Texas Water Journal (TWJ - Texas Digital Library, TDL E-Journals)
Not a member yet
130 research outputs found
Sort by
Dams are coming down, but not always by choice: the geography of Texas dams, dam failures, and dam removals
No full textThis study examines spatial and temporal trends in Texas dams, dam failures, and dam removals. Dams were examined from a state-wide perspective and within 10 major river basins that collectively account for over 80% of all dams in the state. The state-scale and basin-scale analysis revealed similar patterns of dam occurrence, however there was greater variation in the patterns observed in both the purpose of dams and the timing for when most of the storage was created in each basin. Climate factors, mainly precipitation, influenced dam location. Population was not directly measured in this study but was an obvious influence on the spatial distribution of dams and their functions. While new dams are being built in Texas to secure future water supplies, documented dam incidents/failures have occurred in 15 of the 23 major river basins in Texas, with 328 total instances occurring since 1900. As the number of newly constructed dams and dam failures continue to grow across the state, so should the number of planned dam removals. Between 1983 and 2016, 50 dams have been removed across the state. The purpose for the majority of removals was to eliminate liability concerns associated with aging dams. Future dam removals will likely continue to occur based on the number of older, smaller dams with potential liability concerns. As Texas’ dam infrastructure continues to age, dam removal is a practical management option for mitigating potential dam-related hazards and improving the connectivity and ecological function of the river systems.
Citation: Dascher ED, Meitzen K. 2020. Dams are coming down, but not always by choice: the geograph of Texas dams, dam failures, and dam removals. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):89-129. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7092
Runoff inflow volumes to the Highland Lakes in Central Texas: temporal trends in volumes, and relations between volumes and selected climatic indices
No full textInflow to the Highland Lakes has substantially decreased from 1942–2013, likely due to increased evapotranspiration from the proliferation of 19 major upstream reservoirs and about 69,500 minor reservoirs and water bodies. Increased evapotranspiration from land surfaces and stream channels also probably represent major causes for inflow reduction. Eight climatic indices were evaluated with respect to correlations with inflow volumes to the lakes. A combination of the indices for the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation and Oceanic Niño Index (Niño 3.4 region) was found to be, up to three months in advance, a fair indicator for the wettest three-month inflow periods, and a good indicator, up to nine months in advance, of the driest three-month inflow periods. The single best index indicator of dry periods is the Pacific Decadal Oscillation—a good indicator of the driest three-month periods up to a year in advance.
Citation: Slade RM Jr. 2020. Runoff inflow volumes to the Highland Lakes in Central Texas: temporal trends in volumes and relations between volumes and selected climatic indices. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):32-60. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7025
State legislature, voters move to eighty-six Texas’s flooding challenges
No full textEven before the 86th Texas Legislature began, it was clear the session would feature a deluge of activity focused on addressing Texans’ experience with flooding. Elected representatives from across the state floated solutions for Hurricane Harvey and long-term issues alike, featuring a mix of both recovery projects and future planning efforts. Much attention has been paid to Senate Bill 7 and Senate Bill 8, which create major new statewide programs. Significant questions remain regarding the implementation of these bills. We wade into these uncertainties and the larger trends behind the legislative session. In all, 128 introduced bills specifically mentioned “flooding” or “flood,” far exceeding anything from the previous 10 sessions. Even more, 240 total introduced bills addressed issues with a clear connection to flooding. Of these, 67 (28%) would go on to become legislation. As new laws go into effect, implementation ramps up, and funds trickle out, strong stakeholder engagement and communication will be key to making sure these programs hold water.
Citation: Berg MD. 2020. Policy Review: State Legislature, Voters Move to Eighty-Six Texas’s Flooding Challenges. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):1-14. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7101
Oilfield Water Infrastructure Connectivity: The Case for a ‘Hydrovascular’ Network In the Permian Basin
No full textThe current phase of oilfield water infrastructure buildout in the Permian generally emphasizes each operator or midstream provider building its own water transportation and disposal systems. Accordingly, the overall market is balkanized and inefficient compared to the performance a more interconnected system could achieve. A hydrovascular grid in the Permian Basin could lower oil & gas production costs, conserve scarce freshwater by promoting greater recycling and reuse of produced water, help mitigate seismicity risks, and facilitate movement of produced water at large scale for use outside the oilfield. The paper realistically assesses the barriers to such integration. It concludes by offering a set of practical ideas to overcome these challenges and help transform oilfield water into a resource for West Texas and Southeast New Mexico.
Citation: Collins G. 2020. Oilfield Water Infrastructure Connectivity: The Case for a ‘Hydrovascular’ Network in the Permian Basin. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):15-31. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7102
Internet of Texas Water Data Update: Use Cases for Flood, Drought, and Surface Water–Groundwater Interactions
No full textExperts representative of Texas’ water sectors identified critical water data needs and described the design of a comprehensive open access data system that facilitates use of public water data in Texas at the April 2018 Connecting Texas Water Data Workshop as reported in the Texas Water Journal. Participants described potential use cases to initiate work on the most critical data hubs for connecting Texas water data. This update describes progress on a flood dashboard by the Texas Water Development Board and development of use cases by stakeholders with expertise in water data for drought and surface water – groundwater interactions.
