HAYS COUNTY
The Hays County Commissioners Court adopted a resolution supporting One Water strategies, a method of water conservation, and to implement a plan to direct staff to explore such strategies in public and private development projects.
“One Water is defined as an integrated approach to water management that views all water in our community — drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, greywater — as a single resource to be managed holistically and sustainably for the benefit of strong economies, vibrant communities and healthy environments,” the resolution stated. “Hays County staff shall study opportunities to deploy One Water strategies in the county with an assess- ment of the costs and benefits associated with doing so. These shall include considerations for public infrastructure and facilities as well as private developments and buildings.”
The resolution addresses and acknowledges the current status of water resources in Hays county and looks ahead at the future of water that can be affected by drought, heightened demand due to development and water quality impairments due to factors such as flooding.
“Hays County has a responsibility to ensure water supplies in the future can meet demand and to employ innovative strategies to these ends,” the resolution stated. “A continued commitment to water conservation is necessary to water security and resiliency in the future.”
Zane Porterfield spoke during public comment as a representative from the Watershed Association.
“A One Water resolution is timely; it’s science based and it is visionary leadership,” Porterfield said. “Jacobs Well, the Blanco River, Cypress Creek and the aquifers beneath us are under immense strain. The Trinity Aquifer is already overallocated and according to the 2022 State Water Plan municipal demand in Hays County is projected to grow nearly 190% by 2070.”
The goal is to guide citizens and corporations to regulate and build in a way that recharges the aquifers rather than draining them.
This resolution acknowledges work already implemented to conserve, regulate and protect water resources in Hays County.
“In 2022, the Hays County Commissioners Court approved new Conservation Development Guidelines, which provides a framework for the County to follow to incentivize developers and landowners to develop the Hill Country and the Blackland Prairie in a more conservation-oriented, sustainable manner to preserve the historic culture of the County,” the resolution stated. “The County has demonstrated further commitment to protecting sensitive waterbodies by creating the Watershed Coordinator position that works alongside local organizations such as the Watershed Association and the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment to address surface water quality and the importance of properly managing source/groundwater by implementing the Blanco/Cypress Watershed Protection Plan.”
Hays County Commissioner Morgan Hammer explained the purpose of the resolution.
“This resolution says that our focus as a county and our goals and our vision is to look for and to do conservation more on the water management side and this One Water approach is such a great approach,” Hammer said.
Every council member was supportive of the resolution.
“It’s important to me that all those words [in the resolution] with the list of CIP [Capital Improvement Plan] projects we have that this One Water concept gets laid over everything new we’re building. Because it is right, it is necessary and because we know we need it,” Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra said.
