UTA considers starting Urban Water Institute

Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas), 2012-12-02

By Bill Hanna, Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Dec. 02--With growth expected to continue for decades -- the population of North Texas is projected to double by 2060 -- the long-term needs for water aren't going away.

But as the state wrestles to fund the State Water Plan and North Texas water providers keep looking for long-term sources of water, there is a growing realization that the issue could use a fresh perspective.

The University of Texas at Arlington is hoping to provide that insight by creating an Urban Water Institute to look at all the complex water issues the region faces, including financial and environmental impacts.

"The Urban Water Institute's mission is really to help this region in getting the supply of water it needs to succeed," said Jean-Pierre Bardet, dean of UTA's College of Engineering.

Bardet arrived nearly a year ago from the University of Southern California, where regional water planning has been an issue for decades. The first step, he said, would be to study the impact of higher water prices on the local economy.

"What is the break point where the industry will feel some pain that will make them think twice about moving into this region?" Bardet said "Right now, we don't have the answer for that."

Dallas and the Tarrant Regional Water District are building a $2.3 billion pipeline to bring more water from East Texas to Dallas-Fort Worth. The first water to be pumped through it is scheduled for 2018.

UTA has had several contracts related to that project.

The next water source probably won't be needed until 2035 and that timeline could be stretched further by utilizing smaller projects, reusing water and improving conservation.

What emerges as the next big water project remains to be seen.

Oklahoma lawsuit

The Tarrant Regional Water District has been embroiled in a nearly 6-year-old federal lawsuit to obtain water from Oklahoma.

The water district, which had other local water providers join the lawsuit, lost at the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver and asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.

On Friday, the water district's case found support from the U.S. solicitor general's office, which filed a brief supporting a review by the court. That keeps the case alive at least until the justices decide whether to hear it.

If Tarrant Regional ultimately wins the lawsuit, the water would go a long way in addressing North Texas long-term needs. If it loses, other long-term options have significant challenges.

Building the proposed Marvin Nichols reservoir in Northeast Texas has strong opposition from local landowners and would require a long permitting process. Taking water from the Toledo Bend reservoir on the Texas-Louisiana border would be very expensive: the water would have to be pumped 300 miles uphill to the Metroplex.

David Marshall, engineering services director at the Tarrant Regional Water District, said that the region would benefit from an independent entity to study these tough questions but that neither the water district nor other local water providers have officially backed the institute.

"There is a need from a policy standpoint for something that is unbiased for the state and Metroplex to answer how we can keep this economic engine going, but also deal with all of the difficult questions we have on long-term water policy," Marshall said. "As far as being a water supplier, we have a tremendous responsibility as we reach out further for future water resources whether it's Toledo Bend, Marvin Nichols or Oklahoma."

Marshall, who is trying to generate support for a water institute, said it would need "buy-in" from local providers and other entities for funding. More meetings are planned in coming months.

Legislative priorities

In Austin, legislators appear to be paying more attention to water issues.

House Speaker Joe Straus and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst have said water should be one of the legislative priorities during the upcoming session.

At the Dallas Regional Chamber on Thursday, Dewhurst floated the idea of using $1 billion from the rainy-day fund that would go toward a new water infrastructure development bank to help build reservoirs and other projects.

"I'm as optimistic as I've been watching this issue for the past decade and a half," said Heather Harward, executive director of H2O4Texas, a group of businesses, municipalities and water suppliers that supports fully funding the State Water Plan.

"The drought is the unfortunate catalyst," Harward said.

One environmental group said there needs to be more emphasis on conservation before starting costly projects.

"If Texas is looking to spend a billion dollars to address our water crisis, which we need to do, the conservative approach would be to exhaust the cheapest options first before building expensive new reservoirs and pipelines," said Luke Metzger, director of Environment Texas.

UTA could provide expertise, like studying whether the region is prepared for a prolonged, severe drought and whether there are alternatives, such as desalination, to building costly reservoirs and pipelines.

"I'm invested in it," Bardet said. "I would like to see this happen very much. I think we owe it to the region to make it happen."

Bill Hanna, 817-390-7698

Twitter: @fwhanna

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