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But Steve Minick, vice president of The drought has also affected businesses at the state’s lakes. According
government affairs for the Texas Associa- to Mason, one of the most popular recreational lakes in the state, Lake
tion of Business, which represents 4,000
businesses and 200 chambers of com- Travis on the edge of Austin, is only about 40 percent full.
merce, says the association doesn’t expect
it will: “We think that what the legislature River basin, rice farmers won’t be able In November, Texas voters
did with Proposition 6 and the use of the to water from the Highland Lakes,” approved the creation of a $2 billion
Rainy Day Fund to support these efforts Mason says. “This is the third year in fund to provide low interest loans
was the right thing to do. The fact our a row. Some of them may end up going and other financial assistance to
legislature is focused to ensure we can out of business. I think that’s a real local governments and public water
continue to meet the demand of growth possibility because it’s gone on for some providers to develop solutions to
and business opportunities in Texas sends time now. We have cotton growing up the water shortage. “We have taken
the right signal and should give those in the Panhandle area, which is largely steps to reallocate tax revenues
companies every confidence that Texas dependent on groundwater. Every time in Texas to make the financing
is the place to continue to bring jobs and there is a drought, it causes problems of water projects easier and more
capital investment to.” for cattle raisers. If you can’t graze affordable for local water providers,”
cattle on the grains produced by grass, Minick says. “We are also beginning
The drought has also affected busi- you have to buy pretty expensive hay discussions about the political and
nesses at the state’s lakes. According to from elsewhere and that drives some procedural changes that are neces-
Mason, one of the most popular recre- ranchers out of the cattle business.” sary to put new technologies and
ational lakes in the state, Lake Travis new water supply options on the
on the edge of Austin, is only about 40 Possible Solutions table. Those include enforcement
percent full. Some businesses on the of existing water rights from a
lakes are experiencing financial difficul- Despite the impacts of the drought, political standpoint, desalination of
ties. “You have people who rent [out] Minick says that the association is opti- brackish water, of which we have an
motorboats, jet skis, sailboats, marina mistic that state and local agencies are enormous resource in Texas, and
operators, the restaurants around the responding in a “very positive way.” He alternatives to new reservoirs such
lake, along with the real estate,” Mason says business owners and businesses as the recharge of aquifers. All these
says. “There are also very expensive interested in relocating to Texas can things have proven to be technically
homes that were lakeside residences feel confident that the state is going to feasible. The issue is, ‘How do we
that are now much further from the make the best use of its resources. look at existing water management
water than before. You have that impact and water legal structures and
whenever there is an extended dry examine what changes need to be
period that affects lake levels.” made to make those technically fea-
sible alternatives more practical?’”
But Mason notes that the
agricultural sector is probably the The Texas Center for Policy Studies
hardest hit of any sector because there released a report in May that argued
is limited water to grow crops in some the state could make better use of its
parts of the state. This includes rice existing water supplies and doesn’t
and cotton farmers. “In the Colorado have to spend billions of dollars on new
reservoirs, pipelines, and other water
supply projects. The report questioned
two conclusions in the 2012 State
Water Plan, including claims that
Texas would face a demand/supply gap
of 8.3 million acre-feet in 2060 and that
the price tag of meeting increasing
demand would be $53 billion.
“Our analysis shows that the
2060 demand/supply gap of 8.3
million acre-feet/year projected by
the 2012 State Water Plan is greatly
22 NBIZ ■ August 2014
