By Haley Huntington
Austin, Tx., June 5, 2013 – With a loaded itinerary and an eager tour guide by the name of Dr. Kevin Klein, the Tapped Out team set out for the Highland Lakes, which currently look like puddles connected by small trickling creeks in many areas.
Shocking is the best way to describe the first location Dr. Klein brought the team. All that was visible was the stark reality of an empty crater, boats scattered and abandoned on the floor of the once-full Lake Travis. Homes that were once lake-front properties had nothing to look at but a scary reminder that Texas is in a severe drought, and has been for several years.
Dr. Jordan Furnans, Senior Water Resources Engineer with a company called Intera, was the first to explain to the team how difficult it is to provide an adequate water supply for individuals living in Texas, one of the fastest growing statewide populations in the country. Seeing as Texas is in a severe drought, part of Dr. Furnans’s job is to make critical decisions regarding the change in access to the water during times of low supply, when people need water most.
After enjoying some legendary Texas barbeque, it was off to the city of Spicewood, Tx., a community that has essentially run out of water and has to have its supply trucked in four times a day. Karen Bruett, a resident of Spicewood, explained what it is like living there since their aquifer went dry.
Bruett and her husband moved to Spicewood years ago so that they could enjoy hobbies such as boating and fishing on beautiful Lake Travis. However, with the current drought situation, Lake Travis has been so low that Bruett’s boat has been parked in the driveway for over a year.
The lack of water is not only impacting recreation in Spicewood, but the daily lives of its residents as well. According to Bruett, the town is under stage four water restrictions, meaning that all outside uses for water are prohibited, and inside use must be greatly reduced.
“We don’t shower every day,” said Bruett, “and we only flush when necessary, so I'll let you figure that one out.” The restrictions are serious, and residents must pay a considerable fine if their water usage exceeds the allowable amount. This is the stark reality that Spicewood residents are facing, and sadly, it is becoming the new normal for many.
As the team continued on their journey through the Highland Lakes, it was clear that Bruett was not alone in hardships caused by lack of water; many other residents and business owners located on the lakes have been severely impacted by the ongoing drought.
The Highland Lakes normally draw in a huge amount of recreation, and many have built their livelihood around the business of recreation on the lakes. But persistent conditions have forced many local business owners to watch their customer base dry up along with the water. Some have even been forced into bankruptcy, seeing their life savings wash away due to something that they cannot control: whether or not it will rain.
John Williams, owner of Thunderbird Resort on Lake Buchanan, remains optimistic and proactive with regards to the health of his business by altering the way it operates to be more independent from the lake and its inconsistent levels. However, he still finds himself lying awake at night, concerned about the future of the Highland Lakes and our water supplies as a whole.
As the team listened to Williams’ testimony, they couldn’t help but marvel at the situation and their surroundings. Had the lake been at its normal capacity, waterproof camera equipment and scuba suits would have been necessary because they would have been standing 30 feet under water; instead, the team found themselves standing on dry land, at least five feet above the current water line.
Not only were these circumstances tear-jerking, they were also frustrating. After a long conversation over dinner with the President of the Central Texas Water Coalition, Jo Karr Tedder, it seemed that there was certainly more to Texas’s story than the drought. Contentions have been made that drought conditions have been aggravated by mismanagement of the water by the governing body for water allocation in Texas: the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA).
Lakes Buchanan and Travis, part of the Highland Lakes system, are reservoirs that help supply water for municipal, agricultural, and industrial uses in nearby cities and throughout the basin. In 2011, the LCRA released nearly 500,000 acre feet of water from the Highland Lakes, much of which was used by rice farmers in the southern part of the Texas.
The LCRA took this action with the presumption that rains would come and replenish the water in the lakes. This was not the case, however; a major drought hit shortly after the release, and thus the Highland Lakes are currently only at about 39 percent of their normal capacity. As surrounding communities have seen hardly any relief to the lakes since the 2011 release, either naturally or by actions of the LCRA, many of the citizens who live and depend on that water are extremely upset.
With the desire to hear both sides of this dispute, the Tapped Out team set out to meet with LCRA’s General Manager of Water Operations, Ryan Rowney, on their last day in Austin. When asked about the large release of water from the Highland Lakes in 2011 and the resulting consequences, Rowney stated that the organization had not accounted for the possibility of a prolonged drought, because they can usually count on heavy rains or floods to fill the lakes.
The current drought has been going on for about three years, and is predicted to last another eight to 10 years – a scary thought, considering the already staggeringly low lake levels. Praying for rain, as many Texans have admitted to doing, may not be enough in this case.
The Tapped Out researchers then left Texas with hopes of finding cooler weather, but equally exciting stories in their next stop: the nation’s capital, Washington D.C.
