exTRA by the Trinity River Authority of Texas

Coming in at roughly $13.3 million below January cost estimates, Paris City Council on Monday awarded a $39,988,500 contract for the construction of Phase 2 of the city’s wastewater treatment plant to Heritage Constructors, of Paris, upon the advice of an outside design team.

Tubing season in South Texas is getting underway, but local lakes, reservoirs, and rivers are still notably low as the drought continues. The latest report from Medina Lake shows that it’s only 2.8% full.

Houston Public Works says crews are cleaning and disinfecting a wastewater spill at a treatment plant on the city's southeast side. City officials said heavy rainfall led to equipment failure at the 69th Street Wastewater Treatment Plant near Buffalo Bayou, causing more than 100,000 gallons of wastewater to spill accidentally.

The International Wastewater Treatment Plant in the Tijuana River Valley has been outdated and in need of refurbishment for years, unable to treat most of the water that flows in from Mexico, runoff that contains untreated sewage and bacteria. It is operated by the International Boundary and Water Commission, which has been looking for funding to upgrade the facility. About $300 million from the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement has been set aside to help with sewage mitigation projects in the valley, and Congress recently allocated another $131 million.

Get out the paddlers, Texans. A new paddling trail opened on Oso Bay in Corpus Christi, according to a news release from Texas Parks and Wildlife on Tuesday, April 9. The trail gives paddlers access to a five-mile loop south of the entrance point and a shorter two-mile loop to the east.

Valor Middle School, the new East Central Independent School District campus being built behind the Tradition Elementary School campus in St. Hedwig, could have its own wastewater treatment plant. The St. Hedwig City Council held a public hearing on a proposed amendment to the city’s zoning ordinance, to allow for wastewater treatment plants in the city’s public/civic/institutional districts within the city at their April 4 meeting. 

The ordinance sets out requirements preventing certain uses or the construction of facilities on land within 155 feet of city-owned water wells in order to secure the wells from pollution hazards. 

The city of Wichita Falls said it's OK to drink city water, social media rumors to the contrary.

As the city of West University Place turned 100 years old Jan. 2, city officials prepared to embark on a number of major projects, including a drainage project on the city’s western side that Mayor Susan Sample called the most significant infrastructure investment in the city’s history.

The city was presented a check for $593,800 through the Texas General Land Office’s Community Development Block Grant Mitigation program. The funding is the majority of what the city needs to build another water well, which has been deemed a priority in improving the city’s water infrastructure to support more residents and businesses. 

Belton Lake's water levels have been significantly boosted over the past few days after severe weather brought torrential rain to Texas.

Drought has plagued the Southwest U.S. for years, drastically impacting water levels at reservoirs such as Lake Mead and Lake Powell. Last summer, Belton, Texas, in Bell County, went without rain for months. The drought severely depleted the water levels at the lake, which is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Chemical company Avina Clean Hydrogen Inc. has purchased the last available water supply from the Nueces River of South Texas, raising concerns of regional scarcity as reservoirs dwindle and drought persists. Avina’s Nueces Green Ammonia plant plans to separate the hydrogen from water, convert it to ammonia and export it as a high-tech fuel alternative to oil and gas. It’s one of several such projects currently proposed in Texas, driven by federal subsidies. Governments and scientists say this technology plays an important role in the transition away from fossil fuels.

The Dallas City Council on Wednesday without discussion approved a $4.3 million settlement of an insurance claim related to Sisters Asphalt Inc. not completing the work under their contract. The City Council in September 2021 approved awarding the Richardson-based construction company a nearly $10.7 million contract for work on lines at 32 locations in southwest, east and northeast Dallas.

The City of El Paso and EPWater will host a series of community meetings on proposed changes to impact fees, or rates charged to new developments that pay for any necessary water and wastewater infrastructure of that development. The impact fees were first implemented in 2009 and placed the burden of costs on developers rather than all EPWater ratepayers.

The land swap would see SpaceX take over 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park near its Brownsville spaceport, in exchange for 477 acres adjacent to Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. The suit, filed last week, claims the state failed to research alternatives to a land swap in its negotiation process with SpaceX, failing its obligation to limit harm to public lands.

It’s the institution’s latest attempt to encourage the estimated 13,500 private water well owners in both counties who aren’t subject to regulation to test and treat their water regularly. In particular, experts hope to inform residents about arsenic, a carcinogen they said has been found in large concentrations in West Texas water wells.

Car washes are popping up on nearly every corner throughout the Rio Grande Valley. In the city of Brownsville, there are more than 30 car washes, but a new city rule will limit future car washes.

Water conservation is a serious issue in the driest parts of the U.S., which are suffering from drought and shortages. One major factor is overuse of the available water reserves. This isn't just a problem for wildlife or the economy; as Harris County, Texas is finding out, drawing too much water from underground aquifers can change the landscape, Community Impact reports.

Experts sound the alarm on enduring environmental threat causing Texas neighborhoods to sink: 'Once it's compressed, it's not coming back up' (msn.com)

City documents state that this water treatment plant was originally constructed in the 1950s. Major expansions and improvements have been made over the last 60 years. In 2018, the annual average flow at the Prairie Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant exceeded 75% and is approaching 90%.

The city of McAllen emptied the Boeye Reservoir with plans to redevelop the land. The property located near the intersection of 10th Street and the expressway is the busiest corner in the city, according to McAllen City Manager Roy Rodriguez.

Four years ago, the city began investigating the sewer problems and looking for solutions.