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Texas Agriculture Archive

February 21, 2003

Dewhurst asks TCEQ to
defer water appropriation

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst has asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to defer action on a major water permit application until the Legislature has an opportunity to clarify the Commission's authority to issue such a permit under Texas water appropriations law.

The request came in response to the application by the San Marcos River Foundation for a permit to appropriate 1.3 million acre-feet of state water per year from the Guadalupe and San Marcos rivers, solely to maintain freshwater flows into the Guadalupe Estuary.

"Water is a precious and limited resource, held by the state in trust for the people. We need to ensure that all Texans derive the maximum benefit out of the precious water that we have," Dewhurst said. "Our duty is to allocate our water for beneficial uses such as agriculture, public water supplies and industrial uses. We must maintain or improve the environmental quality of our rivers and bays—even while we make sure water is available for the people of this state both in times of plenty and in times of drought."

The Legislature is required to pass all laws regarding the conservation and development of the state's natural resources, including state waters. Under Texas water laws, the Commission has general jurisdiction over water conservation and the issuance of water permits. While state law authorizes the Commission to issue permits for "beneficial use"—including domestic and municipal use, agriculture and industry, mining and recovery of minerals, hydroelectric power, navigation, and recreation and pleasure—it does not clearly and expressly contemplate that it can issue permits for the sole purpose of appropriating water for preservation of in-stream flows.