Austin, Tx., June 5, 2013 – With a loaded itinerary and an eager tour guide by the name of Dr. Kevin Klein, the Tapped Out team set out for the Highland Lakes, which currently look like puddles connected by small trickling creeks in many areas.
Shocking is the best way to describe the first location Dr. Klein brought the team. All that was visible was the stark reality of an empty crater, boats scattered and abandoned on the floor of the once-full Lake Travis. Homes that were once lake-front properties had nothing to look at but a scary reminder that Texas is in a severe drought, and has been for several years.
Dr. Jordan Furnans, Senior Water Resources Engineer with a company called Intera, was the first to explain to the team how difficult it is to provide an adequate water supply for individuals living in Texas, one of the fastest growing statewide populations in the country. Seeing as Texas is in a severe drought, part of Dr. Furnans’s job is to make critical decisions regarding the change in access to the water during times of low supply, when people need water most.
After enjoying some legendary Texas barbeque, it was off to the city of Spicewood, Tx., a community that has essentially run out of water and has to have its supply trucked in four times a day. Karen Bruett, a resident of Spicewood, explained what it is like living there since their aquifer went dry.
Bruett and her husband moved to Spicewood years ago so that they could enjoy hobbies such as boating and fishing on beautiful Lake Travis. However, with the current drought situation, Lake Travis has been so low that Bruett’s boat has been parked in the driveway for over a year.
The lack of water is not only impacting recreation in Spicewood, but the daily lives of its residents as well. According to Bruett, the town is under stage four water restrictions, meaning that all outside uses for water are prohibited, and inside use must be greatly reduced.
“We don’t shower every day,” said Bruett, “and we only flush when necessary, so I'll let you figure that one out.” The restrictions are serious, and residents must pay a considerable fine if their water usage exceeds the allowable amount. This is the stark reality that Spicewood residents are facing, and sadly, it is becoming the new normal for many.
As the team continued on their journey through the Highland Lakes, it was clear that Bruett was not alone in hardships caused by lack of water; many other residents and business owners located on the lakes have been severely impacted by the ongoing drought.
The Highland Lakes normally draw in a huge amount of recreation, and many have built their livelihood around the business of recreation on the lakes. But persistent conditions have forced many local business owners to watch their customer base dry up along with the water. Some have even been forced into bankruptcy, seeing their life savings wash away due to something that they cannot control: whether or not it will rain.
John Williams, owner of Thunderbird Resort on Lake Buchanan, remains optimistic and proactive with regards to the health of his business by altering the way it operates to be more independent from the lake and its inconsistent levels. However, he still finds himself lying awake at night, concerned about the future of the Highland Lakes and our water supplies as a whole.
As the team listened to Williams’ testimony, they couldn’t help but marvel at the situation and their surroundings. Had the lake been at its normal capacity, waterproof camera equipment and scuba suits would have been necessary because they would have been standing 30 feet under water; instead, the team found themselves standing on dry land, at least five feet above the current water line.
Not only were these circumstances tear-jerking, they were also frustrating. After a long conversation over dinner with the President of the Central Texas Water Coalition, Jo Karr Tedder, it seemed that there was certainly more to Texas’s story than the drought. Contentions have been made that drought conditions have been aggravated by mismanagement of the water by the governing body for water allocation in Texas: the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA).
Lakes Buchanan and Travis, part of the Highland Lakes system, are reservoirs that help supply water for municipal, agricultural, and industrial uses in nearby cities and throughout the basin. In 2011, the LCRA released nearly 500,000 acre feet of water from the Highland Lakes, much of which was used by rice farmers in the southern part of the Texas.
The LCRA took this action with the presumption that rains would come and replenish the water in the lakes. This was not the case, however; a major drought hit shortly after the release, and thus the Highland Lakes are currently only at about 39 percent of their normal capacity. As surrounding communities have seen hardly any relief to the lakes since the 2011 release, either naturally or by actions of the LCRA, many of the citizens who live and depend on that water are extremely upset.
With the desire to hear both sides of this dispute, the Tapped Out team set out to meet with LCRA’s General Manager of Water Operations, Ryan Rowney, on their last day in Austin. When asked about the large release of water from the Highland Lakes in 2011 and the resulting consequences, Rowney stated that the organization had not accounted for the possibility of a prolonged drought, because they can usually count on heavy rains or floods to fill the lakes.
The current drought has been going on for about three years, and is predicted to last another eight to 10 years – a scary thought, considering the already staggeringly low lake levels. Praying for rain, as many Texans have admitted to doing, may not be enough in this case.
The Tapped Out researchers then left Texas with hopes of finding cooler weather, but equally exciting stories in their next stop: the nation’s capital, Washington D.C.