Guest Essay: A look at Georgetown water restrictions, current water challenges
By Mayor Josh Schroeder and Council Member Kevin Pitts
On Thursday, July 13, Georgetown lost significant pressure in one of the water towers on the western edge of our water system. The loss in pressure was mainly due to the City of Leander being unable to provide the 3,000,000 gallons of water per day Georgetown has contracted with them to provide the city each summer.
Fortunately, the City of Round Rock has been able to increase the amount of water it is providing us, but that water is entering our system on the southeastern edge of the system. The City of Leander has informed us that they can only give us 250,000 gallons of water per day for the foreseeable future, so it is difficult to keep
the pressure up on the northwestern edge of the system. If pressure in the system falls below a certain level, the entire system will have to go to a boil water notice.
To avoid this result, on July 17, the City of Georgetown enacted Stage 3 restrictions for most of the western edge of the system. We are hyper-aware that the Stage 3 restrictions apply mostly to areas outside our city limits, though some neighborhoods in the city limits are also under the Stage 3 restrictions.
We understand the optics of this decision makes it seem as if we are favoring city residents over those who live in the extra territorial jurisdiction, county and other city limits, but this was not a political decision or a decision that was made lightly. We understand the frustrations of homeowners, builders and developers, and we can promise you that we are doing everything in our power to address the situation and get the entire system back to at least Stage 2.
So, how did we get here? Why didn’t the city plan for growth? Why does the city continue to approve zoning for future developments? Why doesn’t the city say no to the new developments wanting to connect to the Georgetown Water Utility?
The answer is, unfortunately, complex and technical, which makes it difficult to explain in a short sound bite. The simple answer is we are planning, we are approving zoning requests that fit within our long-term plans, and more importantly, we are complying with the laws and regulations imposed by the state.
How did we get here? Why didn’t the city plan for growth?
The city created a comprehensive water master plan in 2005. The plan was reevaluated and updated based on current conditions in 2008, 2014, 2018 and 2022. These were long term plans that considered a 20-year horizon and reviewed the entire water system.
Master plans are used to determine the upgrades or additions of infrastructure as well as the supply of raw water assuming growth trends. While raw water will become an issue at some point, the primary need has been increased treatment capacity. All of the plans called for increased treatment capacity over the planning period except for the 2005 plan. Below is a snapshot of the timing outlined in the plans:
• 2008 Plan: New capacity of treated water needed by 2018
• 2014 Plan: New capacity of treated water needed by 2022
• 2018 Plan: New capacity needed immediately but short-term inner-connections with Round Rock and Leander could supply the short-term need while long-term solutions are being built
• 2022 Plan: New capacity of treated water will be needed by 2032 over and above the current expansions under construction
In the past, the city’s strategy has been to upgrade infrastructure “just in time” in an effort to maintain the lowest rates possible. This ensured water users were not paying for infrastructure that was not needed to serve them at the time. It is a fiscally responsible approach, but it has risks.
The strategy could have been to build the system so every resident can water their grass on demand; however, that strategy would have meant users would have had higher water bills each month in order to pay for building the additional treatment capacity that wasn’t needed year round. This is not being critical of the decisions made at the time, because those decisions were made in an effort to do what was best for the city with the information available at the time. However, the strategy is a part of what has led us to where we are today.
That’s not to say there have been no improvements. Treatment capacity has increased from 22.7 million gallons per day in 2008 to 46.3 million gallons per day today. Currently, the city has two major projects underway that will come on line in phases over the next three years. These projects will add an additional 52.8 million gallons per day in treatment capacity. We are also working to increase storage capacity by using the aquifer as storage (though the governor recently vetoed legislation needed to allow this option), and we are actively pursuing additional raw water resources to provide the water needed for many generations to come.
Why does the city continue to approve zoning for future developments?
Texans love their property rights and the laws of the state reflect as much. In Texas, a property owner has the right to develop their property and the city cannot just deny that right without good cause. The city can, however, guide development and that is primarily facilitated through zoning.
Zoning only applies to properties within our city limits, and a substantial amount of growth has occurred outside of the city limits but within our water service area. The city has used MUD agreements where possible to help guide growth in these areas, but a developer isn’t required to enter into those agreements. And if the city doesn’t work with the developer and just tells them no, the developer can get a MUD created through either the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or through the state legislature.
But even zoning within the city limits does not provide us certainty of the timing of development, and once a development is approved, the developer decides when to begin. It is partly this uncertainty coupled with the volume of developments in our water service area that have exposed the risks of a “just in time” approach to water infrastructure.
Why doesn’t the city say no to the new developments wanting to connect to the Georgetown Water Utility?
Retail public utilities are highly regulated by the state of Texas. Put simply, if, like the city, a utility holds a certificate of convenience and necessity granted by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, and the utility has the lines in the ground and the capacity to serve, the utility cannot deny access to retail water service.
But we don’t have the capacity because I can only water my grass once a week, right?
Not according to the State of Texas. In Texas, capacity is tied to connections, and TCEQ regulations are based on the relationship between connections and capacity of drinking water. Importantly, the term “drinking water,” as defined by the TCEQ, is limited to water supplied “for the purposes of human consumption,” which is limited to “[u]ses by humans in which water can be ingested into or absorbed by the human body” (Texas Administrative Code, Title 30, Part I, Chapter 290, Subchapter D Rule §290.38 (16), (23), (36)). Simply put, irrigation is not included within the definition of “drinking water” or “human consumption.” Therefore, irrigation is not considered in the determination of whether the city has capacity to serve a new development, and the city cannot deny new connections unless there is insufficient water for human consumption in the entire system. This is why the city restricts irrigation while new homes and commercial buildings are still being built.
Conservation is also a requirement of the state of Texas. The state’s water plan calls for conservation and requires every water utility to have a conservation plan that must be enforced. In addition, we purchase water from the Brazos River Authority. Brazos River Authority manages the reservoir levels which provide them the right to issue conservation requirements over and above the city’s conservation plan.
The city has planned for growth and worked to manage rates by not overbuilding infrastructure, but the city is adjusting the strategy now to be more aggressive. But the cost of water will continue to increase as a result of bringing on more treatment capacity and future raw water resources. In the short-term, our treatment capacity will get better. In the summer of 2024, there will be more capacity than this summer and the South Lake Plant will come online in the summer of 2025.
There is not an easy answer to any of these questions, but please know that water is the top priority for the city right now.
Josh Schroeder is the mayor of Georgetown. Kevin Pitts is mayor pro tem and the city council member for District 5.