Flooding in Austin, San Marcos, Wimberly !!!

[Celina8]

Saw where parts of Central Texas including Austin, San Marcos and Wimberly have received over 14 inches of rain. Pflugerville had over 8 inches this morning. Not sure if any of the Downlow members are being hit with flooding but my prayers go out to you . Keep us updated.

[Aesculus gilmus]

Saw where parts of Central Texas including Austin, San Marcos and Wimberly have received over 14 inches of rain. Pflugerville had over 8 inches this morning. Not sure if any of the Downlow members are being hit with flooding but my prayers go out to you . Keep us updated.

Just in time to defeat the Proposition 6 State Water Plan at the polls Tuesday. Drought? What drought?

http://www.lcra.org/water/Facts-on-Proposition-6.html

[Weebe]

Interesting that we are having to implement new laws to compensate for water shortages that are created in large part to not enforcing laws that are on the books.

[Sville]

Any pictures

[hookandladder]

Interesting that we are having to implement new laws to compensate for water shortages that are created in large part to not enforcing laws that are on the books.

Tell us what laws are in place that would compensate for water shortage, give us your knowledge on water use.

[Tejastrue]

Appreciate that Celina8. It was a brutal deluge. My driveway is now littered with deep craters and crevasses. Going to cost me quite a bit to repair. Large rocks, tree limbs and debris scattered on the roads throughout the town.

[Aesculus gilmus]

Appreciate that Celina8. It was a brutal deluge. My driveway is now littered with deep craters and crevasses. Going to cost me quite a bit to repair. Large rocks, tree limbs and debris scattered on the roads throughout the town.

Sorry to hear that. Yeah, when I moved to Austin to go to UT, the first thing I began asking was "Where is the dirt?" Hard to get used to the rocks everywhere.

Up here the rain is able to soak into deep sandy soils, so there is really no such thing as a "flash flood."

[NastySlot]

heard the sub varsity games between Fred and Wimberley were all cancelled.

[Weebe]

Tell us what laws are in place that would compensate for water shortage, give us your knowledge on water use.

Overpopulation is responsible for the water shortage.

[Celina8]

Appreciate that Celina8. It was a brutal deluge. My driveway is now littered with deep craters and crevasses. Going to cost me quite a bit to repair. Large rocks, tree limbs and debris scattered on the roads throughout the town.

Wow, no it is a lot to deal with and expensive, but rocks and trees can be hauled away , just be safe!

[hookandladder]

Overpopulation is responsible for the water shortage.

So the drought has nothing to do with it, also do you know what amount of water is actually used for drinking water out of the Highland lakes.

[Weebe]

In 2012, almost half of the LCRA's water was dedicated to municipalities.

Of course the drought has something to do with it.

But, regardless of drought, water is not an infinite resource. At some point there is not enough to sustain unlimited population increases.

[Tejastrue]

Wow, no it is a lot to deal with and expensive, but rocks and trees can be hauled away , just be safe!
Can't agree with you more Celina8. I did have a chance to drive deeper into the surrounding areas and feel very fortunate. A lot of people have suffered far worse.

[hookandladder]

In 2012, almost half of the LCRA's water was dedicated to municipalities.

Of course the drought has something to do with it.

But, regardless of drought, water is not an infinite resource. At some point there is not enough to sustain unlimited population increases.

Do you have actual facts to back this comment up or is this just your educated guess.

[panfan]

Do you have actual facts to back this comment up or is this just your educated guess.

So just curious, by the tone of the questons you pose, do you believe there is no water shortage? curious.

[hookandladder]

So just curious, by the tone of the questons you pose, do you believe there is no water shortage? curious.

Only because of the drought, the drought is effecting all water supply. We just need rain in the right places , when lakes are at normal levels there is plenty water for everyone. In the future we will need more water, that is why reservoirs are being built downstream to take pressure off the Highland Lakes to provide water to downstream farmers and industries like providing electricity to our houses.

[wimbo_pro]

Do you have actual facts to back this comment up or is this just your educated guess.

Texas is obviously an arid state. ALL LAKES are man made, except Caddo Lake (which is really more of a bayou). With the growth Texas is experiencing (and HAS experienced over the decades) it is more than obvious that water is a problem. We cannot "hope" for plenty of rain. We must have a plan if growth is in our future. Go check the TIME magazine that came out a week or two ago...Texas is slated for HUGE growth in the coming years. We must be prepared.

[Old Tiger]

Of the worlds water only 3% of that is fresh water. There is definitely an issue and Texas is behind big time in the water resource race. In about 5-10 years we will all start seeing an increase in water bill. It could get so drastic that it your water bill could become higher than your electric. I read recently that Texas just lost out to Oklahoma in a case about water rights.

[panfan]

Only because of the drought, the drought is effecting all water supply. We just need rain in the right places , when lakes are at normal levels there is plenty water for everyone. In the future we will need more water, that is why reservoirs are being built downstream to take pressure off the Highland Lakes to provide water to downstream farmers and industries like providing electricity to our houses.

building more reservoirs is not the answer. There is definetly a shortage in the supply versus demand equation and it will only get worse. It won't be to far into the future before we end up doing what the saudis do which is desalinization.

[hollywood]

building more reservoirs is not the answer. There is definetly a shortage in the supply versus demand equation and it will only get worse. It won't be to far into the future before we end up doing what the saudis do which is desalinization.

