss. Specifically, the water policy panel needs to shore up the state's system for regulating aquifers AND present an alternative to the current rule that allows Texans to pump as much groundwater as they like.
The sale of water from aquifers represents one of the next revolutions in Texas. It affects Alpine as much as Austin, Dumas as much as Dallas. With a population likely to double by 2050, Texas needs a sensible way to match resources with its population.
[COMMENT: Shudder! What a grim thought! There are already too many people in Texas as it is. It will be HELL ON EARTH if the population doubles. Thank God, I'll be dead by then. R.]
"The rule of separation" now governs our aquifers. It's an English term that allows landowners to pump as much groundwater as they like. And it's a hot-button issue. More people are looking at pumping water from their land, or someone else's land, and selling it to other parts of Texas. And not all Texans are wild about that possibility. A Midland company, for instance, is trying to buy water from state land in Far West Texas and sell it to others, such as cities in dry climates. Likewise, some Hudspeth County landowners are wanting to sell water to El Paso. Both efforts have created a fuss because local ranchers and farmers worry the transfers could leave them without enough water.
Texans need to recognize that the buying and selling of water is part of the state's future. But it needs to be done in a way that preserves this natural resource. That's where the groundwater districts come in. They regulate water production in communities that rely upon aquifers. Or at least some do. Others don't have the money, power or will to control production. So we urge the Senate panel to find ways to build up all of the state's nearly 90 groundwater districts by giving them more authority and funds. The districts are on the front lines of preserving our water.
They also can help implement a new water doctrine. A "correlative rights" system would allow individuals to pump water while respecting their neighbors' needs. The groundwater districts, with oversight by the state, could implement this new Gold Rule policy. Both of those reforms could ensure Texas has a sensible way of buying and selling water. We need to think about Texas 2050 a much as Texas 2005.
[COMMENT: It was a sad day in Texas history when air-conditioning was invented. If it hadn't been, nobody from "Yankee-Land" would ever have moved to sweltering, hot, muggy Texas. I was born and grew up here. I don't need air-conditioning. Texas was certainly a lot better place when most people who lived here were "natives", not "immigrants". Sigh. YANKEE, GO HOME! R.]