Region H Water Planning

1. Region H Water Planning

2. Senate Bill 1 • Each mayor of a municipality with a population of 1,000 or more or which is a county seat that is located in whole or in part in the Region H water planning area; • Each county judge of a county located in whole or in part in the Region H water planning area; • Each special or general law district or river authority with responsibility to manage or supply water in the Region H water planning area based upon lists of such water districts and river authorities obtained from Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; • Each retail public utility, defined as a community water system, that serves any part of the • Region H water planning area or receives water from the Region H water planning area based upon lists of such entities obtained from Texas Commission on Environmental Quality; and Each holder of record of a water right for the use of surface water the diversion of which occurs in the Region H water planning area based upon lists of such water rights holders obtained from Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

3. Water Resources There many prosperous areas including the communities seen in Brazoria, Harris, Galveston, Fort Bend, and Montgomery Counties and the agricultural in Austin, Chambers, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Polk, San Jacinto, Trinity, Walker, and Waller Counties. Region H has 4 coastal basins and three major river systems; Region H includes the San Jacinto River Basin, the lower portions of the Trinity and Brazos River Basins, and also part or all of the Brazos-Colorado, the San Jacinto-Brazos, the Trinity-San Jacinto, the Neches-Trinity coastal basins, and the Trinity and Galveston Bay estuaries.

4. Fish and wildlife depend on water flowing in rivers and streams to sustain riparian vegetation and wetland areas and supply the bays and estuaries along the Gulf Coast with freshwater inflows. More than any other factor, the availability of water will determine the future of fish and wildlife in our state.

5. Region H water demands are projected to increase from approximately 2.25 million acre-feet per year in year 2000 to over 3.18 million acre-feet per year by year 2050. In addition to municipal demand, water consumption for manufacturing, steam electric power generation and mining will increase throughout the planning period. Water demands for livestock production are projected to remain constant within Region H. Irrigation water demands are expected to decrease in Brazoria County and remain constant in the other counties in Region H, resulting in an overall reduction in irrigation water demands through the planning period. Table ES-5 presents the forecasts for water demands in Region H, summarized by county and totaled for Region H. Figure ES-2 shows that municipal water demands are projected to account for over 46 percent of the total regional water demands. Manufacturing demands are estimated to account for over 33 percent of the regional water demands. The projected water demands for municipal and manufacturing uses result from an application of water conservation practices. Within the region, conservation demand reductions vary by water user group, but range up to approximately 25 percent of demand. This expected level of conservation is projected to occur based on per capita demand reductions. Region H has the largest projection of manufacturing water use of any of the sixteen planning regions within the state. Harris County is projected to account for over 48 percent of the total regional water demand.