Media Advisory Join us at 6:30 pm (until 8), Wednesday, February 19 Giddings American Legion Hall 1502 US Highway 77 map here
Water Wars Boil in Central Texas!
Drew Scheberle, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce Vice President, let the cat out of the bag when testifying last Wednesday at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality hearing attended by hundreds of officials in Central Texas. He said,
“Our job, on behalf of the five counties, is to sell central Texas to the world as the best place to do business. The water question has been creeping into more and more of our conversations and we’d hate for the word to get out that Texas doesn’t have its water issue under control.”
The hearing was about the request by the LCRA to a draconian cut off of surface water flow to communities downstream of Austin.
If it were anywhere else but Texas, it would be scandalous that the business community, together with their minions in public office on both sides of the aisle, are fanning the flames of out-of-control growth (over 4,000 people are arriving per month to the Austin area) in the middle of historic drought.
A 12-hour hearing yesterday before the State Office of Administrative Hearings made it clear — downstream rural communities, farmers, wildlife advocates and environmentalists have little chance against the upstream Austin area “growth lobby”. The lobby put on more than 9 hours of testimony. The downstreamers had less than 3 — with just a few days notice to prepare and were subjected to being overruled repeatedly by the Administrative Law Judge.
Tomorrow, a critical meeting of the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District (Bastrop and Lee counties) in Giddings, will be about private interests (Forestar Real Estate Group and EndOp LC) forming a battering ram to take and transport groundwater for the same real estate interests pushing for the LCRA cut off. Not a peep has been heard from the State Representative for the area, Republican Tim Kleinschmidt, who has a financial interest in Forestar Real Estate’s water deal. Democratic State Senator Kirk Watson, former Austin Mayor and former chair of the Greater Austin Area Chamber of Commerce, who now also represents Bastrop, was at the top of the list pushing for the LCRA cut off of his own constituents.
Come see what happens — this will be camera friendly!
Got questions? Give us a call or reply to this message.
Thank you for your interest.
The testimony of Dew Scheberle, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, and many others before the TCEQ can be seen at this link on February 12. Mr. Scheberle’s is in the second video of testimony, at 6:08: http://www.texasadmin.com/tceqa.shtml
Linda Curtis Independent Texans PO Box 651 * Bastrop, TX 78602 512-535-0989 home office * 512-657-2089 cell