exTRA by the Trinity River Authority of Texas

The city of Copperas Cove will likely look to make improvements to its wastewater treatment system in the future, following recommendations by RJN Group, which spent the last 18 months doing a deep analysis of how well the system operated.

Roanoke residents will pay 30% more for water and wastewater rates next month as City Council approved a rate hike at the Feb. 13 meeting. City officials said in a council agenda memo the rate adjustments are necessary for the city to ensure long-term financial stability for its water and wastewater operations, with particular consideration given to projected rate increases from the Trinity River Authority, which contracts with the city for wastewater services. The city purchases water from the city of Fort Worth.

It's almost that time: Texas bluebonnets will soon return for spring 2024. And according to experts, it looks like this year could be a "superb" bloom. 

"It's because we're in a drought, and we had a pretty severe drought last summer. We're still in a drought in much of Central Texas," said Lee Clippard, the executive director at the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center. "Wildflowers like to have little competition in the landscape, so drought has reduced competition from other plants."

Marble Falls is asking for $25.8 million from the Texas Water Development Board for the city's proposed wastewater treatment plant, which is projected to cost around $60 million to $80 million. 

The state horned lizard has gained a knowing reputation for its horny appearance, ability to flatten and blend into sparse vegetation, along with its renowned ability to shoot a stream of blood for the eye in defense. Major reasons for its population decline include loss of habitation in urban regions and food sources, according to a 10-year study by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. TPWD has worked with private landowners to protect the population. 

The City is currently contracted with Bell County Water Control and Improvement District #1 for up to 10 million gallons per day (MGD). With the new commitment, the City is adding four MGD at a cost of $24 million.

Woodway will start a $945,000 project next month to expand water service capacity in an area seeing new residential development.

Continued rain events in the Brazos River basin have allowed the Brazos River Authority to remove the Stage 1 Drought Watch status from the BRA’s System of reservoirs.  The removal of drought designation allows most BRA customer cities, industries and agriculture to change or remove restrictions they currently have in place for water supply use.

Residents of Round Rock are eligible for water rebates for making their homes more water efficient. 

In response to a water main break that has resulted in reduced water pressure, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has mandated the City of Elmendorf's public water system to issue a boil water notice to all its customers. The notice advises residents to boil water before consumption, encompassing activities such as washing hands or face, brushing teeth, and drinking.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- There are more than 250 parks across the city of Houston. Some are less than a tenth of an acre in size, all the way up to Memorial Park, which is more than 1,500 acres.

"The parks are becoming unaffordable 'cause we've lost the city, and Houstonians have lost control of them," Mayor John Whitmire said during a council meeting last week.

On Feb. 12, council unanimously approved the ordinance that will place a maximum charge on wastewater usage beginning with March’s bills. As the city is “transitioning from a sewer averaging method” for utility bills, according to a Feb. 7 post on the city’s website, the cap should “limit the impact” of bill increases for residents, City Manager Austin Bleess said in a Feb. 19 email.

A few cities currently not affected by water restrictions will soon also be impacted and limited to outdoor watering no more than once a week, according to a news release from the Lower Colorado River Authority. According to LCRA studies, moving from twice-a-week to once-a-week watering “can reduce annual water use by about 7%-12%.”

Harker Heights currently uses about 9 million gallons per day, or 9 MGD, according to Garrett’s presentation. The proposed improvement project would supply the city with a total 13.5 MGD and meet the city’s needs through 2070, the presentation shows.

Missouri City City Council voted unanimously to approve the selection of Blue Ox Construction as the contractor for Phase 2 of its City Hall Entrance Plaza Project.

The Allison Wastewater Treatment Plant serves a large portion of the city's Northwest side. It currently has an average daily flow capacity of five million gallons per day. That's a three million gallon jump from when the facility first opened in 1965. 

West Lake Hills City Council approved a bid of $7,934,736.93 to Smith Construction for roadway and drainage projects at a Feb. 14 meeting. The funds for the projects were approved by voters as part of the November 2021 bond package. Proposition B of the bond package provided $11.8 million in funding to construct roadway repairs and drainage improvements. 

Lakes in North Texas are rising thanks to the abundance of precipitation in the region this year. The above-average rainfall is filling lakes across the region. Lake Arlington was nearly a third short of capacity half a year back. As of Thursday, it’s fully topped up. In fact, many other lakes in the region are approaching 100% capacity.

City of Burton officials report considerable strides in rectifying the city’s water loss problems.

At Tuesday’s city council meeting, Mayor Karen Buck broke down what steps the city is taking to find water loss issues and address them. She also discussed how those efforts have led to recorded water loss dropping from as high as 74.5 percent in September to just 6.5 percent in January.