Randy Neumann, Guest columnist
Austin American-Statesman
June 6, 2025

Texas has a proud history shaped by its resilient people and natural resources. For 89 legislative sessions our leaders have tackled countless challenges, yet none is as critical to our survival as securing water for our future. And while developing new water sources is vital, so is conserving the precious resources we already have, such as the Edwards Aquifer, which faces a threat from the proposed Guajolote Ranch subdivision in Bexar County.

Texas’ growing population and perpetual droughts have pushed our water resources to their limits. Despite the bounty of rivers, reservoirs, springs and even the Gulf, these sources are stretched thin. In the 19th century, steamboat Capt. Richard King described South Texas’ Wild Horse Desert as a sea of grass adorned with live oaks, and German Prince Karl of Solms-Braunfels marveled at the verdant Texas Hill Country. Now, overgrazing, unsustainable farming and rapid development have transformed these once lush landscapes into poignant reminders of human impact.

In 1950, the Hill Country population was 800,000. By 2000, it had more than tripled to 2.6 million, and by 2030, it’s projected to reach 4.6 million. This rapid growth underscores an undeniable truth: Every new resident will demand access to water.

Proposals to meet this challenge abound: importing water, building desalination plants, harvesting rainwater and even reusing treated wastewater. While valuable, these solutions are incomplete. Conservation offers an equally critical path — one that requires little more than preserving what remains.

Take, for instance, the Helotes Creek watershed in Northwest Bexar County. Surrounded by majestic hills and carved by ancient geological features like the Balcones Escarpment and the Haby Crossing Fault, this region feeds one of the world’s most prolific aquifers: the Edwards Aquifer. The Helotes Creek Watershed provides 15% of the aquifer’s total recharge, water so pure it requires little filtration, sustaining millions across Central Texas.

Yet, this natural treasure faces an existential threat. A developer plans to transform 1,100 acres of ranchland in northwest Bexar County into the high-density Guajolote Ranch subdivision with nearly 3,000 homes, releasing 1 million gallons of treated sewage daily into the Helotes Creek watershed. This effluent would reach the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, jeopardizing both the Edwards and Trinity aquifers. A 2020 Southwest Research Institute study warns that any introduction of wastewater treatment, regardless of type, in this area will degrade the aquifer’s pristine quality.

Two administrative law judges recently sided with the developer and recommended approval of the Texas Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit. But the geology here is particularly fragile. Faults, sinkholes, caves and other karst features allow rapid infiltration — making pollution on the surface an immediate threat to groundwater. San Antonio and 13 counties stretching beyond Austin rely heavily on this recharge zone.

There is hope. A decision on whether to approve the permit now rests with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, whose three-member panel is under leadership of a newly appointed chair, a committed advocate for water protection. The permit has many opponents, including the TCEQ’s own Office of Public Interest Counsel, neighborhood groups, and environmental advocates such as the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance. The mayor of San Antonio and legislators from both parties oppose the permit.

This is a pivotal moment for the TCEQ, an agency long criticized for leniency in permitting pollution. Under previous leadership, Texas was named the nation’s top toxic discharger in 2020, releasing 16.7 million pounds of pollutants into its own lakes, rivers and streams. The agency now has the opportunity to chart a new course.

I urge the TCEQ to reject this permit and protect the Edwards Aquifer Contributing and Recharge Zones — cornerstones of Texas’ natural legacy. By simply preserving what exists, we can safeguard 94 billion gallons of annual aquifer recharge, protecting water quality and quantity for millions of Central Texans.

The eyes of Texas are upon TCEQ. Like the pristine waters of the Edwards Aquifer, the choice is undeniably clear.

Randy Neumann is a retired manufacturing executive who lives in Helotes. He chairs the Scenic Loop-Helotes Creek Alliance Steering Committee.

This commentary was published in the Austin American-Statesman on June 6, 2025.

https://www.statesman.com/opinion/columns/your-voice/article/eyes-texas-upon-tceq-crucial-sewage-permit-case-20360120.php
(To view the commentary in the American-Statesman, click on the link, then click on “Go to Homepage,” and scroll down to the Opinion section.)

Photo caption and credit:
Helotes resident Randy Neumann (center) asks a litany of questions to officials as the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality holds a public hearing over a wastewater permit application from Municipal Operations LLC and Lennar Homes that would potentially send a million gallons [a day] of treated wastewater in Helotes Creek. Helotes area residents raised concerns and questions about dumping the treated water into the creek and what the environmental impact would be for their town. A large, standing-room crowd gathered for the meeting, peppering both TCEQ and Municipal Operations officials with questions throughout the evening. The wastewater facility would be for the Guajolote Ranch development in the Hill Country. Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News