:iagree:

[panfan]

Can't agree with you more Celina8. I did have a chance to drive deeper into the surrounding areas and feel very fortunate. A lot of people have suffered far worse.

Tejas - I hope that the good folks of Wimberley are able pull together to get through this and that outside support is quickly forthcoming. I was there recently during the flooding on the front range in Colorado and the damage caused there will take years to recover from in some areas. Hope ya'll can recover with support much quicker.

[garciap77]

Any pictures

http://www.heavy.com/news/2013/10/austin-texas-floods-2013-pictures-photos/9/

[bwdlionfan]

Tejas - I hope that the good folks of Wimberley are able pull together to get through this and that outside support is quickly forthcoming. I was there recently during the flooding on the front range in Colorado and the damage caused there will take years to recover from in some areas. Hope ya'll can recover with support much quicker.

I agree with you about the need for desalinization, but do you realize how many hundreds of thousands of acre feet go down the Brazos and Colorado in to the Gulf every year because on the Brazos there is not a lake downstream of Whitney, and on the Colorado there is not a lake downstream of Austin. Anytime there are flooding rains south of Austin or Waco, that water goes right to the Gulf. It only makes sense to catch some of it in newly built reservoirs. Sure, some needs to go on downstream for the farmers and for the wildlife and marine life that are dependent on the rivers, but plenty goes down that more reservoirs could be built downstream.

By the way, I don't think there is anything in this proposition that says that money can't be used for desalinization. The $2 billion that will be set aside will be for new water infrastructure projects, and it will be loaned out to local municipalities at low interest rates. These municipalities are going to go forward with their water projects whether the proposition passes or not, it just depends if you as a tax payer and water user would rather pay interest on a low interest loan from the state or pay interest to a bank. I would rather pay low interest to the state, and then that interest that the state generates will be reused for more water infrastructure projects.

[Tejastrue]

Tejas - I hope that the good folks of Wimberley are able pull together to get through this and that outside support is quickly forthcoming. I was there recently during the flooding on the front range in Colorado and the damage caused there will take years to recover from in some areas. Hope ya'll can recover with support much quicker.The folks around here are a pretty resilient bunch as I suspect the same in most small towns across the state. Appreciate your thoughts very much. On a much sadder note, and this did not occur in Wimberley, but a young lady and her infant child were swept away by the flood waters. I posted a link. Prayers go out to the family. http://www.myfoxaustin.com/story/23851778/woman-and-8-month-old-missing-near-onion-creek

[wimbo_pro]

I understand that desalination is extremely expensive due to the power consumed. Not sure its a viable option versus conservation and preservation.

[panfan]

I agree with you about the need for desalinization, but do you realize how many hundreds of thousands of acre feet go down the Brazos and Colorado in to the Gulf every year because on the Brazos there is not a lake downstream of Whitney, and on the Colorado there is not a lake downstream of Austin. Anytime there are flooding rains south of Austin or Waco, that water goes right to the Gulf. It only makes sense to catch some of it in newly built reservoirs. Sure, some needs to go on downstream for the farmers and for the wildlife and marine life that are dependent on the rivers, but plenty goes down that more reservoirs could be built downstream.

By the way, I don't think there is anything in this proposition that says that money can't be used for desalinization. The $2 billion that will be set aside will be for new water infrastructure projects, and it will be loaned out to local municipalities at low interest rates. These municipalities are going to go forward with their water projects whether the proposition passes or not, it just depends if you as a tax payer and water user would rather pay interest on a low interest loan from the state or pay interest to a bank. I would rather pay low interest to the state, and then that interest that the state generates will be reused for more water infrastructure projects.

I do realize it. I've spent the last 20+ years of my career looking at things like quantity of water, quality of water, and impacts on aquatic life. Do you realize that frequency of red tides and fish kills in deltas and bays that receive inflows from places like the Brazos and the Colorado have increased? Productivity of bays is not near what they once were. Point is, by the time the water gets to these bays , its not nearly enough and its been used and reused so many times, its not worth a whole lot, but still has some value. Evaporation loss in reservoirs is high, so while you are storing water, you are also loosing water. Want to use water capture? Consider rainwater capture. The more its done individually, the less the demand on the central systems.

Now go stick it in another reservoir so we can squeeze another use or two out of it before sending it on and it may or may not be worthwhile by the time it gets there (i.e., the bays). Look at the Colorado -SAWS project that was slated to build 2-4 off channel reservoirs to provide water for SA and Austin. LCRA ultimately nixed the deal. They simply did not have enough water in the projected demands to make it a viable solution.

Prop 6 - fund it how ever you want - but any effort that is not first aimed at conservation and good management and is only looking at how we can build another reservoir is a ridiculous band aid. I can support it if it were to include some teeth about how the money is used. My early read on it suggests its another flaky law that it tossing money at a problem without in real path. I hope I'm wrong.

Wimbo - yep desalinization is expensive - basically its a big time reverse osmosis plant. I am working with a client now that is looking at a possible RO treatment system for a huge spring discharge (not in Texas) and it would include not only RO but a biological treatment process as well. Point is, they have to do something to meet federal regs. For drinking water, we will eventually HAVE to do something because of shortages and costs will end up being passed on to consumers. Check out water costs in the front range of Colorado - they are huge for the residential users compared to ours.



- agree conservation is the only approach to meet increased demand