The trickle of water bills introduced in this session of the Texas Legislature has now become a steady stream of legislation. Some of those bills, however, actually seek to stem the flow of water – or, to be precise, prevent water from being wasted. The proposals – initially recommended by the state Water Conservation Advisory Council – are fairly modest but they would advance water efficiency and decrease water loss. As always, however, it will take public support to prevent these bills from being dammed up in the legislative process.
The three priority conservation bills are House Bill (HB) 1573, HB 1648, and HB 2240. Please contact your State Representative and urge support for all three proposals. Here’s a quick overview of the issues addressed by this legislation:
HB 1573 by Rep Four Price (R-Amarillo) – You’ve probably seen news reports about how much water is lost in utility distribution systems through leaking pipelines, water main breaks, and other factors. Utilities are required by state law to conduct regular water loss audits and report their water loss to the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB). But guess what? Many of those reports are inaccurate because people aren’t always properly trained in how to conduct the audits. HB 1573 would simply require those folks to be trained so that we have good information on water loss and can take steps to control that loss.
HB 1648 by Rep Price – Water utilities are required to prepare water conservation plans, submit those plans to TWDB, and report annually on their progress in carrying out those plans. But some utilities don’t file their annual reports, so it’s not clear if the plans are being implemented. HB 1648 would require each utility to designate a water conservation coordinator who is responsible for implementing the conservation plan, someone who can be held accountable.
HB 2240 by Rep Eddie Lucio III (D-Brownsville) – In Texas one of the largest uses of water in a city each year is watering of outdoor landscapes, especially lawns. Although it would be great for more Texans to install landscapes that are more appropriate to our climate, at a minimum people should be smart about when and how to water the grass and plants they have – including not watering during the heat of a summer day when much of that water is lost from evaporation. Many cities – such as Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Lubbock, and San Antonio, among others – have put in place “time-of-day” limitations on outdoor watering by their customers to prevent that waste of water. What that usually means is that customers with lawn irrigation systems can only run those systems in the evening or in the early morning. HB 2240 would require any municipal water utility seeking state financial assistance for a water supply project to have a “time-of-day” limitation on outdoor watering. In other words, a water utility should not come to TWDB to seek a loan to finance a new reservoir, water pipeline or groundwater well if that utility is allowing its customers to waste water through evaporation.
These are all reasonable proposals but the bills won’t become law automatically. Do your part for conservation by urging your State Representative to pass this legislation.