City of Bryan and others suing over water rights

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boredatwork08
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10:15a, 11/20/24
AG
https://www.kxxv.com/news/local-news/in-your-neighborhood/brazos-county/bryan/city-of-bryan-takes-legal-action-to-preserve-water-resources

At first glance, I'm happy that our local governments are looking out for our most precious resource. Unfortunately, this article and statement from CoB are a bit sparse on the details. Where would this water go after being extracted? How much of the current annual extraction would 100,000 ac/ft represent?
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FamousAgg
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In reply to boredatwork08 • 10:26a, 11/20/24
Just for a visual, Lake Bryan is approximately 15,000 acre feet.
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AgTrip
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11:23a, 11/20/24
I found some more information regarding the Link above. This comes from the COB website.

https://www.bryantx.gov/the-city-of-bryan-sues-to-block-out-of-state-interests-from-raiding-brazos-valley-water/
Quote:
San Francisco-based Upwell LLC, which is backed by over $1 billion in capital from New York and Wall Street investors, is pursuing permits to extract up to 100,000 acre-feet of water annually from the Simsboro Aquifer, a critical water source for communities, agriculture, and institutions in the Brazos Valley. This amount of water is equivalent to over two times the amount of currently used annually by the cities of Bryan, Calvert, College Station, Franklin, and Hearne COMBINED.
I still can't find anything that mentions what they'll do with the extracted water.
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FamousAgg
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In reply to AgTrip • 11:33a, 11/20/24
2x the use of all those cities is a huge drain. If we are having water problems now imagine what this would do
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Hornbeck
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12:02p, 11/20/24
AG
CoCS didn't go this route. They just decided to drill more and deeper wells at a cost of $70M.

Maybe they should have looked at litigation first?!?
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maroon barchetta
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In reply to AgTrip • 12:21p, 11/20/24
Pipe it west and sell it
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BQ_90
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In reply to AgTrip • 1:15p, 11/20/24
AG
AgTrip said:
I found some more information regarding the Link above. This comes from the COB website.

https://www.bryantx.gov/the-city-of-bryan-sues-to-block-out-of-state-interests-from-raiding-brazos-valley-water/
Quote:
San Francisco-based Upwell LLC, which is backed by over $1 billion in capital from New York and Wall Street investors, is pursuing permits to extract up to 100,000 acre-feet of water annually from the Simsboro Aquifer, a critical water source for communities, agriculture, and institutions in the Brazos Valley. This amount of water is equivalent to over two times the amount of currently used annually by the cities of Bryan, Calvert, College Station, Franklin, and Hearne COMBINED.
I still can't find anything that mentions what they'll do with the extracted water.
i assume to sell it to Houston
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maroon barchetta
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In reply to BQ_90 • 2:17p, 11/20/24
BQ_90 said:
AgTrip said:
I found some more information regarding the Link above. This comes from the COB website.

https://www.bryantx.gov/the-city-of-bryan-sues-to-block-out-of-state-interests-from-raiding-brazos-valley-water/
Quote:
San Francisco-based Upwell LLC, which is backed by over $1 billion in capital from New York and Wall Street investors, is pursuing permits to extract up to 100,000 acre-feet of water annually from the Simsboro Aquifer, a critical water source for communities, agriculture, and institutions in the Brazos Valley. This amount of water is equivalent to over two times the amount of currently used annually by the cities of Bryan, Calvert, College Station, Franklin, and Hearne COMBINED.
I still can't find anything that mentions what they'll do with the extracted water.
i assume to sell it to San Antonio or Austin or Round Rock or…


FIFY
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rsa
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In reply to maroon barchetta • 2:49p, 11/20/24
AG
Their website (www.water.llc) makes it pretty clear that they want to own everything involved in the water system. No thank you!
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oklaunion
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3:21p, 11/20/24
The Bryan mayor was on 1620AM this morning and said it is going to Georgetown.
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Ag97
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3:23p, 11/20/24
AG
I hope they win the lawsuit and stop them from drilling that many wells. We're already seeing issues with water tables dropping. There is well field in Burleson County near Caldwell that is much smaller than this one that pumps water all the way to San Antonio. 8 foot diameter pipe being pumped full is having a significant drawdown effect on surrounding wells. I know 2 people that have had to have their wells lowered in the last couple years. At some point they won't be able to lower them any more and the water is just gone.

Unless we can stop the Texas population from growing, we're going to learn the hard way that green St. Augustine lawns and lots of landscaping aren't worth the pain it causes everyone once the aquifers are empty. My parents are on the Ogallala aquifer in the Texas Panhandle and they've already reached that point in many areas.
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maroon barchetta
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In reply to Ag97 • 3:25p, 11/20/24
Yet we keep seeing more and more people move to Texas. Legally or otherwise.
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AgTrip
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4:03p, 11/20/24
I've always thought about this simple diagram of the water cycle. What happens when we remove water from the cycle, and bottle it and put it on pallets in big wholesale warehouses and stores? Do we see less rain? Droughts?



I also find it ironic that we live on a planet 3/4 water and have water shortages.
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boredatwork08
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In reply to AgTrip • 7:20p, 11/20/24
AG
That's a bit of an oversimplification. I really hope you posted that in good faith.

