exTRA by the Trinity River Authority of Texas

Bexar County Commissioners this week topped off funding for a new $5 million dollar water well that will supply animals at the zoo with fresh water. County officials said there is some fear the existing decades old well at the zoo could fail, so the county, city, San Antonio River Authority, and zoo have taken steps to see it replaced. 

While the recent rain was a welcome sight, it created some headaches for those along the San Antonio River where trash often collects. However, a group of volunteers are committed to keeping the river clean.

Williamson County residents are concerned after over a million gallons of rainwater and wastewater went into the San Gabriel River in Georgetown.

A Denton County community is a step closer to having water service fully restored after a deadly water main break. The accident happened Thursday in Providence Village. The effort to make sure each resident has drinkable water continued Sunday afternoon with a distribution of cases of bottled water.

The Trinity River rose many feet, putting homes and roads underwater on Wednesday night. In the high ground of the Cedar Valley community, folks are drying out from the rain. Just down the road, things look very different.

The San Antonio Airport recorded about 6 inches of rain over the last five days, said National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Brady. However, the three days of rainfall in the city did not extend to the Hill Country, where much of the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone is located.

Water line leaks are down in Beaumont compared to October but storms in recent days are causing problems with Beaumont's wastewater system. The city of Beaumont is bouncing back from the summer drought because of the rain, now averaging four leaks a day as opposed to 14 a day in October.

The proposal would give SpaceX 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park in exchange for 477 acres near the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. Texas Parks and Wildlife staff has said the swap would boost the state’s conservation efforts and provide additional recreational opportunities, such as hiking and wildlife viewing.

Over four chilly days between Jan. 14 and 17, companies submitted reports to Texas’ environmental regulator, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, that attributed at least 36 instances of “unintentional” emissions to the freezing temperatures. According to the companies’ preliminary estimates, those incidents collectively produced more than a million pounds of air pollution.

The San Jacinto County Office of Emergency Management announced a voluntary evacuation of Camilla Twin Harbor and Cedar Valley due to rising water from the Lake Livingston dam. Most homes in nearby neighborhoods are not elevated. At the most, they sit on a few cinderblocks.

At least 17 people and 15 animals had to be rescued in Montgomery County due to high water on Wednesday. The San Jacinto River Authority said it is monitoring rain conditions and the Lake Conroe dam. Montgomery County Emergency Service District #3 officials have also been monitoring the San Jacinto River, Lake Creek, and other creeks.

As parts of Central and East Texas face flooding this week, it can be easy to forget: Texas has a serious water problem. As hundreds of thousands of new Texans flow into the state every year, state leaders warn the “Texas miracle” is only sustainable as long as the water keeps flowing.

Two large developments promising to bring nearly 4,000 homes—Travis Club and Thomas Ranch—received approval from Travis County to begin construction in 2023, despite ongoing pushback from residents. Longtime residents voiced concerns to the county prior to approval, fearing that a large influx of residents would create more traffic congestion, strain the dwindling water supply and put the endangered golden-cheeked warbler species at risk of habitat loss.

Emergency crews in Montgomery County are continuing water rescues as the San Jacinto River is expected to stay in flood stages through Monday. County Judge Mark Keough issued a disaster declaration Wednesday evening as the San Jacinto River Authority released stormwater from the Lake Conroe Dam, causing significant flooding.

Estimates put construction of a plant generating 30 million gallons of water per day at about $541.5 million, with a total cost of $757.5 million.

The city has said sanitary sewage overflowed into Lanana Creek this past week, but should pose minimal environmental risk. Due to heavy rains and more than 7.5 inches of rain this past week, authorities said the City of Nacogdoches Wastewater Treatment Plant has been overwhelmed.

A disaster declaration remains in effect due to severe flooding in San Jacinto and Montgomery counties. Several county and state highways are reported impassable Thursday even as the rain is moving out of much of the state. In Dallas, the Trinity River continues to rise, posing a threat.

An angler caught a record-breaking blue catfish on a Texas lake on January 15, according to a Facebook post from Fish Texas - Texas Parks and Wildlife. Officials stated the behemoth weighed 62 pounds and measured 45.5 inches long, according to the post on Tuesday, January 23. 

The South is set for another day of relentless rain, thunderstorms and potential flooding, as 33 million people remain under flood watches from Texas into Tennessee.

The San Jacinto River Authority has increased water flows from the Lake Conroe Dam to 16,525 cubic feet per second.
"Due to the heavy rainfall across the watershed, inflows into Lake Conroe have continued to increase," SJRA officials said in a Jan. 24 news release. "As a result, SJRA operations staff will continue to make incremental changes to releases to buffer the incoming flow into the lake while also gradually getting the lake level back to conservation pool of 201 [feet]."
The water levels are expected to continue increasing into the evening.

A new wastewater project in Socorro will provide sewage service to over 70 homes. The North American Development Bank and the Lower Valley Water District hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the first-time wastewater project at 200 Melton Road, at the corner of Melton and Bejar Road.