LCRA plans El Campo hearing to discuss pipeline possibility
By BENJAMIN C. SHARP news@leader-news.com

Contributed Graphic Proposed Project The LCRA-SAWS water project plans include a holding basin in Wharton County as well as pipeline running from that facility out of the county. Land owners are being contacted and a meeting is set for later this month in El Campo.

Wharton County residents will soon be provided with an update of the Lower Colorado River Authority/San Antonio Water System project.

A meeting, planned later this month in El Campo, will cover such topics as agricultural conservation studies, facility siting, surface water availability, groundwater and climate changes.

LCRA officials said the purpose of the meeting is to provide updates on the project's various studies, all of which are estimated to cost $47.9 million.

The LCRA/SAWS project itself is designed to meet long-term water needs in San Antonio and the lower Colorado River basin through water conservation, the supplemental use of groundwater and the storage of excess river surface water in a retention reservoir.

Plans are to build a reservoir in Wharton County, on land currently owned by the Pierce Ranch. The pending land deal would entail the sale of a 4,200 acre tract located between the borders of U.S. 59, the Colorado River and Hwy. 71.

The reservoir's purpose is to hold excess surface water flows from the Colorado River. That water will be transported via pipeline to San Antonio.

The LCRA/SAWS calls for the transport of 150,000 acre feet of Colorado River water to San Antonio annually. In return, the money the Alamo city pays for the water will fund conservation methods and the development of new water sources in the lower Colorado basin.

LCRA spokesperson Merrell Foote said area landowners are now being notified by letter of a proposed water transport pipeline that could cross their properties.

"We are contacting landowners in Wharton County this week about a proposed route for an underground pipeline that will deliver water from the project's proposed holding basin at Pierce Ranch to the Wharton County line, where the pipeline would connect with a pipeline that would be developed by SAWS," Foote said in a news release.

The route of the underground pipeline is estimated to be roughly 19 miles long with a 100 foot wide easement.

The letter states LCRA officials would "like to visit your property for several days to identify wetlands, stream crossings and other features that could affect the route. Our goal is to complete the work quickly with minimal disruption and inconvenience to you.

"If the project goes forward, you will be compensated fairly for the easement on your property."

The entire LCRA/SAWS project is in the fourth year of a study period designed to determine the project's feasibility. Various studies are ongoing, concerning everything from environmental impact to possible effects on groundwater.

Updates on these studies is at the heart of the upcoming meeting, which will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 30, at the El Campo Civic Center, 2350 N. Mechanic St.

The public is invited, but is asked to RSVP by Oct. 22. To make a reservation, call the LCRA at 1-800-776-5272, ext. 7208, or send an e-mail to: lcras awswaterproject@lcra.org

The meeting's agenda can be viewed online at www.lcra.org/ lswp.