Depletion of groundwater occurs for several reasons. We're essentially using accessible freshwater faster than it can be replenished. Then you have the fact of water that evaporates in one location may not be dumped back in the same location.

Only 3% of water on the entire planet is freshwater. Of that 3%, a good portion is locked up in glaciers/ice and the atmosphere. Desalination of ocean water has made significant progress over the last couple of decades but it is still cost prohibitive on a scale required for our needs.
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AgTrip
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7:32p, 11/20/24
Yep, very simplified. Just makes one think. I recall all the summer droughts and lakes and rivers low, Edward's aquifer in San Antonio always at record lows. Pumping water out to put it in a bottle to sit on a shelf didn't make sense. Haha
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AggieCVQ
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9:43p, 11/20/24
I have no idea how this isn't a bigger discussion.

They're basically selling our water to Austin to support their growth. **** off.

What does the city need to fight this? Money, vocal support?
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whoop1995
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5:57a, 11/21/24
AG
I collect ticket stubs! looking for a 1944 orange bowl and 1981 independence bowl ticket stub as well as Aggie vs tu stubs - 1926 and below, 1935-1937, 1939-1944, 1946-1948, 1950-1951, 1953, 1956-1957, 1959, 1960, 1963-1966, 1969-1970, 1972-1974, 1980, 1984, 1990, 2004, 2008, 2010
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Hornbeck
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In reply to AggieCVQ • 12:56a, 11/22/24
AG
AggieCVQ said:
I have no idea how this isn't a bigger discussion.

They're basically selling our water to Austin to support their growth. **** off.

What does the city need to fight this? Money, vocal support?


Changing Texas' backward laws.
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Cartographer
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9:09a, 11/22/24
A company did this in Burleson/Milam/Lee and other counties about 10 years ago. Once the larger land owners outside of the city sign their water rights to these people, it's over. Unfortunately, most of the water rights are subsurface and so not covered by surface ownership rights that transfer in typical land transactions.

So the people who live there often don't control what happens below the surface and those subsurface owners who are removed from the actual land have the right to sign contracts and obtain royalties. For them it's free money. For the locals, it loses them the ability to control water that is physically below their feet.

Their water went to San Antonio, IIRC.
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Cartographer
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9:12a, 11/22/24
In reading that article, it sounds like some of the larger entities in Robertson county have already signed with this company.

It appears as if this is not going to go well for those who rely on that aquifer.
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maroon barchetta
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In reply to Cartographer • 10:27a, 11/22/24
If they did everything legally.
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Stucco
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12:21p, 11/22/24
We will have to import water at some point too and will be happy to buy it from wherever we can. We need advancements in desalination.
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Bob Yancy
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In reply to Hornbeck • 9:45a, 11/24/24
Hornbeck said:
CoCS didn't go this route. They just decided to drill more and deeper wells at a cost of $70M.

Maybe they should have looked at litigation first?!?


We are a party to this lawsuit.

Respectfully

Yancy
My opinions are mine and should not be construed as those of city council or staff. I welcome robust debate but will cease communication on any thread in which colleagues or staff are personally criticized. I must refrain from comment on posted agenda items until after meetings are concluded. Bob Yancy 95
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Bob Yancy
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In reply to boredatwork08 • 9:46a, 11/24/24
boredatwork08 said:
https://www.kxxv.com/news/local-news/in-your-neighborhood/brazos-county/bryan/city-of-bryan-takes-legal-action-to-preserve-water-resources

At first glance, I'm happy that our local governments are looking out for our most precious resource. Unfortunately, this article and statement from CoB are a bit sparse on the details. Where would this water go after being extracted? How much of the current annual extraction would 100,000 ac/ft represent?


It would go to Georgetown, and it's far in excess of what we currently use locally.

Respectfully

Yancy
My opinions are mine and should not be construed as those of city council or staff. I welcome robust debate but will cease communication on any thread in which colleagues or staff are personally criticized. I must refrain from comment on posted agenda items until after meetings are concluded. Bob Yancy 95
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Bob Yancy
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In reply to AgTrip • 9:47a, 11/24/24
AgTrip said:
I found some more information regarding the Link above. This comes from the COB website.

https://www.bryantx.gov/the-city-of-bryan-sues-to-block-out-of-state-interests-from-raiding-brazos-valley-water/
Quote:
San Francisco-based Upwell LLC, which is backed by over $1 billion in capital from New York and Wall Street investors, is pursuing permits to extract up to 100,000 acre-feet of water annually from the Simsboro Aquifer, a critical water source for communities, agriculture, and institutions in the Brazos Valley. This amount of water is equivalent to over two times the amount of currently used annually by the cities of Bryan, Calvert, College Station, Franklin, and Hearne COMBINED.
I still can't find anything that mentions what they'll do with the extracted water.


They want to pipe it to Georgetown.

Respectfully

Yancy
My opinions are mine and should not be construed as those of city council or staff. I welcome robust debate but will cease communication on any thread in which colleagues or staff are personally criticized. I must refrain from comment on posted agenda items until after meetings are concluded. Bob Yancy 95
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BCSWguru
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10:08a, 11/24/24
Georgetown sucks. Dont send them anything.
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