District representatives for Groundwater Management Area 14 (GMA 14) at their last meeting approved Proposed Desired Future Conditions (DFCs) for relevant aquifers located within GMA 14, and the group is now welcoming public comment.
Texas is divided into 16 Groundwater Management Areas (GMAs), and, on a five-year cycle, district representatives in each GMA are required to establish the DFCs for the GMA. A DFC is defined by the Texas Administrative Code as “the desired, quantified condition of groundwater resources (such as water levels, spring flows or volumes) within a management area at one or more specified future times as defined by participating groundwater conservation districts within a groundwater management area as part of the joint planning process.”
The Southeast Texas Groundwater Conservation District (SETGCD) is one of five groundwater conservation districts that make up GMA 14. At the GMA 14 meeting held on April 9, 2021, GMA 14 district representatives voted unanimously to approve Proposed Desired Future Conditions to present to the general public for comment (attached). The public comment period officially began Tuesday, April 20, 2021 and lasts for 90 days.
Toward the conclusion of this 90-day public comment period, the SETGCD will hold a public hearing to receive both written and oral comments on the proposed DFCs. After the public comment period has ended, each of the five groundwater conservation districts will compile a summary of relevant comments received and present this summary for consideration at the next GMA 14 meeting, which is tentatively scheduled for October 6, 2021. The primary focus of this meeting will be to review the summary reports, including any suggestions for revisions to proposed DFCs.
Those wishing to provide comment on the proposed DFCs may do so via e-mail: [email protected], or via USPS: Attn: John Martin, General Manager, Southeast Texas GCD, P.O. Box 1407, Jasper, Texas 75951. For more information, call (409) 383-1577.
STATEMENT OF PROPOSED DESIRED FUTURE CONDITIONS FOR
GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT AREA 14
The Member Districts of Groundwater Management Area 14 (“GMA 14”) propose the following Desired Future Conditions (“DFCs”) for the Gulf Coast Aquifer within Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Grimes, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Montgomery, Newton, Orange, Polk, San Jacinto, Tyler, Walker, Waller, and Washington counties:
In each county in GMA 14, no less than 70 percent median available drawdown remaining in 2080 and no more than an average of 1.0 additional foot of subsidence between 2009 and 2080.
The model simulation consistent with the above proposed DFCs was developed by using the Houston Area Groundwater Model (HAGM) and adjusting the pumping distribution in each county starting with the distribution used in the 2016 round of joint planning in GMA 14.