SPECIAL TO DAILYTRIB.COM AUSTIN — With parts of Texas in the midst of a persistent, severe drought, the Lower Colorado River Authority will seek permission from the state to curtail releases of interruptible stored water from the Highland Lakes for downstream irrigation for the fourth year in a row. LCRA also will ask permission to […]

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FROM STAFF REPORTS AUSTIN — The Lower Colorado River Authority began the process of changing the Water Management Plan in 2012, but on Sept. 17, the board finally approved the amendments, sending the measure to the next level.

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CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF AUSTIN — Canada-based Corix Utilities Inc. finalized on July 31 the acquisition of 18 Texas water and wastewater systems, 10 of which are in the Hill Country, from the Lower Colorado River Authority, officials said. LCRA originally put the water and wastewater faciliities, located primarily in the Austin area and […]

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FROM STAFF REPORTS AUSTIN — The Lower Colorado River Authority is stepping up enforcement against people without a contract who take water from the lakes and lower Colorado River via “straws,” but officials are giving a few days’ warning before really cracking down.

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CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF AUSTIN — As drought conditions continue, the battle over water from the Colorado River heats up between advocacy groups fighting to get their messages across to state agencies with the power to halt supplies.

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FROM STAFF REPORTS MARBLE FALLS — The Lower Colorado River Authority approved a one-year rate hike for firm water customers during the LCRA Board meeting June 16, adjusting for historic low lake levels, drought conditions, maintenance and service costs. Water officials in the Highland Lakes say residents of those municipalities affected by the LCRA decision […]

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CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF SPICEWOOD — A new water system takes shape, signaling the near-end of several communities and an elementary school relying on water trucked in for domestic use, officials say. “We’re getting very close. We’re essentially complete with the construction for the new wells,”  said Utilities Operations Manager Darrin Barker, of Corix, […]

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CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF LLANO — Watching runoff from rain pour over structures such as the Llano River Dam on Memorial Day provided some relief from the drought; however, unless the wet weather trend continues, the rise could become short-lived, officials say. “It’s coming over (the Llano River Dam); a tremendous amount of water […]

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CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF MARBLE FALLS — Lower Colorado River Authority officials have tempered a proposed water-rate hike by narrowing the increase contributed by upstream customers and shifting more of the burden of the hike to agricultural interests downstream, according to calculations from the revised plan.

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FROM STAFF REPORTS MARBLE FALLS — The Lower Colorado River Authority is hosting a meeting March 31 at Lakeside Pavilion to discuss proposed new raw water rates. The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6 p.m. LCRA staff will be available one on one to discuss the proposed rates and other water-related […]

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CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF MARBLE FALLS — Municipalities have implemented more stringent water conservation measures detailing use guidelines and waste penalties which could leave customers and cities paying more even as water usage decreases, officials say. Persistent drought conditions and recent limits placed on downstream agricultural customers hastened the move towards tighter water use […]

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DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR AUSTIN — Texas Commission on Environmental Quality commissioners left Highland Lakes officials scratching their heads Feb. 26 after approving an emergency drought relief order but striking the trigger point portion of the request. “I was just stunned that they went without a trigger point,” said Jo Karr Tedder of the […]

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DANIEL CLIFTON AND CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF AUSTIN — Two administrative law judges upped the ante when it comes to how much water must be in lakes Buchanan and Travis before the Lower Colorado River Authority can release it for downstream irrigation and rice farming purposes under a proposed emergency drought relief order. On […]

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FROM STAFF REPORTS AUSTIN — Some Lower Colorado River Authority irrigation customers, including rice farmers, have challenged the authority’s emergency drought relief request, forcing the issue to go before an administrative judge in February. On Feb. 12, LCRA officials asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to approve emergency drought relief for a third straight […]

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