Citation: Rosen RA, Mace RE, Hermitte SM, Wade R. 2020. Internet of Texas water: use cases for flood, drought, and surface water–groundwater interactions. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):133-151. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7109
Exploring Groundwater Recoverability in Texas: Maximum Economically Recoverable Storage
No full textThe 2017 Texas state water plan projects total supply deficits of 4.8 and 8.9 million acre-feet under drought-of-record conditions by the year 2020 and 2070, respectively, driven by a growing population concurrent with declining available water supplies. Reductions in groundwater supply account for 95% of anticipated declines in total water supply. Meanwhile, restrictive groundwater management plans may be creating a regulation-induced shortage of groundwater in Texas, given the significant groundwater storage volumes that are unutilized under many management plans. However, these estimates do not account for many of the physical and none of the economic constraints to groundwater recoverability. We report an analysis of groundwater extraction feasibility and simulate maximum economically recoverable storage for conditions representative of the central section of the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer under economic constraints associated with agricultural uses. Two key limitations are applied to simulate recoverability: (1) the value of water pumped relative to pumping costs and (2) the capacity of the aquifer and well to meet demand. Our results indicate that these constraints may limit certain uses to as little as 1% of current groundwater availability estimates. We suggest that Texas groundwater managers, stakeholders, and policymakers assessing groundwater availability need an alternate approach for estimating recoverability.
Citation: Thompson JC, Kreitler CW, Young MH. 2020. Exploring groundwater recoverability in Texas: maximum economically recoverable storage. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):152-171. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7113
Commentary: Water: A Preventable Disaster
No full textEditor-in-Chief\u27s Note: The Texas Water Journal invited Texas state Senator Charles Perry, Chair of the Senate Committee on Water and Rural Affairs, to share his thoughts on the role of water in the coming 87th legislative session of the Texas Legislature. In the upcoming legislative session, Senator Perry said Texas will be navigating the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, the road to recovery and continuing water supply development. In the commentary, Senator Perry addresses how leveraging technology, public-private partnerships, and regulations will encourage the creation of new water sources while also expanding existing strategies. The opinion expressed in this commentary is the opinion of the individual author and not the opinion of the Texas Water Journal or the Texas Water Resources Institute.
Citation: Perry C. 2020. Commentary: Water: A Preventable Disaster. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):172-173. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7129
Book Review: Regulating Water Security in Unconventional Oil and Gas
No full textRegulating Water Security in Unconventional Oil and Gas is a collection of articles authored by professionals from disciplines as diverse as agriculture, zoology, law, and economics. The book takes a multidisciplinary look at how issues related to water for unconventional oil and gas production affect water security of a nation, state, community, or sector of industry—and possible pathways toward regulations that balance economic development with the human right to water. The authors examine what other regions have been experiencing to illustrate some of the common difficulties and differing perspectives, challenges, and solutions being attempted. Authors’ contributions are presented in four parts, making the dense subject matter digestible.
Citation: Foster J. 2020. Book Review: Regulating water security in unconventional oil and gas. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):61-63. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7114
Hydrodynamic Modeling Results Showing the Effects of the Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer on Salinity in Lake Houston, TX
No full textAn over-reliance on groundwater resources in the Houston (Texas) metropolitan area led to aquifer drawdowns and land subsidence, so regional water suppliers have been turning to surface water resources to meet water demand. Lake Houston, an important water supply reservoir 25 miles northeast from downtown Houston, requires new water supply sources to continue to meet water supply demands for the next several decades. The upcoming Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer Project will divert up to 500 million gallons per day of Trinity River water into Lake Houston. Trinity River water has significantly different water quality than the Lake Houston tributaries. To evaluate the project\u27s impact on water quality, the U.S. Geological Survey used an enhanced version of a previously released Lake Houston hydrodynamic model. With a focus on salinity and water-surface elevations, the model combined data from 2009-2017 with simulated flow from the Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer to evaluate potential outcomes from three hypothetical flow scenarios. Overall, these scenarios found that the Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer would cause salinities to rise over most of the modeled time (2009-2017), although salinities were buffered under 2011 drought conditions. Large inflow events equalized salinities under baseline conditions as well as the enhanced flow scenarios.
Citation: Smith EA, Shah S. 2020. Hydrodynamic modeling results showing the effects of the Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer on salinity in Lake Houston, TX. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):64-88. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7094
Commentary: Fact vs. Fiction on Rio Grande Deliveries
No full textEditor-in-Chief\u27s Note: The Texas Water Journal invited The Honorable Jayne Harkins, P.E., U.S. Commissioner for the International Boundary and Water Commission to share her thoughts on water deliveries from Mexico to the Rio Grande. The opinion expressed in the resulting commentary is the opinion of Commissioner Harkins and not the opinion of the Texas Water Journal or the Texas Water Resources Institute.
Citation: Harkins J. 2020. Commentrary: Fact vs. fiction on Rio Grande deliveries. Texas Water Journal. 11(1):130-132. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v11i1.7120